Calypso Archives Radio Show
King Wellington Interview
Dmitri Subotsky and John Child interview their very special guest King Wellington, an unsung pioneer of soca music.
Should King Wellington be regarded as the key figure behind the development of calypso into soca? Dmitri Subotsky argued that he should in a recent article in the Trinidad Guardian. Hear more in this interview.
Wellington talks about his early career, from his time hustling tourists to his first recording under the name of The Cisco, but the interview concentrates on his experimentation with calypso music in the late 60s and early 70s and his desire to change the music.
The interview was recorded at TUCO in 2006.
To listen to the interview, click here.
Wellington's full discography can be seen by clicking here.
Still unconvinced? Take a listen to the music of King Wellington and other significant tracks of the period in the following samples and draw your own conclusions:
King Wellington - Moonwalking (1969)
King Wellington - New Calypso Music (1971)
King Wellington - New Calypso Music (1974)
King Wellington - Treat Your Woman Nice (1971)
King Wellington - Treat Your Woman Nice (1974)
King Wellington - Ge Me Moh (1974)
King Wellington - More Woman (1974)
King Wellington - Mighty Stone & Dem - Calypso Jam (1975)
Lord Shorty - Endless Vibrations (1975)
John Child is producer/selector of the totallyradio show Aracataca
(http://www.totallyradio.com) and co-host
(with Dmitri Subotsky) of the totallyradio show Sugar Jam. He is an editor and journalist for the Descarga Latin music website
(http://www.descarga.com), and a contributor to the MusicWeb Encyclopedia of Popular Music
(http://www.musicweb.uk.net/encyclopaedia/index.htm) and Penguin and Guinness
Encyclopedias of Popular Music.
Dmitri Subotsky
24th February 2007
e-mail: calypso_archives@hotmail.com