Defining Calypso Pt.2

Wha I feel um is...

Reigning Calypso monarchs...The Might Gabby and Apollo c.2010...a year they were both crowned as Calypso monarchs Nationally and at UWI respectively.

In the previous post I utilised previous research to given insight into the origins of the Calypso as well as attempting to define it and its functions. Below I wish to offer a more technical and detailed definition of Calypso.

In my  analysis...
In my interpretation based upon existing research, theories, definitions and my own research and observations I choose to define Calypso as follows.

Calypso...

• A genre of music common throughout the English Speaking Caribbean characterised by a syncopated rhythm, call and response singing style and unique-for lack of a better term-phrasing of lyrics.
• Calypso content is often characterised by one or more of the following; topical, critical, lamenting, humorous, fantasy, celebratory, party...

Kaiso...

• Kaiso is the sub genre of Calypso which is characterised by the nature of its content being topical, critical and lamenting but can also be humourous, celebratory or fantasy
• Kaiso more specifically focuses on the delivery of topical, social and or political commentary and uses the aforesaid styles to present its content...
• Kaiso is often delivered with a slow to medium tempo, ranging from slow laboured tempos from around 69 bpms to the bouncier-often-sing along-120 bpms but cannot be strictly defined by tempo.

Soca...

• Soca is the sub genre of Calypso which is characterised by the nature of its content being celebratory and party oriented-especially in recent times-but are often topical, and employ fantasy and humour
• Soca more specifically focuses on the delivery of party and dance floor anthems and since the early 90's has often been characterized lyrically by instructions given to its listeners to; jump,wave,wine, grind, juck, wuk,pooch back etc, 

• It's lyrics are often highly sexualised focusing on the interaction of its female and male listeners  in their physical interpretation of the songs. 
• The 'rum' culture of the caribbean is also usually heavily endorsed in the content of these songs as well.
• Soca is often delivered from around a groovy 100 bpms to a frenetic pulsating,140-160 bpms and syncopation of the rhythm is key. The uptempo nature of Soca emphasises its dance-ability.                                                                                                                                                                         

The above represents a very basic, somewhat limited preliminary analysis of the genre of Calypso.The major points I wish to emphasise here however, are;

1. syncopation of the rhythm and call and response phrasing/nature of the vocal delivery
2. Identifying Kaiso- characterised by its commentary on social and political issues and its generally slower tempo -as a sub genre of Calypso
3. Identifying Soca -characterised by its emphasis on partying and celebration and its generally medium to fast tempo and resultant dance appeal as a sub genre of Calypso.

The grasping of these definitions will assist in the understanding of my further analysis and observations of Calypso in Barbados and the region.

Defining Calypso Pt.1

Wha um really is...

Album cover featuring some pioneers of the Calypso...humour is already evident-third from left

What is Calypso and what is not? This can be a challenging question to answer. In the excerpt below I intend to share my findings from a previous study to explore the origin  and  assist in defining the art form of Calypso. These findings should be kept in mind for part two of this post which will attempt to offer more technical and detailed definitions of the art form based on my own research, observation, analysis and conclusions.

The following is an edited excerpt from the draft of Chapter 2 of my undergraduate B.A  thesis.        

Power to the People: Calypso and the development of mass Political Consciousness In Post - Independent Barbados 

The most widely accepted view of the origin of the term for the music now known simultaneously as calypso or kaiso is explained by Warner as follows: “The West African (Hausa) term “kaiso, itself a corruption of “kaito” an expression similar to “bravo”… this derivation finds the most favour and has also survived alongside its derivation calypso.”[1] According to Warner, this origin was endorsed by the knowledgeable pioneer calypsonian and calypso scholar Raymond Quevedo sobriquet Atiila the Hun. The offering of praise for a good performance of calypso still manifests itself in shouts of “kaiso! kaiso!” from appreciative audiences in a contemporary context. This Warner explains by the contemporary use of the term kaiso to identify “genuine” calypsos. “There has been in some circles a favouring of the term kaisonian to designate one who sings “genuine calypsos, as opposed to calypsonian for the run -of -the -mill.”[2] What is most important to note here, is that whatever the , the terms kaiso and calypso are largely used interchangeably and shall be so used throughout this study. There are a few other explanations offered for the origins of the term calypso such as the dismissed connection the Greek goddess of the same name. These theories are not necessary to consider in this study. We shall however attempt to define the calypso and its function.

The calypso has a variety of functions some of which it performs simultaneously. Perhaps the best definition of the calypso comes from the calypsonians themselves. The first four lines of David Rudder’s 1987 composition ‘Calypso Music’ should give us a good idea of the diversity of the functions of calypso:

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 [3]

Rudder’s calypso obviously does not detail all the functions of the calypso but in true calypso fashion sums up the varying themes expressed in calypso by reducing it to its extremes, in this case political protest and festivity. This trend we shall observe throughout this study. It is without doubt that it is entirely possible to identify the functions of calypso by stringing lines of various calypsos together. Such a novel experiment however, will not be attempted here. That is said to say that the calypso is quite capable of speaking for itself.

Legendary calypsonian Alric Farrel sobriquet The Lord Pretender, linked the functions of the West Indian calypso with the roles performed by the West African Griot. This is not unlike our findings between the African Oral tradition, folk music and the calypso in the previous chapter. Pretender’s observation further strengthens this connection. According to Pretender, the calypsonian “ he saw as men who had followed the African griot tradition of praise singing, storytelling and documenting the history of his people…gave praises where due and derided those who opposed the values that the society held dear.”[4]

---

[1] Keith Warner, Kaiso: The Trinidad Calypso a study of the calypso as oral literature. Washington D.C: Three Continents Press.1982.8

[2] Keith Warner, Kaiso: The Trinidad Calypso a study of the calypso as oral literature. Washington D.C: Three Continents Press.1982.8

[3] David Rudder, ‘Calypso Music’

[4] Hollis, Liverpool. From The Horse’s Mouth: Stories of the History and Development of the Calypso. Port of Spain: Juba Publications,2003.94

Who de cat like he lick! Scene 2.

An anonymous calypsonian...is to the tent what Cinderella was to the house...her Stepsisters held shares

The Big Yard...
Here is where shareholderism is at its peak...selection to do battle in this Big Yard can be guaranteed to a shareholder even in a year when his material is ordinary at best...crowd response plays a bag...biggie...big role here-i almost said something true-here. With highly shareholderised shareholders the mere mention of the name is enough to illicit similar, crowd response of a hard working, crowd pleasing no name performer. Having reached the final with substandard calypsos...the shareholder makes up for his scarcity, often with camouflage tactics which may come across as impressive-or desperate-such as introducing a new song-which will never be seen or heard beyond that performance...lyrics probably being forgotten by the performer themselves during or before the presentation ceremony - that will give the judges an excuse for giving said shareholder an often undeserved high position-even a crown-that would not have been possible if they had performed the  two songs which brought them there, which were publicly acknowledged not to be strong enough to give them a serious chance at landing a  place in the...

Top Four...
This is often the domain of the most shareholderlific shareholder calypsonians with fourth being the default position of a defending monarch who does not place second. A defending monarch placing lower down the order was clearly not significantly shareholderified and can have their reign called into question or be deemed as lucky that a specific shareholder was absent when they won...on the contrary they may actually have simply been/had the best on that particular occasion despite there lack of shareholderocity. A single calypso crown is a clear sign of lack of shareholderishness. 

The top four is often reserved for the;

1. Shareholders who failed to impress in their performance but their shareholderocity disallows them placing fifth or below in any competition...
2. Shareholders who have less shareholderocity than other shareholders in said competition...
3. Calypsonians who were actually good enough for the win but due to their lack of having experienced shareholderfication will not be given their due or...
4. A young and or female calypsonian performing well and being given token representation to appease the 'unfair  because dem is a woman /dem is a youngster' comment from the audience they impressed... or simlarly a young and or female competitor who was actually good enough to win the crown but failed to do so due to a lack of shareholderishness or the presence of highly shareholderified shareholders who it would be unfathomable for them to defeat...
5. The in your face, too controversial, straight talking, often authentic calypso spouting calypsonian's calypsonian, who despite consistency often unmatched by shareholders, will never win the crown as a result of their political incorrectness and inability to call a spade a shovel...deemed as a public relations risk not fit for national representation as a result and therefore never considered for shareholderisation despite their undeniable talent of composing and rendering authentic calypso

The Crown...

Finally the most sharholderified shareholder can win the crown in inexplicable circumstances such as;

1. Forgetting/mumbling/repeating lyrics or entire verses.
2. Returning after a multiyear absence from competition-which is good for ticket sales.
3. Being given the chance to perform their song for a second time after some unexpected often fortuitous technical glitch/Abandonment of a competition they could not win.
4. Gaining a quarter of a point or less over  their opponent who erstwhile had clearly won the competition.
5. Performing a song pundits deemed to be a genre other than calypso.
6. Performing a soca made popular often by winning a previous competition that same year.
7. Performing calypsos deemed to be unoriginal or too familiar with respect to melody-warmed over from the year before and the one before that etc.-or unoriginal lyrics borrowed from other songs more akin to karaoke than calypso performance
8. Having earned a knickname which instantly gives you maximum points in the highest scoring criteria...

If uh sweet uh sweet!

Who de cat like he lick! Scene 1.

'Mavis say/ this year she expect to see/ Crop Over without Controversy/ well that is like this band without de brass/I does gotta laff '-Mr.Dale, Therapy c. 2005

If your name isn't called in 3 tries they have  no idea!

Controversy...
To all those who are complaining that those of us still complaining about Crop Over and its myriad competitions aint gonna change anything guess what...that is part of the festival due to the nature of competitions and frankly debate, discussion is healthy and confession is good for the soul. That said in my next few posts I will explain a few of my key concepts regarding Calypso in Barbados and elsewhere...remember these are my interpretations feel free to agree or agree to disagree. Some are research  and analysis based and some are my own hypotheses based upon observation and hearsay. Tonite being a funny day I TACKLE THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL....

SHAREHOLDERISM...
The term shareholder with reference to someone other than an actual individual owning or 'holding' shares in a company is not a concept I claim to have created and is certainly not unique to Barbados far less calypso competitions...thus why I have opted to coin the term shareholderism-and a few others-to refer specifically to the perceived favour bestowed upon some calypsonians -and bandleaders- when they enter National competitions in Barbados.

No Sport...
To draw a reference from the sporting arena...a shareholder may be an outstanding and often longstanding athlete in their chosen discipline. As a result their selection in a team though not merited on then current performance is to be expected and tolerated none the less, regardless of the existence of brighter talent or better options. They are also expected to enjoy extended lenience and often benefit-sometimes to inexplicable proportions-from refereeing/umpiring decisions or matters which require arbitration from the sports governing body or senior officials, often at the expense of less favoured teams or players. This leads to an air of invincibility around these athletes which is often endorsed by a gullible, unsuspecting or not interested enough public. Anyone, usually opponents or those with the gift of objectivity who 'blows the whistle on any preferential treatment given to the 'shareholders' are labelled as envious, bad minded, jealous and or bitter. In truth these persons may experience some of the aforementioned feelings and often refrain from comment on shareholderism for fear of public ridicule whether or not they have made a fair observation or not.The results of this silence can be extremely dangerous as refusing to call a spade just that, can be used against that whistle blower if  later a similar claim is made. As a result the whistle blower can be denied is due when it is deserved or the shareholder may receive unwarranted acclaim

Pic-who-ya -want...
In Barbados Calypso competitions are invariably shrouded in controversy...of course everyone has their favourites and disagreements are to be expected especially when attempting to objectively judge the very subjective that is performance art...but it seems more often than not, someone is included and someone is left out which seems to defy all logic...When this occurs shareholderism can be the cause.The calypsonian in question need not be a shareholder themselves but maybe a member of a shareholderised 'big tent'-more on this later-akin to being a new member of Manchester United FC benefiting from the Club's shareholderism and thereby undergoing temporary shareholerisation themselves. In Bajan calypso this is a common occurrence at the semi-finals...

Pic-wha-ya-feel
Another example of this might be the selection of a person or persons performing material seemingly outside of the genre of calypso and having no penalty affixed despite non shareholderified performers having attempted similar stunts prior but without similar success.These songs often make it all the way to the finals of the competition especially if the performers is sufficiently popular to create a spectacle-and sell tickets even if the song is not calypso-could be a soca sounding sweet or a poor attempt at calypso...but that is why the competition which makes no explicit reference to calypso can be pejoratively-some argue accurately-referred to as Pick-who-ya-like...

Ah Feeling Ah Feeling

Imani whining up in de Bacchanal Road at Pan Pun de Sand-photocredit-nationnews.com

What If...

Mega Monday on Soca Sunday perfromed by Santuary during the Sweet Soca competition he tied with Imani for 2nd in the Road March-photo credit-facebook/BajeIntl Inc

If there were a song which captured the experience and spectacle of Kadooment... I would say it was Sanctuary with Mega Monday...If there were a song that captured the experience of crossing the stage and hitting the road in costume Imani and Bacchanal Road definitely...If there is a  song, however, that captured the spirit-pun intended- of Crop Over whether cruising the high seas or  liming or partying at Bushy Park, Farley Hill  Spring Garden or  it was Lead Pipe and Saddis Ah Feeling...


Congratulations to...
 Lead Pipe and Saddis Road March winners for Crop Over 2014 whose Ah Feeling Tune of the Crop- the most popular on the road for Kadooment Day.
Their alter egos Porgie and Murda who also tied for 1st place with Giddyup for the Jam Tune most popular tune on Foreday Morning with Gorg's Meh Rum

Porgie and Murda as Lead Pipe and Saddis on the road photo credit-nationnews.com

Picks of de Crop

Karaoke is clearly the most popular form of entertainment among bajans as King I Web illustrates...photo credit barbadostoday.bb

The Judges decision is questionable...
I should hope to arrange an interview with Dr. Agard chief judge for this year's Pic-o-de-Crop competition. After this is should be able to answer the following questions for myself and all and sundry who read this blog. 

1. If judging of a song is done during and completed immediately after a performance, and said results are immediately collected from each judge-with no deliberation- and placed in a sealed envelope bearing the name of the performer, should that not be immediately passed to the auditor for tabulation?
2. Based on the latter premise of the former question, would this not mean that the only score to be tallied would be that of the final performer after he or she has performed?
3.  Based on the latter premise of the former question, should results then be available within 20 minutes maximum of the ending of the competition?

I am not being facetious here, I honestly want that aspect of the judging explained to me...the others maybe too shareholderised-past tense verb of shareholderism, to be explored in a later post-for my irrational kaiso brain to comprehend.

It would appear to me, based on my own observations that the longer the results take to emerge...the more inexplicable they become...often leaving a greater part of the audience wondering if the judges had been watching some other competition besides the one we had all seen. Last night's show ended according to my timepiece ended at 3 minutes past 12 with results emerging at around 12 minutes to one...if my math serves me correct that is 45 minutes taken to tally scores from professional auditors...of course they must recount etc. for surety...but based on my earlier questions...seems a bit long, my Q and A with Dr. Agard is a must.

My Picks...

My expected top three before the final based on a combination of semi-final performances, anticipation of the defending monarchs charisma and presence and judgements of the past suggested to me that Ian Webster would retain 1st,with Crystal Cummings Beckles a closer 2nd than last year and Blood still not knowing how to win in 3rd. After viewing the competition, based on their performances and judgements of the past-you done know agendas operate for and against various calypsonians-my top three was almost unchanged but I thought Blood had bested the monarch. Ian Webster's Still My Home intentionally sombre and reflective I can appreciate, came directly before Blood's Hold on together which was essentially more of the same but packaged more optimistically and solution oriented...I thought this song lyrically, performance wise and also based on crowd response and that dramatic ending did it better. The question would be, had Webster scored highly enough in his Karaoke Song compared to Blood to still hold on to the title.I f crowd response was anything to go by-he absolutely flattened Kensington with big people running bout like dem was inna playpark-he certainly had, I had my own reservations about how the constructing choruses using unoriginal melodies and lyrics would impact his scorecard, so Blood whose I don't know how to Win was no frills and well executed was in with a shout especially since Webster's voice started to crack in his latter performance.

Crystal Cummings Beckles had delivered, but for some strange reason her first half offering Enough is Enough which dealt with the topical violence against women issue the best of any calypso this season was not as impactful as it was at the semis or arguably Headliner's judging night, I cant explain it but it just lacked oomph. On the strength of those aforementioned performances...Queen Rita coming home could have forshadowed the crowning of a new queen. Her transormation of Another View into a defense of Mia Mottley was admirable and vaguely reminiscent of TC stating Dame Billie's case in Woman in Front. Her 'good night ladies' however was enough is enough, the woman agenda was overdone.

Kaiso, Kaiso...

Based on performances and my own observations and interpretations of calypso and competition...Announcer The Man they Love to Hate won my first half. I think he should have left AC for his Second Song and stuck with party politics...for many, myself included the verse about AC knowing the second song would share more licks was unnecessary and weakened that offering by straying off topic. The entertainment value however, of Ronnie's sharp wit, and lyrical prowess was unmatched on the night -I am also a fan of the unapologetic Cro Cro as well. Kid Site his first time at a final for sometime was in good form and had two songs each strong enough on its own. His performances were vintage Kid Site-circa 3peat-but his diction suffered a lot especially in his second performance. Site needs to fix this now obvious problem which is seriously affecting his ability to effectively render a calypso. That said he was still in my top 5 at the end of the night as was Miguel. On his first time at the big yard Miguel ignored all the politics and jibes and gave to nearly flawless rendition of his calypsos. For me Miguel's strong point was his rendition, I found Gun Town to be musically unsuited to the lyrical content but his presentation was on point here too. Lobbying for a Jury I liked more and showed his improving ability to phrase and not just sing calypso well but was a bit dry and some parts of the story development did not work for me-which extra-regional jury member would know 10 calypsos before 1982? That aside he was good enough for my top 5 or a close 6th but maybe he was sixth, who knows? 

This announcing only the top 5 is suitable for Junior Monarch but unnecessary and insulting to paying patrons at this level and gives room for more inexplicable irregularities and speculation in the results. That said I had Blood at 1. Webster 2. Announcer 3/4. Crystal 3/4. Kid Site 5.

AC/Fan Breeze...

I was not impressed by AC in either performance even though Calypso MP as are all of AC's performances well rendered and the presentation though he was too much of the set for me worked well. The song Calypso MP could have been more of an ode to calypso without any attempts to mention politics or respond to Announcer in which he was below par. Below par is what I and a significant number of patrons must have thought of AC's seemingly hurriedly put together Tribute to Fans -or whatever it was called-as they began walking out after realising no improvement after verse 1. The song's repetitive lyrics and video presentation with pictures of fans seemingly at a concert in Europe based on their hue surrounded by the word fans in bold print with exaggerated exclamation marks interchanged with pictures of fireworks cemented in my mind that this was Adrian Clarke's begging song. It would appear based on his shocking second place finish that the AC has some fans among the judges -or tabulators or whoever manipulates the final results...

Kaiso Sweet, Sweet, Sweet...

I  am sorry I had no place for Biggie in this competition period but as expected he rendered well and makes excellent use of his dancers and props which are a necessity in soca competitions but there was no way I placed him before guys that rendered genuine calypso on the night. I missed Mikey and Classic in the first half but I like Turn Up the Love but having missed it at semis too, Iv'e never seen it performed live so decline further comment beyond saying it is certainly not a traditional calypso and I dislike the use of sampling and certain types of synthesizer instrumentation in this type of calypso. That said I think his presentation of Time for We was too Broadway and must have offended purists with its strong latin overtones, costuming and choreography included-not the same as Ole Ashe. Classic was okay in the repetitive Freundel Nose which I hope does not usher in a trend of abandoning band choruses in calypsos-I do not like it at all. On that note Adonijah who always has great classic brassy calypsos, strong lyrics and silky smooth rendition would have made my final before a few mentioned in this paragraph. Serenader I may have swapped with Classic whose Outta Wuk was similarly repetitive and upbeat like Freundel Knows-I did that on purpose-and I would have love to see the presentation for Fine Ants on de Pork, it would have been Crispy...lol!

The Judges decision is final...

It is what it is Announcer, Kid Site, Miguel and Blood must feel hard done, Biggie and AC should be pleasantly surprised but it is what it is.

That said all of the songs and performances were fairly well planned and executed but some better than others...congrats to the King Ian Webster!

Meh Rum...Rules the Party

Gorg, the 2014 Party Monarch of Barbados during his winning routine...HAAAAAAA!!!
photo credit barbadostoday.bb

Aftermath...
Making my way out of  Bushy Park about half hour after the thrilling conclusion of Soca Royale, I run into Gorg the man who emerges the biggest winner along with Biggie Irie-against such competition this is no lean feat...lol-winning the Party Monarch with apparent ease after years of struggling to even reach the final. My posse and I gave my heartiest congratulations to the new king with much conch shell blowing and loud repeated chants of Aye..Aye etc. Gorg while seemingly thankful for the impromptu coronation...didn't seem fazed...at all.

Action...
It was this same relaxed easy going approach with which, Gorg dressed in what his grandmother approved as ' half decent'-jacket,straw hat, flip flops and baggies included - took the Party Monarch competition and turned it on its head. It was a short skit,no more than 2 minutes, Just four or five dancers, DJ Hardware and a bicycle?That was all it took for the laid back, self proclaimed Mr.Sexy to endear himself to the judges and the audience on hand at Bushy Park.

Build up...
Fact of the matter is that, from the time the song hit the airwaves early in the season it grew and grew until it became apart of the collective consciousness of Barbadians appealing to persons from all age ranges and all walks of life, ignoring the existence of any such myths as the  generation gap or a gender divide . This rum shop anthem with its simple lyrics and catchy sing along melody had already endeared itself to the nation. All Gorgy Worgy was left to do was render the song and that he did in a no frills to the point performance.

Wasn't My Winner...
I'll admit this, he wasn't my winner. The song, at just a shade over 130bpms-a requirement for Party Monarch these days-featured no:

• big brass licks,except for 'the horn section/but not really the horn section, '
• jump and wave, no extensive list of instructions to move the crowd, 
• seemingly steroid enhanced gyration routine by the performer, 
• elaborate choreography executed by an army of dancers camouflaged in a kaleidoscope of colour
• onslaught of confetti, assault of fireworks or other pyrotechnics,
• superhero movie inspired outfit, not even a pair of now necessary for soca artistes-even at night-pair of huge sunglasses....

 So How did he win?
I was most impressed by the now expected high energy performances of defending champions Soka Kartel with Turn Around, Mikey's hype but familiar feeling No Shame,Ian Webster and Khiomal's thriller of a presentation with Terror, Kirk Brown's pulsating  Energy and big props to first timer in Party Monarch but former -beating Apollo into second place- 2012 UWI Calypso Monarch Shaquille who's Release looked and sounded the part...fireworks and all.

Another Crown? 
But still Gorg won.When myself said Yow...who would have won if not Gorg, self had no answer to give. How did he do it? The song did. It connected with Barbadians better than any other song in the competition and the laid back but straight forward Gorg realized a solid performance, for which he must be credited, was all that was needed to explode the hills of Bushy Park into a national chorus...'Oh, ohh/oh, ohh/I got my Rum.' 
As this tune approaches folk song status Meh Rum could also rule the Road...Time will tell!