Hello, a freak comet lit up the Australian sky tonight, we're supposed to enter the taurid stream a few weeks from now, let's hope it wasn't a warning these things can be extremely lethal. Meanwhile that rightwing comedian Nigel Farage and his simplistic ideas sees a large number of British nincompoops following him into the abyss. Mrs May is not amused but nobody cares what she says, her days are numbered, only a comet strike can save her.
Today's artists proved that you could still make great music with a history of wars, revolutions, kings, psychotic dictators and deadly hurricanes, ah yes the human spirit . .......N'Joy
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Calypso music was the driving force for Carnivals in Trinidad and Tobago (Soca music now has that honor). Trinidad and Tobago is credited with the 'origin' and evolution of Calypso music as we know it today. “Iron Duke in the Land” is considered the first recorded calypso in English (recorded in 1914). Earlier calypsos were sung in patois. “Iron Duke in the Land” is a calypso by Henry Julian (a.k.a. Julian Whiterose) in which he boasts about roles he portrayed in the White Rose Social Union (his masquerade band) in the 1890s when he was instrumental in developing fancy masquerade bands. During that period the musical style was called Cariso. The term “Calypso” evolved later at the turn of the nineteenth century. This title “Iron Duke in the Land,” is the only title of Whiterose’s recordings known to exist. Julian also performed under the names J. White Rose, Henry Julian, and J. Resigna.
Calypso is a style of Afro-Caribbean music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago during the early to mid-19th century and eventually spread to the rest of the Caribbean Antilles and Venezuela by the mid-20th century. Its rhythms can be traced back to West African Kaiso and the arrival of French planters and their slaves from the French Antilles in the 18th century.
It is characterized by highly rhythmic and harmonic vocals, and is most often sung in a French creole and led by a griot. As calypso developed, the role of the griot became known as a chantuelle and eventually, calypsonian. As English replaced "patois" (Antillean creole) as the dominant language, calypso migrated into English, and in so doing it attracted more attention from the government. It allowed the masses to challenge the doings of the unelected Governor and Legislative Council, and the elected town councils of Port of Spain and San Fernando. Calypso continued to play an important role in political expression, and also served to document the history of Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago.
Calypso in the Caribbean includes a range of genres, including: the Benna in Antigua and Barbuda; Mento, a style of Jamaican folk music that greatly influenced ska and reggae; Ska, the precursor to rocksteady, and reggae; Spouge, a style of Barbadian popular music; Dominica Cadence-lypso, which mixed calypso with the cadence of Haiti; and soca music, a style of Kaiso/calypso, with influences from chutney, soul, funk, Latin and cadence-lypso.
It is thought that the name "calypso" was originally "kaiso" which is now believed to come from Efik "ka isu" ("go on!") and Ibibio "kaa iso" ("continue, go on"), used in urging someone on or in backing a contestant.[2] There is also a Trinidadian term "cariso" that means "old-time" calypsos.[3] The term "calypso" is recorded from the 1930s onwards. Alternatively, the insert for The Rough Guide to Calypso and Soca (published by World Music Network) favours John Cowley's arguments in Carnival, Canboulay and Calypso: Traditions in the Making, that the word might be a corruption of the French carrouseaux and through the process of patois and Anglicization became caliso and then finally "calypso"; however, Cowley also notes that the first mention of the word "calypso" is given in a description of a dance in 1882 by Abbé Masse.[4]
Origins
Calypso music was developed in Trinidad in the 17th century from the West African Kaiso and canboulay music brought by African slaves imported to that Caribbean island to work on sugar plantations. The slaves, brought to toil on sugar plantations, were stripped of all connections to their homeland and family and not allowed to talk to each other. They used calypso to mock the slave masters and to communicate with each other. Many early calypsos were sung in French Creole by an individual called a griot. As calypso developed, the role of the griot became known as a chantuelle and eventually, calypsonian.
Modern calypso, however, began in the 19th century, a fusion of disparate elements ranging from the masquerade song lavway, French Creole belair and the calinda stick-fighting chantwell. Calypso's early rise was closely connected with the adoption of Carnival by Trinidadian slaves, including canboulay drumming and the music masquerade processions. The French brought Carnival to Trinidad, and calypso competitions at Carnival grew in popularity, especially after the abolition of slavery in 1834.
Recordings
The first identifiably calypso genre song was recorded in 1912, by Lovey's String Band while visiting New York City. In 1914, the second calypso song was recorded, this time in Trinidad, by chantwell Julian Whiterose, better known as the Iron Duke and famous calinda stick-fighter. Jules Sims would also record vocal calypsos. The majority of these calypsos of the World War I era were instrumentals by Lovey and Lionel Belasco. Perhaps due to the constraints of the wartime economy, no recordings of note were produced until the late 1920s and early 1930s, when the "golden era" of calypso would cement the style, form, and phrasing of the music.
Calypso evolved into a way of spreading news around Trinidad. Politicians, journalists and public figures often debated the content of each song, and many islanders considered these songs the most reliable news source. Calypsonians pushed the boundaries of free speech as their lyrics spread news of any topic relevant to island life, including speaking out against political corruption. Eventually British rule enforced censorship and police began to scan these songs for damaging content.
Even with this censorship, calypsos continued to push boundaries, with a variety of ways to slip songs past the scrutinizing eyes of the editor. Double entendre, or double-speak, was one way, as was the practice of denouncing countries such as Hitler's Germany and its annexation of Poland, while making pointed references toward the UK's policies on Trinidad. Sex, scandal, gossip, innuendo, politics, local news, bravado and insulting other calypsonians were the order of the day in classic calypso, just as it is today with classic hip-hop. And just as the hip-hop of today, the music sparked shock and outrage in moralistic sections of society.
Countless recordings were dumped at sea in the name of censorship, although in truth, rival US companies did this in the spirit of underhanded competition, claiming that the rivals' material was unfit for US consumption. Decca Records lost untold pressings in this manner, as did its rival, RCA's Bluebird label.
An entrepreneur named Eduardo Sa Gomes played a significant role in spreading calypso in its early days. Sa Gomes, a Portuguese immigrant who owned a local music and phonograph equipment shop in Port of Spain, promoted the genre and gave financial support to the local artists. In March 1934, he sent Roaring Lion and Attila the Hun to New York City to record; they became the first calypsonians to record abroad, bringing the genre out of the West Indies and into pop culture.[5] Lord Invader was quick to follow, and stayed in New York City after a protracted legal case involving the theft of his song "Rum and Coca-Cola", a hit by the Andrews Sisters. He made his home there along with Wilmoth Houdini, and became one of the great calypsonians of the USA. Early forms of calypso were also influenced by jazz such as Sans Humanitae. In this extempo (extemporaneous) melody calypsonians lyricise impromptu, commenting socially or insulting each other, "sans humanité" or "no mercy" (which is again a reference to French influence).
The first major stars of calypso started crossing over to new audiences worldwide in the late 1930s. Attila the Hun, Roaring Lion and Lord Invader were first, followed by Lord Kitchener, one of the longest-lasting calypso stars in history—he continued to release hit records until his death in 2000. 1944's "Rum and Coca-Cola" by the Andrews Sisters, a cover version of a Lord Invader song, became an American hit despite the song being a very critical commentary on the explosion of prostitution, inflation and other negative influences accompanying the American military bases in Trinidad at the time. Perhaps the most straightforward way to describe the focus of calypso is that it articulated itself as a form of protest against the authoritarian colonial culture which existed at the time.
Calypso, especially a toned-down, commercial variant, became a worldwide craze with the release of the "Banana Boat Song", or "Day-O", a traditional Jamaican folk song, whose best-known rendition was done by Harry Belafonte on his album Calypso (1956); Calypso was the first full-length record to sell more than a million copies. The success of that album inspired hundreds of "Folkies", or the American folk music revival to imitate the "Belafonte style", but with a more folk-oriented flavor. The Kingston Trio would be a good example. 1956 also saw the massive international hit "Jean and Dinah" by Mighty Sparrow. This song too was a sly commentary as a "plan of action" for the calypsonian on the widespread prostitution and the prostitutes' desperation after the closing of the U.S. naval base on Trinidad at Chaguaramas. In the Broadway-theatre musical Jamaica (1957), Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg cleverly parodied "commercial" Belafonte-style calypso. Several films jumped on the calypso craze in 1957 such as Island in the Sun (20th Century Fox) that featured Belafonte and the low-budget films Calypso Joe (Allied Artists), Calypso Heat Wave (Columbia Pictures), and Bop Girl Goes Calypso (United Artists). Robert Mitchum released an album, Calypso...Is Like So (1957), on Capitol records, capturing the sound, spirit, and subtleties of the genre. Dizzy Gillespie recorded a calypso album Jambo Caribe (1964) with James Moody and Kenny Barron.
Soul shouter Gary "US" Bonds released a calypso album Twist up Calypso (1962) on Legrand records, shortly after returning home from his military post in Port of Spain. Nithi Kanagaratnam from Sri Lanka sang calypso-styled songs in Tamil in 1968, which was a success and earned him the title "Father of Tamil Popular Music". Since Baila rhythm was popular in Sri Lanka, most of his songs were classified as Tamil Baila. In the mid-1970s, women entered the calypso men's-oriented arena. Calypso Rose was the first woman to win the Trinidad Road March competition in 1977 with her song "Gimme More Tempo". The following year with "Come Leh We Jam", she won the "Calypso King " competition, the first time a woman had received the award. The competition's title was changed to Calypso Monarch in her honour. The French and pioneer electronic musician Jean Michel Jarre released an album in 1990 called Waiting for Cousteau. The album has four tracks: "Calypso", "Calypso part 2", "Calypso part 3 Fin de Siècle" and "Waiting for Cousteau". It was dedicated to Jacques-Yves Cousteau in his 80th birthday. This album had a special participation of the Amocco Renegades (a traditional steel-drum band from Trinidad and Tobago). In the first track is possible to notice a strong style influence. Calypso had another short burst of commercial interest when Tim Burton's horror/comedy film Beetlejuice (1988) was released, and used Belafonte's "Jump In The Line" as the soundtrack's headliner and also "The Banana Boat Song" in the dinner-party scene. Disney's song "Under the Sea", a calypso theme from The Little Mermaid won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1989 as well as the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media in 1991.
Did you know the following:
Calypsos were first sung in French Creole then a mix of Patois and English
The Rhythm of Calypso (beat) is done in 2/4, 4/4 time (see "Meter" at this link for an explanation of Rhythm (beats in the music)
First ever Calypso instrumental recording was done in 1912 by Lovey's Orchestra.
First ever vocal Calypso recording was made in 1914 when the "Duke of Iron" teamed up with Jules Sims.
First ever Calypso tent opened in Port-of-Spain in 1921 was the "Railway Douglas Tent".
First ever female to sing in a calypso tent was "Lady Trinidad" in 1935.
First ever female Calypsonian to cut a record was "Lady Trinidad" in 1937.
First ever "Young Brigade Tent" opened in 1947 by 24 year-old Lord Kitchener, featuring Lord Melody, Mighty Spoiler, Mighty Viking.
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This double-CD set is a godsend for anyone curious about the incredibly prolific Byron Lee and his erstwhile Dragonaires. Prior to the arrival of Jamaica Ska & Other Jamaican Party Anthems, poor Byron's catalog was littered with late-period soca and smooth reggae collections with the occasional poorly packaged live collection of older tunes rearing its head, but no definitive set of his major works available. His assembly-line approach that continues to crank out disc after disc of music in whatever style is in favor is partly to blame. Be it calypso, ska, soca, reggae -- if it was popular in Jamaica or other parts of the Caribbean there is probably a tune or album by Lee and his group in that style. What he was known for, though, was ska, and that is where this collection sets its sights. Covering roughly 11 years, 1960 to 1971, Jamaica Ska follows Lee though the heydays of ska, rocksteady, and the nascent reggae boom. The first disc is largely ska, highlighted by the title tune and a number of covers, including a rousing cover of Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man." Lee was also producing ska recordings at this time, and songs he produced for Stranger Cole and the Maytals are included as well. The second disc moves, as Byron Lee did, with the times with a rocksteady focus. In between the ska and rocksteady jumpers are various tunes that showcase the strong musicianship and overall eclecticism of the Dragonaires: an odd acetone organ-and-horns cover of "Ol' Man River," a fairly straight, although loungey, soul cover of "Green Onions," a rocksteady version of "Shaft," and other stabs at bossa nova, show tunes, calypso, and funk. Lee's contribution to Jamaican music cannot be understated, especially in introducing ska to American audiences. Jamaica Ska & Other Jamaican Party Anthems will at least let listeners find out, once again, what all the fuss was about.
Byron Lee And The Dragonaires - Jamaica Ska & Other Jamaican Party Anthems (flac 324mb)
01 Jamaica Ska 2:29
02 Sammy Dead 2:15
03 Come Back 3:01
04 She Will Never Let Me Down 2:02
05 Watermelon Man2:34
06 Oil in My Lamp 2:31
07 Frankenstein Ska 2:40
08 Rough & Tough 2:34
09 Ska Dee Wah 2:12
10 Fat Back (aka Tear Up) 2:35
11 Dumplins 2:35
12 Walk Like a Dragon 2:31
13 Last Night 2:08
14 Napoleon Solo 2:17
15 Ride Your Donkey 2:21
16 Nice Time 2:36
17 Music Like Dirt 2:44
18 Ram Jam 2:08
19 Way Back Home 2:43
20 More Scorcher 2:38
21 Too Experienced 3:19
(ogg mb)
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Byron Lee And The Dragonaires - Jamaica Ska & Other Jamaican Party Anthems (flac 354mb)
01 Dumplins 2:47
02 Kissin' Gal 2:41
03 Dragon's Paradise 2:11
04 Ol' Man River 3:42
05 Joy Ride 2:35
06 Village Ram 2:34
07 Green Onions 2:50
08 Desafinado 3:24
09 Elaine, Henry and Mama 3:32
10 River Bank Jump Up 2:18
11 Holiday 2:49
12 Goldfinger 2:57
13 Theme from Shaft 3:12
14 Message to a Blackman 2:48
15 Fire Fire (There's a Fire) 2:15
16 Psychedelic Train 2:23
17 Mawga Dawg 2:20
18 Poison Pressure 3:22
19 Bam Sa Bo 2:46
20 A Little Love 2:34
21 Cashbox 2:28
22 Express Yourself 2:45
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As anything with Byron Lee's name attached to it, i proceed with caution. Not that he isn't able to or hasn't been able to come up with the goods on occasion. It is just few and far between. Some of this works well enough though, but then you get shit like Walk Away, Peace and Love. Which sound like they belongs in some 1950s Vegas casino. First few songs and Only a Fool are nice though. Far from a great or even a good calypso album, definitely going for some pop crossover here, which they got with Only a Fool.
Byron Lee And Mighty Sparrow - No Money No Love (flac 199mb)
01 Born Free 3:00
02 Make the World Go Away 2:37
03 Maria 3:11
04 More 2:43
05 More and More Amour 2:53
06 No Money No Love 3:41
07 Only a Fool 2:49
08 Peace and Love 4:14
09 Sandra 3:08
10 Theme from Dr. Zhivago 2:23
11 Try a Little Tenderness 2:26
12 Walk Away 2:55
Byron Lee And Mighty Sparrow - No Money No Love (ogg mb)
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McCartha Lewis, sobriquet Calypso Rose is the undisputed Calypso Queen of the World. To acquire a double CD of her works is a privilege that calypso lovers should cherish. To say it is a “must have” is an understatement when one considers the achievements of this superstar and ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago.
Rose was born in Bethel, Tobago. She was the fifth child of eleven children, her father being a spiritual Baptist leader. At age nine, she moved to Barataria, in Trinidad. In 1955 she composed her first Calypso after witnessing a man stealing the spectacles off of a lady’s face in the Croisée, San Juan. In the calypso she advised Tobagonians to stay at home, because Trinidad was no place for them. She first called herself “Crusoe Kid” but the late Spoiler, and tent members Piggy and Spike changed her name to “Calypso Rose – the Mother of all Flowers”.
In 1963, she traveled outside of Trinidad and Tobago for the first time. She covered the islands from Grenada to St. Thomas. Little known is the fact that she won the Calypso King contest and the Roadmarch in St. Thomas singing “Cooperation”, her first recording. In 1965 she wrote “Fire In Meh Wire”, her trademark song (which is included on the double CD). The first verse was written in St. Croix, the second verse in Barbados and the final verse in Trinidad. In 1967 she recorded it on Sparrow’s National :abel and competed with it for the Calypso Crown in 1968. Although Kitchener won the Roadmarch that year with “Miss Tourist”, it was “Fire In Meh Wire” that carried revelers through the streets that year and the year after.
She followed up with “Palet” and “The Bicycle” in 1968. Two years later she released “Rose Making a Baby” and “Engagement Ring”, both of which are featured in a medley on Disc 1. Rose then migrated to New York in 1974 and bounced back with the hot “Do Dem Back” in 1975 to be the runner-up behind Kitchener for the Roadmarch. She also placed third in the Calypso finals, but more importantly the song won her a Gold Record in New York.
Finally in 1977 she officially won her first Roadmarch with “Tempo”. This was a significant achievement, making her the first female to win the coveted title. On a personal note, she did the double in 1978, winning both the Roadmarch with “Come Leh We Jam” and the National Monarch Title singing “Her Majesty” and “I Thank Thee”. “Her Majesty” also placed second in the Roadmarch race, a unique feat. “Come Leh We Jam” came from a dream she had while in Tortola. In her dream she saw a tall Afraican lady chanting. She then saw a blackboard with letters on it. She woke and wrote the tune without stopping.
It should also be recorded that she won the Calypso Queen titles from 1974-1978. Now that she had ensured that the Calypso Final would never be referred to as the Calypso King Contest again, she chose to stay out of competition, having achieved the highest calypso pinnacle. She continued however to produce a variety of hits, many of which are featured on this production. They include “Gun Play In De Parkway”, “We Rockin For Carnival”, “Soca Tempo” and “Balance Wheel”. In 1982 she became an auxiliary Policewoman in New York.
Calypso Rose - The Best Of Calypso Rose 1 (flac 500mb)
01 Give Me More Tempo 5:49
02 Fire In Meh Wire 4:35
03 Zulu Chant 6:05
04 Pussycat 5:36
05 Livere Oshu Tabu Koo 6:22
06 No Madam 2:00
07 Voodoo Lay Lay 4:34
08 Israel By Bus 5:19
09 Palet 3:05
10 The Bicycle 2:27
11 Wha She Go Do 3:02
12 Solomon 6:56
13 Do Them Back 2:57
14 79 On My Mind 5:23
15 If You Want Pardon 2:49
16 I Thank Thee 3:57
17 Sideman Sweet 4:56
18 Original Calypso Medley: Rose Making A Baby / Engagement Ring / Come Let We Go / Palet 3:38
https://www.sendspace.com/file/rldlhe"> Calypso Rose - The Best Of Calypso Rose 1
(ogg 184mb)Today's artists proved that you could still make great music with a history of wars, revolutions, kings, psychotic dictators and deadly hurricanes, ah yes the human spirit . .......N'Joy
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Calypso music was the driving force for Carnivals in Trinidad and Tobago (Soca music now has that honor). Trinidad and Tobago is credited with the 'origin' and evolution of Calypso music as we know it today. “Iron Duke in the Land” is considered the first recorded calypso in English (recorded in 1914). Earlier calypsos were sung in patois. “Iron Duke in the Land” is a calypso by Henry Julian (a.k.a. Julian Whiterose) in which he boasts about roles he portrayed in the White Rose Social Union (his masquerade band) in the 1890s when he was instrumental in developing fancy masquerade bands. During that period the musical style was called Cariso. The term “Calypso” evolved later at the turn of the nineteenth century. This title “Iron Duke in the Land,” is the only title of Whiterose’s recordings known to exist. Julian also performed under the names J. White Rose, Henry Julian, and J. Resigna.
Calypso is a style of Afro-Caribbean music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago during the early to mid-19th century and eventually spread to the rest of the Caribbean Antilles and Venezuela by the mid-20th century. Its rhythms can be traced back to West African Kaiso and the arrival of French planters and their slaves from the French Antilles in the 18th century.
It is characterized by highly rhythmic and harmonic vocals, and is most often sung in a French creole and led by a griot. As calypso developed, the role of the griot became known as a chantuelle and eventually, calypsonian. As English replaced "patois" (Antillean creole) as the dominant language, calypso migrated into English, and in so doing it attracted more attention from the government. It allowed the masses to challenge the doings of the unelected Governor and Legislative Council, and the elected town councils of Port of Spain and San Fernando. Calypso continued to play an important role in political expression, and also served to document the history of Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago.
Calypso in the Caribbean includes a range of genres, including: the Benna in Antigua and Barbuda; Mento, a style of Jamaican folk music that greatly influenced ska and reggae; Ska, the precursor to rocksteady, and reggae; Spouge, a style of Barbadian popular music; Dominica Cadence-lypso, which mixed calypso with the cadence of Haiti; and soca music, a style of Kaiso/calypso, with influences from chutney, soul, funk, Latin and cadence-lypso.
It is thought that the name "calypso" was originally "kaiso" which is now believed to come from Efik "ka isu" ("go on!") and Ibibio "kaa iso" ("continue, go on"), used in urging someone on or in backing a contestant.[2] There is also a Trinidadian term "cariso" that means "old-time" calypsos.[3] The term "calypso" is recorded from the 1930s onwards. Alternatively, the insert for The Rough Guide to Calypso and Soca (published by World Music Network) favours John Cowley's arguments in Carnival, Canboulay and Calypso: Traditions in the Making, that the word might be a corruption of the French carrouseaux and through the process of patois and Anglicization became caliso and then finally "calypso"; however, Cowley also notes that the first mention of the word "calypso" is given in a description of a dance in 1882 by Abbé Masse.[4]
Origins
Calypso music was developed in Trinidad in the 17th century from the West African Kaiso and canboulay music brought by African slaves imported to that Caribbean island to work on sugar plantations. The slaves, brought to toil on sugar plantations, were stripped of all connections to their homeland and family and not allowed to talk to each other. They used calypso to mock the slave masters and to communicate with each other. Many early calypsos were sung in French Creole by an individual called a griot. As calypso developed, the role of the griot became known as a chantuelle and eventually, calypsonian.
Modern calypso, however, began in the 19th century, a fusion of disparate elements ranging from the masquerade song lavway, French Creole belair and the calinda stick-fighting chantwell. Calypso's early rise was closely connected with the adoption of Carnival by Trinidadian slaves, including canboulay drumming and the music masquerade processions. The French brought Carnival to Trinidad, and calypso competitions at Carnival grew in popularity, especially after the abolition of slavery in 1834.
Recordings
The first identifiably calypso genre song was recorded in 1912, by Lovey's String Band while visiting New York City. In 1914, the second calypso song was recorded, this time in Trinidad, by chantwell Julian Whiterose, better known as the Iron Duke and famous calinda stick-fighter. Jules Sims would also record vocal calypsos. The majority of these calypsos of the World War I era were instrumentals by Lovey and Lionel Belasco. Perhaps due to the constraints of the wartime economy, no recordings of note were produced until the late 1920s and early 1930s, when the "golden era" of calypso would cement the style, form, and phrasing of the music.
Calypso evolved into a way of spreading news around Trinidad. Politicians, journalists and public figures often debated the content of each song, and many islanders considered these songs the most reliable news source. Calypsonians pushed the boundaries of free speech as their lyrics spread news of any topic relevant to island life, including speaking out against political corruption. Eventually British rule enforced censorship and police began to scan these songs for damaging content.
Even with this censorship, calypsos continued to push boundaries, with a variety of ways to slip songs past the scrutinizing eyes of the editor. Double entendre, or double-speak, was one way, as was the practice of denouncing countries such as Hitler's Germany and its annexation of Poland, while making pointed references toward the UK's policies on Trinidad. Sex, scandal, gossip, innuendo, politics, local news, bravado and insulting other calypsonians were the order of the day in classic calypso, just as it is today with classic hip-hop. And just as the hip-hop of today, the music sparked shock and outrage in moralistic sections of society.
Countless recordings were dumped at sea in the name of censorship, although in truth, rival US companies did this in the spirit of underhanded competition, claiming that the rivals' material was unfit for US consumption. Decca Records lost untold pressings in this manner, as did its rival, RCA's Bluebird label.
An entrepreneur named Eduardo Sa Gomes played a significant role in spreading calypso in its early days. Sa Gomes, a Portuguese immigrant who owned a local music and phonograph equipment shop in Port of Spain, promoted the genre and gave financial support to the local artists. In March 1934, he sent Roaring Lion and Attila the Hun to New York City to record; they became the first calypsonians to record abroad, bringing the genre out of the West Indies and into pop culture.[5] Lord Invader was quick to follow, and stayed in New York City after a protracted legal case involving the theft of his song "Rum and Coca-Cola", a hit by the Andrews Sisters. He made his home there along with Wilmoth Houdini, and became one of the great calypsonians of the USA. Early forms of calypso were also influenced by jazz such as Sans Humanitae. In this extempo (extemporaneous) melody calypsonians lyricise impromptu, commenting socially or insulting each other, "sans humanité" or "no mercy" (which is again a reference to French influence).
The first major stars of calypso started crossing over to new audiences worldwide in the late 1930s. Attila the Hun, Roaring Lion and Lord Invader were first, followed by Lord Kitchener, one of the longest-lasting calypso stars in history—he continued to release hit records until his death in 2000. 1944's "Rum and Coca-Cola" by the Andrews Sisters, a cover version of a Lord Invader song, became an American hit despite the song being a very critical commentary on the explosion of prostitution, inflation and other negative influences accompanying the American military bases in Trinidad at the time. Perhaps the most straightforward way to describe the focus of calypso is that it articulated itself as a form of protest against the authoritarian colonial culture which existed at the time.
Calypso, especially a toned-down, commercial variant, became a worldwide craze with the release of the "Banana Boat Song", or "Day-O", a traditional Jamaican folk song, whose best-known rendition was done by Harry Belafonte on his album Calypso (1956); Calypso was the first full-length record to sell more than a million copies. The success of that album inspired hundreds of "Folkies", or the American folk music revival to imitate the "Belafonte style", but with a more folk-oriented flavor. The Kingston Trio would be a good example. 1956 also saw the massive international hit "Jean and Dinah" by Mighty Sparrow. This song too was a sly commentary as a "plan of action" for the calypsonian on the widespread prostitution and the prostitutes' desperation after the closing of the U.S. naval base on Trinidad at Chaguaramas. In the Broadway-theatre musical Jamaica (1957), Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg cleverly parodied "commercial" Belafonte-style calypso. Several films jumped on the calypso craze in 1957 such as Island in the Sun (20th Century Fox) that featured Belafonte and the low-budget films Calypso Joe (Allied Artists), Calypso Heat Wave (Columbia Pictures), and Bop Girl Goes Calypso (United Artists). Robert Mitchum released an album, Calypso...Is Like So (1957), on Capitol records, capturing the sound, spirit, and subtleties of the genre. Dizzy Gillespie recorded a calypso album Jambo Caribe (1964) with James Moody and Kenny Barron.
Soul shouter Gary "US" Bonds released a calypso album Twist up Calypso (1962) on Legrand records, shortly after returning home from his military post in Port of Spain. Nithi Kanagaratnam from Sri Lanka sang calypso-styled songs in Tamil in 1968, which was a success and earned him the title "Father of Tamil Popular Music". Since Baila rhythm was popular in Sri Lanka, most of his songs were classified as Tamil Baila. In the mid-1970s, women entered the calypso men's-oriented arena. Calypso Rose was the first woman to win the Trinidad Road March competition in 1977 with her song "Gimme More Tempo". The following year with "Come Leh We Jam", she won the "Calypso King " competition, the first time a woman had received the award. The competition's title was changed to Calypso Monarch in her honour. The French and pioneer electronic musician Jean Michel Jarre released an album in 1990 called Waiting for Cousteau. The album has four tracks: "Calypso", "Calypso part 2", "Calypso part 3 Fin de Siècle" and "Waiting for Cousteau". It was dedicated to Jacques-Yves Cousteau in his 80th birthday. This album had a special participation of the Amocco Renegades (a traditional steel-drum band from Trinidad and Tobago). In the first track is possible to notice a strong style influence. Calypso had another short burst of commercial interest when Tim Burton's horror/comedy film Beetlejuice (1988) was released, and used Belafonte's "Jump In The Line" as the soundtrack's headliner and also "The Banana Boat Song" in the dinner-party scene. Disney's song "Under the Sea", a calypso theme from The Little Mermaid won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1989 as well as the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media in 1991.
Did you know the following:
Calypsos were first sung in French Creole then a mix of Patois and English
The Rhythm of Calypso (beat) is done in 2/4, 4/4 time (see "Meter" at this link for an explanation of Rhythm (beats in the music)
First ever Calypso instrumental recording was done in 1912 by Lovey's Orchestra.
First ever vocal Calypso recording was made in 1914 when the "Duke of Iron" teamed up with Jules Sims.
First ever Calypso tent opened in Port-of-Spain in 1921 was the "Railway Douglas Tent".
First ever female to sing in a calypso tent was "Lady Trinidad" in 1935.
First ever female Calypsonian to cut a record was "Lady Trinidad" in 1937.
First ever "Young Brigade Tent" opened in 1947 by 24 year-old Lord Kitchener, featuring Lord Melody, Mighty Spoiler, Mighty Viking.
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This double-CD set is a godsend for anyone curious about the incredibly prolific Byron Lee and his erstwhile Dragonaires. Prior to the arrival of Jamaica Ska & Other Jamaican Party Anthems, poor Byron's catalog was littered with late-period soca and smooth reggae collections with the occasional poorly packaged live collection of older tunes rearing its head, but no definitive set of his major works available. His assembly-line approach that continues to crank out disc after disc of music in whatever style is in favor is partly to blame. Be it calypso, ska, soca, reggae -- if it was popular in Jamaica or other parts of the Caribbean there is probably a tune or album by Lee and his group in that style. What he was known for, though, was ska, and that is where this collection sets its sights. Covering roughly 11 years, 1960 to 1971, Jamaica Ska follows Lee though the heydays of ska, rocksteady, and the nascent reggae boom. The first disc is largely ska, highlighted by the title tune and a number of covers, including a rousing cover of Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man." Lee was also producing ska recordings at this time, and songs he produced for Stranger Cole and the Maytals are included as well. The second disc moves, as Byron Lee did, with the times with a rocksteady focus. In between the ska and rocksteady jumpers are various tunes that showcase the strong musicianship and overall eclecticism of the Dragonaires: an odd acetone organ-and-horns cover of "Ol' Man River," a fairly straight, although loungey, soul cover of "Green Onions," a rocksteady version of "Shaft," and other stabs at bossa nova, show tunes, calypso, and funk. Lee's contribution to Jamaican music cannot be understated, especially in introducing ska to American audiences. Jamaica Ska & Other Jamaican Party Anthems will at least let listeners find out, once again, what all the fuss was about.
Byron Lee And The Dragonaires - Jamaica Ska & Other Jamaican Party Anthems (flac 324mb)
01 Jamaica Ska 2:29
02 Sammy Dead 2:15
03 Come Back 3:01
04 She Will Never Let Me Down 2:02
05 Watermelon Man2:34
06 Oil in My Lamp 2:31
07 Frankenstein Ska 2:40
08 Rough & Tough 2:34
09 Ska Dee Wah 2:12
10 Fat Back (aka Tear Up) 2:35
11 Dumplins 2:35
12 Walk Like a Dragon 2:31
13 Last Night 2:08
14 Napoleon Solo 2:17
15 Ride Your Donkey 2:21
16 Nice Time 2:36
17 Music Like Dirt 2:44
18 Ram Jam 2:08
19 Way Back Home 2:43
20 More Scorcher 2:38
21 Too Experienced 3:19
(ogg mb)
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Byron Lee And The Dragonaires - Jamaica Ska & Other Jamaican Party Anthems (flac 354mb)
01 Dumplins 2:47
02 Kissin' Gal 2:41
03 Dragon's Paradise 2:11
04 Ol' Man River 3:42
05 Joy Ride 2:35
06 Village Ram 2:34
07 Green Onions 2:50
08 Desafinado 3:24
09 Elaine, Henry and Mama 3:32
10 River Bank Jump Up 2:18
11 Holiday 2:49
12 Goldfinger 2:57
13 Theme from Shaft 3:12
14 Message to a Blackman 2:48
15 Fire Fire (There's a Fire) 2:15
16 Psychedelic Train 2:23
17 Mawga Dawg 2:20
18 Poison Pressure 3:22
19 Bam Sa Bo 2:46
20 A Little Love 2:34
21 Cashbox 2:28
22 Express Yourself 2:45
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As anything with Byron Lee's name attached to it, i proceed with caution. Not that he isn't able to or hasn't been able to come up with the goods on occasion. It is just few and far between. Some of this works well enough though, but then you get shit like Walk Away, Peace and Love. Which sound like they belongs in some 1950s Vegas casino. First few songs and Only a Fool are nice though. Far from a great or even a good calypso album, definitely going for some pop crossover here, which they got with Only a Fool.
Byron Lee And Mighty Sparrow - No Money No Love (flac 199mb)
01 Born Free 3:00
02 Make the World Go Away 2:37
03 Maria 3:11
04 More 2:43
05 More and More Amour 2:53
06 No Money No Love 3:41
07 Only a Fool 2:49
08 Peace and Love 4:14
09 Sandra 3:08
10 Theme from Dr. Zhivago 2:23
11 Try a Little Tenderness 2:26
12 Walk Away 2:55
Byron Lee And Mighty Sparrow - No Money No Love (ogg mb)
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McCartha Lewis, sobriquet Calypso Rose is the undisputed Calypso Queen of the World. To acquire a double CD of her works is a privilege that calypso lovers should cherish. To say it is a “must have” is an understatement when one considers the achievements of this superstar and ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago.
Rose was born in Bethel, Tobago. She was the fifth child of eleven children, her father being a spiritual Baptist leader. At age nine, she moved to Barataria, in Trinidad. In 1955 she composed her first Calypso after witnessing a man stealing the spectacles off of a lady’s face in the Croisée, San Juan. In the calypso she advised Tobagonians to stay at home, because Trinidad was no place for them. She first called herself “Crusoe Kid” but the late Spoiler, and tent members Piggy and Spike changed her name to “Calypso Rose – the Mother of all Flowers”.
In 1963, she traveled outside of Trinidad and Tobago for the first time. She covered the islands from Grenada to St. Thomas. Little known is the fact that she won the Calypso King contest and the Roadmarch in St. Thomas singing “Cooperation”, her first recording. In 1965 she wrote “Fire In Meh Wire”, her trademark song (which is included on the double CD). The first verse was written in St. Croix, the second verse in Barbados and the final verse in Trinidad. In 1967 she recorded it on Sparrow’s National :abel and competed with it for the Calypso Crown in 1968. Although Kitchener won the Roadmarch that year with “Miss Tourist”, it was “Fire In Meh Wire” that carried revelers through the streets that year and the year after.
She followed up with “Palet” and “The Bicycle” in 1968. Two years later she released “Rose Making a Baby” and “Engagement Ring”, both of which are featured in a medley on Disc 1. Rose then migrated to New York in 1974 and bounced back with the hot “Do Dem Back” in 1975 to be the runner-up behind Kitchener for the Roadmarch. She also placed third in the Calypso finals, but more importantly the song won her a Gold Record in New York.
Finally in 1977 she officially won her first Roadmarch with “Tempo”. This was a significant achievement, making her the first female to win the coveted title. On a personal note, she did the double in 1978, winning both the Roadmarch with “Come Leh We Jam” and the National Monarch Title singing “Her Majesty” and “I Thank Thee”. “Her Majesty” also placed second in the Roadmarch race, a unique feat. “Come Leh We Jam” came from a dream she had while in Tortola. In her dream she saw a tall Afraican lady chanting. She then saw a blackboard with letters on it. She woke and wrote the tune without stopping.
It should also be recorded that she won the Calypso Queen titles from 1974-1978. Now that she had ensured that the Calypso Final would never be referred to as the Calypso King Contest again, she chose to stay out of competition, having achieved the highest calypso pinnacle. She continued however to produce a variety of hits, many of which are featured on this production. They include “Gun Play In De Parkway”, “We Rockin For Carnival”, “Soca Tempo” and “Balance Wheel”. In 1982 she became an auxiliary Policewoman in New York.
Calypso Rose - The Best Of Calypso Rose 1 (flac 500mb)
01 Give Me More Tempo 5:49
02 Fire In Meh Wire 4:35
03 Zulu Chant 6:05
04 Pussycat 5:36
05 Livere Oshu Tabu Koo 6:22
06 No Madam 2:00
07 Voodoo Lay Lay 4:34
08 Israel By Bus 5:19
09 Palet 3:05
10 The Bicycle 2:27
11 Wha She Go Do 3:02
12 Solomon 6:56
13 Do Them Back 2:57
14 79 On My Mind 5:23
15 If You Want Pardon 2:49
16 I Thank Thee 3:57
17 Sideman Sweet 4:56
18 Original Calypso Medley: Rose Making A Baby / Engagement Ring / Come Let We Go / Palet 3:38
https://www.sendspace.com/file/rldlhe"> Calypso Rose - The Best Of Calypso Rose 1
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Calypso Rose - The Best Of Calypso Rose 2 (flac 534mb)
01 Tempo 3:35
02 Come Leh We Jam 5:34
03 We Rockin For Carnival 6:41
04 Gun Play In De Parkway 4:27
05 This is Carnival 2:28
06 The Action is Tight 4:08
07 Soca Tempo 6:19
08 Mass In California 5:33
09 Let We Punta 5:43
10 Mass Fever 3:39
11 Her Majesty 5:13
12 Balance Wheel 5:33
13 Pan Rhapsody 2:44
14 Look She Dey 3:32
15 Zoya Rose 3:28
16 Bend Down Low 2:56
17 Calypso Medley: Saturday Night/Mary Ann/Rum & Coca 6:56
Calypso Rose - The Best Of Calypso Rose 2 (ogg 194mb)
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