Earl Robinson Darrell, 87, rolls his eyes a little bit when you ask him if he’ll play ‘Yellow Bird’, but his fingers start rolling over the keys. Yellow bird so high in the ‘nana tree… ‘I could play that in my sleep,” he says. Throughout his long career as a pianist in Bermuda, he got a little tired of people asking for this song. In the 1950s and 1960s, the tourists were crazy for it. He became a little frustrated because he has a wide repertoire that includes Italian and German songs.
His parents were Melvina and John Darrell, and he grew up in Warwick in the Spring Hill area. His family was musical and he learned to play the piano by ear from an early age.
He got his musical start as a teenager playing the piano with the Al Davis Band. An older musician scheduled to play didn’t show up for work and Earl was in because he knew how to play ‘Blue Moon’.
The Second World War broke out, and he joined the Caribbean Regiment. He was stationed in Italy and Egypt. It was when he was stationed at a military hospital in Port Said, Egypt that he first learned to read music from an English Corporal who played the organ in a church attended by the troops. “I used to hang around him, and he offered to show me how to read music,” said Earl.
When he returned to Bermuda in January 1946, he formed a musical group called The Aldarno Sextet. The group blew music lovers away with their upright piano, standing bass, drummer, and horn section. The group inspired many other Bermudians to play music, such as pianist Dr Melvin Dickinson.
For decades Earl played the piano all over Bermuda, with 40 years spent as the in-house pianist at the Waterlot Inn. He stayed with them through the restaurant’s various reincarnations. They were the ‘Number One Club’ providing fast food to golfers, until a fire broke out. Later they became the Rib Room. At one point they were well known for a Chinese dish they made. Earl was a popular musician, and it wasn’t unusual for other restaurant owners to try to poach him from the Waterlot. He doesn’t brag, but he says people simply wanted to be where his music was at.
Over the years he played for numerous celebrities and dignitaries including the British Prime Minister in the 1970s, Edward Heath and Canadian jazz pianist Oscar Peterson. But the celebrity he is perhaps most proud of is Elizabeth Taylor. He keeps a photo of the two of them on his mantle piece.
He was married for many years to his wife Winfred. Sadly, she died three years ago. In 2008, his contributions to the Bermuda music scene were recognized with the PLP Drum Major Award.
