On 27 September, the Caribbean lost one of its most original and talented musicians. Dubbed the ‘Calypso King’, Mighty Sparrow passed away, leaving almost 70 years’ worth of songs. These both popularised Caribbean culture and ruthlessly satirised Caribbean politics, well before the reggae explosion.
Calypso music is characterised by its satirical social, economic, and political themes. Trinidadian Marxist CLR James believed even Shakespeare would have paid attention to Sparrow for revolutionising calypso into “…a vehicle for the most acute observations on the social life and political developments around him, for his genuine musicianship, his wit and his humour.”
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Sparrow gained popularity in 1950s Trinidad alongside Dr Eric Williams’ nationalism. He transformed calypso at a time when a distinct Trinidadian culture was asserting itself, not least with steelpan bands (using oil drums from Trinidad’s oil industry). As the musical voice of the independence movement, Sparrow released ‘William the Conqueror’ in 1957 to celebrate Williams’ electoral victories.
But he was no sycophant of Williams – later, he consistently sided with the oppressed against Williams’ broken promises.
Sparrow fully broke with Williams when he repressed the 1970 Black Power Revolution, and went on to write songs like ‘Sedition’ and ‘Capitalism Gone Mad’ to expose the misery perpetuated by the entire ruling class.
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Sparrow exploited what Leon Trotsky called the ‘fountain-source’ of comedy and tragedy to its fullest extent – that “people and parties are heroic or comic not in themselves but in their relation to circumstances” – and always at the expense of the ruling class.
His deep connection with ordinary people, combined with his wit and humour, produced razor-sharp political songs, leaving the likes of, say, Ed Sheeran in his shadow.
