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King Karessah
If Lord Karessah is going to be dethroned at the 2010 Calypso Finals, he is going to have to lay down his crown.
All of the calypsonians will be hoping and praying for a no-show or faux pas of extreme proportion from him.
But the Karessah is simply unstoppable this year
Of course, he has King Hunter and De Dice to thank for that. They opted out of the competition. He might even wish to tip his heart to Tarina who was in train to making history by becoming the first female calypsonian to win the coveted calypso monarchy only if she could keep her nerves on the big day. She too chose not to compete.
February 13th grand finals however should not be a walk in the park for the reining king given that he would have to do battle with the likes of seasoned veterans like Davidson ‘Observer’ Victor and reigning Soca Monarch Chester ‘Daddy Chess’ Letang. Both men have tasted glory before.
Unfortunately it is.
With the exception of Lady Star’s ‘Responsibility’ and Explosion’s ‘Grace, Mercy and Peace’, no other calypsonian in this year’ competition has a composition on the level of Karessah’s ‘Dog Race’ or ‘Cry for Haiti’. These are both masterpieces in every sense of the calypso art form.
Tarsha P’s ‘He’s a boy’ is nice; it’s even a great calypso. It however fails to orbit the stratosphere reserved for Karesah, Lady Star and the Explosion. I even like Daddy Chess’s fusion of calypso and compas in the refrain of his Haiti rendition, but the composition is a midget when stacked against King Karessah’s version.
Sorry Ossie, there is nothing big about Daddy Chess’s ‘Liat’ or the Observer’s ‘Next level’.
I’m far from impressed with Lady Star’s second song. Maybe I need to have a second listen but I seriously doubt the judges would be an iota more lenient. Lady Star’s best shot at glory is to strike a deal with master lyricist Freddie ‘Man Himself’ Mense for a winning second song. It’s not too late.
If the Explosion can come up with an equally brilliant second song and stellar performance on the night of the finals, then he might be the only challenger to the throne that king karesah will have to bother about.
Of course, the calypso monarch competition is much more than a song contest. Great compositions perish at all levels of the competition. The Explosion who has had some of the better calypsos in the competition for the last two or three years never made it past eliminations until now. Prosper, Yakima, Beno and Mighty Logars all perished at Saturday’s semis. Anything can happen on the night of the finals, anything. But knowing Karessah, he’s going to come out all guns blazing. Question is, when the dust is settled, will the king have mounted a successful defense of his title? I concur with the Karessah. Come Saturday 13th February, he is going “claim “his crown..
Long live the King
