Sparrowmania!

Mighty Sparrow (born Slinger Francisco) is now 76 years old and seemingly still per¬forming and occas¬ionally issuing new recordings. With over 50 years experience as the self-proclaimed ‘King of Calypso’ – his Wikipedia page shows the young Sparrow wearing a crown – he has amassed a truly mighty body of work. Yet it’s usually only a handful of his 1950s-era hits that make it onto CD. This fine compilation focuses on overlooked Sparrow recordings from 1962-1974. The liner notes – an excellent essay by reggae authority David Katz – cover Sparrow’s entire life without suggesting exactly why these years were focused on; perhaps compiler Duncan Brooker has chosen to showcase calypso as a Caribbean music of great rhythm and wit (and social commentary) at the same time that ska and then reggae were making an international presence. As Katz notes, calypso proved very popular in the US from the 1940s on, with Harry Belafonte’s calypso-lite albums selling millions in the 50s. Why hasn’t calypso since retained an international audience? On tracks like ‘Jook For Jook’ and ‘Dancehall Brawl’ Sparrow sounds dynamic and relevant. Yet he is rarely feted alongside dancehall toasters or rappers. Such is the bad luck to be linked to a musical genre that has fallen from fashion.

Along with several true calypso classics and a range of soca numbers, there are splashes of soul (Otis Redding’s ‘Try A Little Tenderness’ gets a straight interpretation) and Latin hybrids. Sparrow possesses a very expressive voice, his rich tenor, rapid-fire delivery and cunning wit making almost every tune here a joy to listen to. For those who are already fans, or listeners simply wondering what exactly this calypso thing is, there is no better purchase than Sparrowmania!.