Calypso in New York

by Lord Invader

Overview

All of the material on this 26-song, 73-minute CD was recorded for Moe Asch of Folkways Records between 1946 and 1961; half of the tracks were previously unreleased. It may be that many of the arrangements he used were more accessible to American ears than those used by some of his calypso peers, or just that the fidelity on many of these numbers (particularly those from the later 1950s and early 1960s) is superior to that heard on many vintage calypso recordings. But Lord Invader does seem more comfortable with full-band, slightly jazzed-up calypso arrangements than some other calypso performers, without compromising the verve and bite of his lyrics and vocal delivery. Occasionally these recordings have minimal backing, as on "Ten Thousand to Bar Me One," on which he's accompanied only by drum, bottle, spoon, and chorus; sometimes the songs are traditional, such as the arguably overdone "Brown Girl in the Ring," on which again he's backed only by percussion and chorus. More often he combines calypso with instrumentation reminiscent of pre-war jazz, especially on the cuts on which he's accompanied by Felix and His Internationals, featuring Gregory Felix on clarinet. The topicality of his songs actually isn't too overt, but it's there to hear on songs about taking the New York subway, his experiences in Chicago, and "Yankee Dollar" (about his frustration question for compensation in his "Rum and Coca-Cola" plagiarism suit). "God Made Us All," prefaced by a speech from the ubiquitous Pete Seeger (a staple of Smithsonian Folkways releases), is a gentle anti-racism admonition. Whatever he's singing about, however, Lord Invader conveys easygoing nobody's-fool charm, in a manner that's less strident than some other calypsoites of the time. ~ Richie Unterberger

Product Details

Release Date:	09/26/2000
Label:	Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
UPC:	0093074045428
Rank:	129724

Tracks

1. Out the Fire
2. Ten Thousand to Bar Me One
3. Cousin Family
4. When You Hear I Die
5. New York Subway
6. Me One Alone
7. Sly Mongoose
8. Happy Land of Canaan
9. Mary Ann
10. Yankee Dollar
11. Pepsi-Cola
12. Tied-Tongue Baby
13. God Made Us All
14. The Soldiers Came and Broke up My Life
15. Labor Day
16. Brown Girl in the Ring
17. Chicago, Chicago
18. My Intention Is War
19. No Place Like the West Indies
20. My Experience on the Reperbahn
21. Auf Wiederseh'n
22. Cat O' Nine Tails
23. Crisis in Arkansas
24. Steel Band War
25. You're Wasting Your Time
26. I'm Going Back to Africa

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Lord Invader   Primary Artist
Internationals   Primary Artist
Felix   Primary Artist
Felix & His Internationals   Primary Artist
Pete Seeger   Primary Artist,Guest Artist
Mighty Dictator   Primary Artist
Moses Asch   Recorder

Technical Credits

John Cowley   Producer,Annotation,Composer
Moses Asch   Engineer
Felix & His Internationals   Performer
Pete Seeger   Performer
Pete Reiniger   Mastering
David Gahr   Cover Photo
Peter Seitel   Editorial Assistant
Jack Towers   Disc Transfers
William Gottlieb   Booklet
Lord Invader   Composer
Malvina Reynolds   Composer
Anthony Seeger   Producer
Mighty Dictator   Performer
Mary Monseur   Production Coordination