He was 75 years old.
“Born a Pope, crowned a King, named a Duke...” is the opening line of a 2007 tribute song celebrating Kelvin Pope, aka The Mighty Duke.
Duke started performing in 1960, and between 1968 and 1971 he was almost unstoppable.
He won the calypso monarch title four consecutive years with hits such as “What is Calypso”, “Black Is Beautiful” and “Brotherhood of Man”.
In 1987, his hit “Thunder” not only won the Road March title in Trinidad but was a massive hit throughout the Caribbean.
Although his output might not have been as prolific in recent years, Duke nevertheless kept up a busy schedule despite suffering from Myleofibrosis.
In one of his last interviews in December last year, Duke revealed that he penned hundreds of songs in his lifetime.
He said this put him among the top five calypso writers of all time.
For Duke, the role of calypsonian was part entertainer and part chronicler/commentator on socio-political events.
He lamented what he saw as the decline of the art form in recent years.
--BBC Caribbean.com
"Don't Destroy Calypso Music"
1 comment:
much respect....
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