Holding Firm to Traditional Artistry

20, Feb 1999
Something must be done to save the artistry that was once so great a part of what we know as calypso. Back in the sixties I can recall being so struck by Popo's opening verse in his calypso "Snake in the Bag" that we discussed it at length in the Fifth Form at Belmont Intermediate where I taught English and history.

Popo sang: "Yes, one night late/ a thief passing with a bag ah snake/ see ah police and start to run/ drop de bag on de groun'/ is de thief that make ah mistake/ and de police whey pay de cake." The following questions were asked:

Why was the thief said to be "passing" rather than "running" or "walking"? Neither "running" nor "walking" could in this case have denoted the sense of stealth that Popo desired to paint for us in the relating of his musical story.

How effective was this introduction in its use of an absurd storyline that supposedly involved the stealing of valueless snakes? Did Popo grip your attention immediately and force you to await the revelations yet to come? Only at the very end of the composition is the totality of the misapprehensions of both thief and police revealed.

The strength of this calypso lies in the power of what is not said. A technique that is significant to almost all art forms. And though Popo is not considered one of the "greats", he has this outstanding gem of a calypso in his portfolio from which many of today's youngsters can learn.

"Snake in the Bag" can surely teach them how to approach subject matter and be effective in the incremental development of the structure of the storyline through the use of descriptive language.

That is not what obtains today. The band-singers, as opposed to calypsonians, have taken the gimmicks and hook-lines, which were previously utilised to introduce various segments of stage performances, and transformed them into whole calypsoes or "aerobics", as Shadow termed it, which merely instruct the audience to either run, jump, scream, raise yuh hand or wave yuh flag.

One is reminded that a British observer who visited T&T in the 1930s, described calypsoes as "mindless ditties" and so one is left to wonder what that goodly gentleman would say if he were to hear the present crop of party calypsoes projected by the media and championed by the young calypso singers.

Mindless ditties we agree wholeheartedly as they have turned away from the traditional power of the word in favour of pure, raw energy and a kind of freneticism best exemplified by Xtatik, the Rocket Man, Ajala, etc and their unbelievable, awesome feats of horizontal dives, vertical leaps and power pelvic thrusts.

It seems hypnotic as 10,000, 15,000, youths scream their delight and attempt to emulate and imitate what is being done on stage. The power of the word has been cast aside in favour of the power of frenzied rhythm and mindlessness.

Suddenly there is no longer any room for the subtlety of phrase and the whole range of human moods and emotions. It is not a passing phase.

The demands of commercialisation guarantee the continuance of the trend. Party and fete promoters buy radio time by the hours to advertise their fetes and during these said hours only the party music of the bands hired for the fetes get "air play".

Radio Tempo, 105FM, derive a significant percentage of their income from such sale of inane "air time". Everything is above board. No one can be accused of "payola" and calypso takes a beating. Sometimes the music at the very fetes are broadcast live.

Gone forever, it seems, is the intelligent, functional programming developed by the early pioneers of radio in this country.

The youths say they are taking calypso and soca in a new direction. They are free to experiment and utilise all the various influences around. They can take it in whatever direction they want. The outcome shall be the destiny of their generation.

It was our generation in the late '60s and early '70s that stood up throughout North America and London for calypso against the reggae avalanche.

I ronically we learnt from the Jamaicans who by example taught us to stand firm for our music and demand that it be played at all times. It was the return of elements of our generation to T&T and the conscious cultural activity of organisations like NJAC that provided the new impetus so that the "Machels" could not be deemed "too young to soca."

We shall continue to hold firmly to the traditional artistry, the harmonious mix of lyrics, melody and rhythm, and shall resist being pushed aside into oblivion. Kitchener, Rudder, Shadow, etc are as legitimate to our essence as the "Machels".

A lot though shall depend on people like SuperBlue who between and betwixt all the frenzy and the visual power (for mind you that is all we get from the Soca Monarch show) can still surprise us with a slick turn of phrase and occasional lines of sheer poetic magic.

It shows that he still possesses the skill and the talent that he exhibited earlier and it is probably left to people like himself together with the rapso artistes, who seem on average to be much more conscious of their history, to be the ones in future to bridge the dynamics.

What may be essential to the process is a period of apprenticeship. Imagine all comedians are now by definition calypsonians.

There is no longer a question of a period of probation in which one learns the craft under the guidance of a watchful elder within context of a rigid pecking order and in the course of which the apprentice was "named" by his overseer. That arrangement guaranteed that standards were maintained.

The breakdown began with the likes of Rex West! Who brought him? His thing was a form of "mamaguy" and a ridicule of the art form, there was nothing funny about him.

The art form must not be compromised or watered down to accommodate anyone. If you want in, pay your dues and learn the craft. To do otherwise is to sell our essence and our soul cheaply. That is why Popo could have come up with a "Snake in the bag" and Rex West never will.