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- Zeno Obi Constance is by far the best in the Caribbean and beyond. This article is part of an attempt to reach, teach and increase our knowledge and commitment to our development.
By Tony Deyal
I was very young and heard something called “Beatles.” When I found out it was not something to bite me, and hearing that it was changing the way they had a special music, I jumped into it and used my parents radio when they were not around. Like most other people at that time, the Beatles changed the way we heard and loved their music. I listened to “Please Please Me” (1963) and even though my parents shouted, “Shot! Shot! You!” I loved it. It was an absolute must-listen:
“Last night I said these words to my girl
I know you never even try, girl
Come on (come on), Come on (come on), Come on (come on)
Please, please me, whoa, yeah, like I please you.”
At this point, the Beatles’ time had reached the point for most of us in the Caribbean. As one of my friends said, “Ah-ah-ah-ah, wow/ Baby, now (shake it up baby)/ Twist and shout (twist and shout)/ Come on, come on, come, come on, baby, now (come on baby)…”
And then we heard, reached and sang,
“Can you hear a distant drum
Bouncing on the laughter of a melody?
And does the rhythm tell you to Come! Come! Come!
Does your spirit do a dance to this symphony?
Does it tell you that your heart is afire?
And does it tell you that your pain is a liar
Does it brush away all your ungodly?
Well, are you ready for a brand new discovery?”
It was “ CALYPSO MUSIC” by David Rudder with a currency, “Calypso, Calypso, Calypso music/ Calypso, Calypso, Calypso music…” He added, “It is a living vibration/ Rooted deep within my Caribbean belly/ Lyrics to make a politician cringe/ Or turn a woman’s body into jelly/ It is a swell music – Calypso/ They coulda never refuse it- Calypso/ It make you shake like a shango now- Calypso/ Why it is you shaking you can’t know- Calypso.”
Fortunately, a calypsonian “Fearless- Mickey Hamid” through “FIVE RULES OF CALYPSO” was ready to provide everyone with the way forward. He stated that long before he was a big man, it was always his ambition to be a calypsonian. Unfortunately, people felt that he didn’t know the five fuels of Calypso and decided to show them:
“Number One
The topic that you singing on
Number Two
You got to bring your lyrics strong
Number Three
Well of course must be your rendition
But still you eh a true true calypsonian
Well to whom this topic may really concern
There is still two more important rules to learn
Number Four which is your key of orchestration
And number five – stage presentation.”
Then he added that, “You don’t need the education/ Of a famous politician/ To be a calypsonian…”
At that point, the Calypsonian “Crazy” decided to share, “WHAT IS A CALYPSO” and made it clear, “Calypso is a profession,/ Calypso is an art/ But if you ask a calypsonian/ What it is, he “cyah” start/ To give you an analysis/ That could properly describe/ Or form a calypso thesis/ With substance or diatribe/ So every year seeing new criteria/ No one could say which or what/ And though there seems to be no formula/ They singing and judging but (asked)…
“What is a calypso? Is it when the calypsonian say so
What is a calypso? The criteria I want to know
What is a calypso? Is it a rhythm to dance limbo?
What is a calypso? Is it something jumpy or something slow?…”
As Crazy said he even asked other colleagues, Chalkie and Sparrow, but none of them didn’t know. In fact, as he said, “In Trinidad and Tobago, what is calypso” and asked, “Tell me Miss, tell me Sir, what is a Calypso?”
Finally, one of those who was around for a long time, Duke, he too asked, “What is really Calypso” and said “Because the words that we rhyme and sing/ Is only half the thing/ I can show you that/ Calypso is more than a work of art/. It is a feeling which comes from deep within/ Sometimes a tale of joy or one of suffering/. It’s an editorial in song of the life that we undergo/ That, and only that, I know is true Calypso.”
While the “Calypso” was, where it came from was also an issue. Fortunately, the Calypsonian, Bro Valentino, came up with “WHERE CALYPSO WENT?” He said, “In 1912 in New York City/ They recorded the first calypso/ by Lovey’s Orchestra/ A land from Trinidad the record could show/ This orchestra was led by George Bailey…” Valentino added, “In 1921, Railway Doublas opened the first Calypso tent and from then to now I keep asking/ Where the hell the calypso went?” Where it went and returned or “in and out” started with:
“Our calypso music was attracted
By a recording company they call Decca
It was recorded before all that jazz
And so much other music
But somewhere along the way
Calypso has lost its magic
Just when we feel the Calypso would skyrocket
All over the Continent
It took a nose dive in the Savannah
And then back to the frigging tent.”
But fortunately, it did not stop there. According to calypsonian Lion, “Land of Calypso.” things changed, “People are interested/ To know where calypso originated/ Some say it came from Cuba/ Some say it came from Cuba/ Some say British Guyana/ Come contend seriously/ It was sung by Moses crossing the Read Sea…(and another)…That was causing some real confusion/ Some said it’s Japanese/ Of the fold song of ancient Chinese/ A fella say he is certain/ Delilah used to sing calypso to Sampson/ One said he heard when Nero was burning Rome/ He sang calypso.”
*Tony Deyal was heard singing, “Oh No Oh No Trinidad is the land of Calypso,/ Oh No Oh No Trinidad is the land of Calypso.”