WOMAD

Calypso All Stars

From Trinidad & Tobago

Cuban son had the Buena Vista Social Club. Congolese rumba has Kekélé. Now Trinidadian calypso is the latest music rolling back the years thanks to the emergence of a star-studded supergroup. Allow us to introduce the Calypso All Stars, a terrific tag-team of calypso’s most venerable wordsmiths. That old rascal Mighty Sparrow’s on board (alongside the likes of the equally splendid-of-name Mighty Terror and the über-exuberant Calypso Rose) in an unashamedly rose-tinted celebration of the music’s golden years back in the middle of last century. As heard on their album Calypso At Dirty Jim’s, the songs revisited by the All Stars resemble Trinidadian calypso’s greatest moments, including such classics as Rum And Coca-Cola, Jean And Dinah and the late Lord Pretender’s signature tune, Never Ever Worry – songs that hit the mark whether they were advising on matters of the heart or delivering some biting social satire. Expect the live show to be equally hard-hitting, a salute to the days before soca took over, cranking up the beats and dumbing down the lyrics. Travel back in time to when calypso was king.In A Few Words… All-star throwback to the golden years of calypso