IslandMix - Soca, Reggae, Zouk and Caribbean Entertainment

In 1956, Harry Belafonte recorded his Calypso album containing
the famous Banana Boat Song ("Day-O") - probably the most
internationally well known calypso song. His Calypso album also
became the first album ever to sell over one million copies. This was
also the year the Mighty Sparrow burst onto the scene and took the
calypso world by storm with his legendary hit Jean and Dinah.


Jean and Dinah, which celebrated the departure of US troops from Trinidad, ushered in a new era of politically charged calypso. This politicized form of calypso, allying itself with the People's National Movement (PNM) party, facilitated Trinidad's independence from Britain in 1962. Socially and politically conscious calypso has had a major influence on many of Trinidad's most important social and political movements.


Together with Lord Kitchener, Mighty Sparrow dominated the calypso scene until the late 1970s. The Mighty Sparrow has continued to record and to date has produced some 90 albums. The National Carnival Commission (NCC) declared Carnival 2001 as "The Sparrow Carnival" in honor of his contributions. Also, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has awarded the Mighty Sparrow with the Caribbean's highest award, the Order of the Caribbean, for outstanding contribution to the development of the region.


Calypso typically involves social commentary, oftentimes laced with humorous satire on current events. Calypso is the voice of social conscience. However, not all calypsos are socially conscious calypso has always had its risqué side too.


Thanks for this information. Anyone who has the opportunity to work and speak directly with the Mighty Sparrow he will have no problems giving you the entire 411 on the history with both him and Harry's contributions to the calypso music industry. All this stuff has already been documented and people sometimes just have to be willing to do a little research to get the real facts on the issues.

*watching from sidelines*

salty

This is truly pointless!

Interesting readin material but in the end it is two different types of music with two totally different aims


gen·re Pronunciation Key (zhänr) n.

A category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, marked by a distinctive style, form, or content:

Now if soca and calypso aren't distinctively different well what can I say. If our unimaginative musical rulers decide that they want to be stuck in the past then who am I to question it. I believe rap music was spawned from Jazz so I guess Jay Z is a Jazz artist!

Like I said above absolutely pointless!

Not pointless...Fact. thanks for the definition though.

And a music genre spawned by another, of course is a new genre..But I don't feel this is the case as far as Calypso and Soca is concerned...Same shit, just Soca is a little played down.

We can compare differences all day long. But the fact remains, that all Soca artists sing calypso, since it is the genre of the music....Just like all Dancehall artists sing reggae...

If we are going to use the word Soca to categorize then fine, but we cannot use it to define....because then we are using it incorrectly.. and being Caribbeans, or of Caribbean decent, we should be the most informed and most careful with our words describing out culture, since the rest of the world screws it up.


I find ur comparison to be insultive....JayZ rap to Jazz....fine.....yeah it came out of it....But it is a completely different thing.

Nas and JayZ both sing rap..Maybe we should declare unnderground and commercial rap 2 entirely different things.

Since many underground rap song use the exact same samples, instruments, and vernacular (not to mention some that go on to become commercial hits) it is completely retarded to even say that as comparison to my P.O.V. on soca and calypso.

So I guess based on the defination of the word genre that Soca and Calypso in its traditional form are hard to diffrentiate right? There is no distinctive difference between them.

gen·re Pronunciation Key (zhänr) n.

A category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, marked by a distinctive style, form, or content

Soca = Party Music
Calypso = Social and Political Commentary

Somehow I can see a marked difference in style, form and content, but hey maybe my grasp of the english language is beyond the evolution of calypso music

I personally don't think soca and calypso are the same. And especially if you speak to the ole timers about kaiso and calypso they would be appalled if we put the two in the same category. Trevor Wilkins states that he has the ONLY calypso program in the world, and believe so far he's right. You would never heard Bunji, Allison, Machel or any other soca artist on his program, unless of course they are singing calypso or kaiso songs.

If soca and calypso are the same and can be used interchangeably, then Rose would be the Soca Queen of the world, Sparrow is the King and Machel is the Prince of Calypso. I don't know about anyone else, but these titles just don't sound right!.

I think there is something more to the distinctions between soca and calypso that we are missing. Right now it would be cool if someone how is truly a caribbean music historian can shed some light on this.

BTW- This the the type of debate we should be having in Soca Chat, cuz I seriously don't care about who's the best band, artist, or wears the hell out of their low rise jeans! All these questions are subjective anyway!

Maybe..Cause if you consider Soca to be part music and Calypso to be social and Political Commentary, and you have never heard any music from our island with a message that you can dance too....what can I tell you.

If a "soca" beat is used with "calypso" lyrics...What is that genre...cause clearly they are the meshing of 2 so-called distinctive stlyes, forms, and content. Do we make a new name for this.

Is Soca Train soca or Calypso?

What is Dingolay?

Obeae Wedding?


Unlike other ppl in this forum, I doh try to shit nobody up..I want to see how your point is going to disprove the written history of the music.

I think you getting tie up with your wording.


Bottom line..Soca is categorized as Calypso..Just as is Rapso...

And for the rest of you..Kaiso aint what you play at Christmas time either.

The problem here is that most are contented with what they read as being the standard. As time goes on and we evolve, we realize things that were not necesarrily part of the historical viewpoints on many subjects. I guess if I can't point to an opinion that someone took the time to publish then I am wrong even thought based on the defination of the word genre it is clearly apparent that they are different.

Are you that anal that you think music can never fall within 2 different genres?

Jeez!!
What is Usher's yeah? In some publications it's RnB and in Some its Hip Hop. Can't it be classed as both or is it that there's a little disciplinarian in you that dictates borders can't be broken.

I don't need to disprove the historical perception since the defination of genre does that quite effectively. I am applying my understanding of the english language along with my understanding of our music. The songs you mentioned are not the norm they are the exception. If all sounded like those 3 then I could easily embrace the historical viewpoint however that is not the case. If throughout history no one ever challenged the standard thinking then you nor I would even have the freedom to be here debating this issue today.

I will gladly show you many different sources and history books from the Caribbean that quote the same things.

yes we evolve, and so has our music...a lot of it is shit, a lot of it is good...but it is still Calypso.

And if we are to correctly have discussions in this forum about who did what, and what was the first Soca or Calypso to do what, we gotta first come up with a standard of identifying these things...It is the only way that we will have a standard to measure anything by.

Don't get me wrong. You seem to think that I disagree with you on the point that Soca and Traditional Calypso sound the same and have the same focus...That isn't true.

But I am not willing to wrongly categorize our music. Soca is Calypso. (unfortunately)

I am also willing to explore the thought that the early Calypso singers have long been singin the broke down version we call Soca...case in Point "Day-o" , "hot, hot, hot"

Ive heard this same arguement before only it was:

Is dancehall really reggae music, or whats the difference between dancehall and reggae?

The answer is many people use the term reggae to describe
all the popular music originating in Jamaica from ska, to rocksteady, to roots reggae, to dancehall...a generic term.

This is handy from say a marketing standpoint. Like a reggae festival or a reggae section in the music store or a book on reggae.

However, if you really want to communicate about the specifics of the music, people use the terms dancehall and reggae as meaning two different types of music...like if I ask a vendor for a dancehall tape, I dont expect him to give me some Burning Spear.

Thus, reggae has two meanings, the all inclusive one and the one that means a specific type...roots reggae.

The same goes for calypso and soca, theres the broad all-inclusive use and then the more narrower definition.

And, like dancehall and roots reggae, everyone knows theres a big difference between the two and the same goes for soca and calypso.

Instead of describing the differences in detail, everyone seemed to just argue about whether or not there was a difference.

What about the differences in style, background vocals, rhythms, tempo, lyrics, instruments, etc. ?

While in reggae the broad meaning still can be used for all categories in many situations ie. A reggae bashment, a reggae radio station, reggae lovers, "DJ play some reggae music," I don't think it works the same for Calypso. If someone invite you to a Calypso show, how can you not envision a tent atmosphere as opposed to a soca show with bands like xtatic and traffik?

We cannot come up with a standard of identifying something that already carries it's label and is pointedly distinguishable, I think that should have been established before the labelling process...
Trixx I do see where you're coming from and agree with you to some extent not entirely... I see soca and Calypso as two different forms yes but if we were to put them under one heading it would most likely be Calypso....
We all do seperate it for our own comfort and to better distinguish between the two but the truth of the matter is they fall in the same category "Calypso"..

Good point and I agree. Reggae is more generic in its curent usage while Calypso is more specific and has given way to Soca in the marketing sense. Nevertheless, Calypso is still used by many, including some soca artists, to describe their music.

Interestingly, black American music has never really been labeled with an all-inclusive term unless you go way back when it was called "race music". Although, the R&B of the 50's and 60's certainly is nothing like the R&B of today. That term kinda hung around and evolved into something completely different. There was country blues, rhythm and blues, jazz, soul, rap, etc. but no one generic term to describe it all, right?
So, from a marketing standpoint, each type of black American music was able to stand on its own with its own label.

BTW, another analogy would be salsa...It is used as a generic term for latin music which also includes merengue, etc. or it can be a specific kind of latin music or dance with its own rhythm.

One major problem in our culture is the disparity in creative thinkers. There are those who think beyond the paramaters of the labels associated with our music and then there are those who cannot escape them. I honestly can't tell when last I heard any of the current crop of soca artist refer their compositions as Calypso. If every publication recycles old thoughts and theories and all we do is say "this one says it is and that one says it is" our culture will never grow and be prosperous beyond the caribbean. I refuse to be as closed off to common sense as to embrace the two types of music as being one in the same. Who wants to continue to dwell in the seventies and eighties when all the references about soca and calypso were originally published can do so blissfully. The generation of Trinbagonians that grew up on calypso would be rather angry to hear their music categorized as being the same as the current breed of music predominantly eminating form our islands.

I have played in more than one party before and been asked for calypso and I dared to play Iwer george and tell them that is calypso just a different type. Is it ever sucessful? No. Why? Because they aren't regarded as being the same. For any DJ ignorant enough to say they are the same try playing a Mystic Prowler song in a soca fete let's see if you are ever hired by that promoter ever again. Like I've said before there is a distinct difference between the two and unless my comprehension of the english language is inaccurate there is sufficent differences between the two types to seperate them into 2 genres as opposed to one being a sub-category of the other.