Bongo!
Before Maynard G. Krebs grew his beard,
before Dr. Feynmann played after physics conferences,
before the neo-hippies joined the drum circles,
there was the calypso bongo jam.
Sparrow recounts the story of a life-and-death
bongo dance competition, Matilda vs. the newcomer,
big fat Priscilla.
Replies
OK, this is strange. Last Sunday, I give up on the crossword and
start assembling this Layman's Commentary on the Sparrow. The
next Friday, I look in the paper and -- Sparrow is coming to Minneapolis
and -- I've got fifty unallocated bucks in my pocket and -- the calendar
is free 4/21/2011. A few phone calls and I got my ticket!
So far as I knew, The Sparrow was retired, living in Brooklyn and
heading down to Trinidad for Carnival. As I reckon it, my posting this series
must have "put obeah on him" and dragged him, like Scatman Crothers
in The Shining, away from his place of safety and retirement, back to me
in the frozen north of Minnesota. Apparently, I successfully executed
a Summoning Charm. Must have been those scented candles my wife
got at the new-age food co-op. I feel kinda bad about it, actually, yanking
that old man half-way across the country to the now defrosting north.
I still have some bonus miles, I coulda flown out there.
Sparrow the Scold
By the seventies, tourism became dangerous. Several murders and
increasing violence between troupes of calypsonians was keeping away
tourists and the Yankee dollar.
In Woom Poom, Sparrow personally guarantees the safety of a visiting lady.
He exhorts her to "shake up ye woom poom, breakaway! We can rest Ash Wednesday".
The melody is so enchanting, I had to listen to it many times before I caught on
to the undertone of reassurance in the face of legitimate fears. Around the same time,
the Jamaican Tourist Board ran the "Come Back to Jamaica" campaign.
It took me a long time to recognize the tune as John Lennon's "War is Over (Happy Xmas)",
but later found they were both based in an old folk melody "Skewball".
In Rope, Sparrow directly takes on the gang rivalries, urging them to "behave yourselves
in public". "While everyone was jumping up and having a good time
They were pelting and fighting, trying to spoil a songline."
"Boasting how they afraid no one, not even police
But this year is for love and peace so this nonsense must cease".
This song features a driving bassline and chordal rhythm guitar throughout,
with a horn section over it all.
If only rappers devoted as much effort in controlling their fans worst excesses.
Mighty Sparrow - Woom Poom - Yard.mp3
Mighty Sparrow - Rope.mp3
Sparrow the Scold II - A Mother's Love
In Mother, he addresses all those wastrel sons
who don't pay enough respect to their poor old mothers.
Sparrow's melody goes through key changes guaranteed
to break down the roughest customer into a blubbering wreck,
rushing to a telephone to make a long delayed call, or if
Sparrow's message comes too late, to the florist for
an overdue graveside arrangement.
The clarity of his tone and ability to convey complex lyrics
with powerful emotion are like Louis Jordan's skill with sweet
yet clever phrasing. Sparrow is a master of the English language,
at least his Grenadian dialect that substitutes personal pronouns
in a disconcerting fashion: she's for hers, me for my, or
dropping them entirely as in they mommy belly empty. Sparrow
slips in and out to suit his emotional purposes (and the meter
of the line).
This pairing of sentiment and music is as strong as Al Jolson
inviting Sonny Boy upon his knee to explain why his mother is
now with the angels.
"In this place, certain men should hide their face
The way they treat their mother is a disgrace.
Neglect the old woman for donkey years
and when she dead, they're sheddin' crocodile tears.
And spendin' money like hell, to buy a casket big like Hilton Hotel.
But when their mother was alive, they didn't know she then,
Twas nightclubs and brothels and money used to spend.
They used to carry on, but now that she is gone,
Those hypocrites does weep and mourn.
But if you are lucky and you still have your mommy,
remember what Sparrow say:
Forget them jagabots and all them jezebels
and make sure your mommy OK.
So indiscreet, some of them drunk in the street
and their ma have nothing to eat.
Buying company, every day they on a spree
And they mommy belly empty.
When his mommy was in need, he never paid her heed
And she used to eat the bread the devil leave.
It was so unfair, I mean, a postcard once a year,
to pretend he so sincere.
Though she don't need a lot, please give her what you got,
Whether you rich or you poor -- I say,
Not only on her birthday, no, that isn't the way
Ev'ry day should be Mother's Day.
Oh, no, don't neglect your mommy so,
Don't leave her in tears and sorrow.
Don't forget, boy, you owe her the respect
That all good mothers should get.
You've got to make it a point of duty,
Do your best to see that she's always happy.
Not like those who pay they doctor bill
Only to make sure that they name come out in she Will.
Oh, you drove her out of mind, you treated she unkind,
How could you be so blind, to leave your ma to pine?
The pain she had to bear, to bring you safely here,
And now you don't really care.
You treated her crude and for your ingratitude
Some day you will have to pay.
Because retribution meets ev'ry man
Who treats his mommy that way.
It's unkind to leave her undone,
Don't be a blasted ungrateful son....
You'll be a very lucky fella
If you still have the treasure
Of the wealth of a mother's love."
The recording goes on a bit long, but in live performance,
Sparrow would tailor it to maximum effect, judging his
audience like a preacher delivering the Mother's Day sermon.
Mighty Sparrow - Mother.mp3
The recording goes on a bit long, but in live performance,
Sparrow would tailor it to maximum effect, judging his
audience like a preacher delivering the Mother's Day sermon
to a backsliding congregation.
Sparrow's phrasing is clear and usually easy to understand,
despite the unfamiliar dialect words and shifts in pronunciation.
The pain she had to bear to bring you safely here
And now you don't really care; in this line, bear and care are
made to rhyme with here. Obeah varies, but is usually sung Oab-yah.
"J'Ouvert morning" seems to be the Monday preceding Mardi Gras Tuesday,
but running from Sunday night to Monday's dawn.
Barnyard imagery is prevalent; "a donkey bray does sound like a lullaby".
Harry in the Piggery, Lion vs Donkey (Rematch), More Cock are all set
in or next to the animal yard.
Sparrow the Fantasist
A mad scientist, experimenting with "musical radiation" is caught in a lab
explosion. Music & Rhythm infect every part of his body. The beat and the
sheer inventiveness of the lyrics carries the day through this unexpectedly melodic
song, similar to Gilbert & Sullivan in the number of items listed.
There is a Statue of Captain Cipriani overlooking the square in Port of Spain, Trinidad.
One year, the music is too much for him and he comes alive, ripping himself from
the pedestal and clanking his metal feet down the street, joining the dancing throng.
(Twenty-five years later there is a statue of Sparrow there).
Mighty Sparrow - Music & Rhythm 02.mp3
the mighty sparrow - The Statue.mp3
Obeah Wedding - Sparrow's most beautiful melody - so uncharacteristically
beautiful that there are persistent rumours that it wasn't his.
==
The singer watches Melda's attempts to snare him into marriage.
He slags her persistence, her hygiene and now her attempt to
enlist the aid of the local Obeah Man, to provide spells and charms
to induce the lazy, complacent singer to marry her.
The story literally unfolds, as the initial impression of silly Melda
surrounding his bed with lavender candles and gris-gris gives way
to the realization that she is his mistress and bed-partner and
she wants a promotion to bride and wife. It takes a more universal
character then. You could imagine a twentyish girl at the new-age
candle shop, trying to create just the right spell to get her "roommate"
to be her "husband".
There is a Runyonesque twist at the end. I used to think calypso
was just Harry Belafonte and cruise-ship acts. Sparrow took it much further,
and deeper and closer to its origins, while bringing it to the modern age.
He is a rough contemporary of Little Richard and still plays now and then.
01 Obeah Wedding.mp3
Sparrow the Historian
Remember that weird story about the man who left the Buckingham Palace
tour and wandered into the Queen's bedroom?
Sparrow used that as a starting point in "Phillip, My Dear", wrapping the
anecdote in a classic dirty joke, in a burlesque worthy of Jonathan Swift
(who would never have attempted it, as the royals still chopped off heads
for gross impertinence in those days).
Before the unexpected fiery climax made that joke not funny anymore,
Sparrow took on those misbehaving princesses and the Royal Family's
reaction in "London Bridge".
The foibles of British Empire weren't Sparrow's only target. Off and on
he lived in Brooklyn. His analysis of the Impeachment and the Clinton/Lewinski
affair is as detailed as a Sunday morning news program and as funny as The Daily Show.
"Doh Touch Meh President"
He came out of retirement to record "Barack the Magnificent," which wasn't
quite as driving and insightful as his other work. Over a fifty year span, he recorded
"The Juice is Loose" on the OJ Simpson trial, "Ayatollah" on the Hostage Crisis,
"Idi Amin", "Russian Satellite" on the Sputnik panic and "New York Blackout".
"Castro Eating a Banana" will be discussed under the Incredibly Dirty Jokes, Tastefuly Told category.
Mighty Sparrow - Philip My Dear.mp3
Mighty Sparrow - Doh Touch Meh President.mp3
Mighty Sparrow - London Bridge.mp3