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Soca music
Soca music, or the "soul of calypso", is a genre of music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago in the 1970s. It is considered an offshoot of calypso, with influences from Afro-Trinidadian and Indo-Trinidadian rhythms. It was created by Ras Shorty I (or Lord Shorty) in an effort to revive traditional calypso, the popularity of which had been declining amongst younger generations in Trinidad due to the rise in popularity of reggae from Jamaica and soul and funk from the United States. From the 1980s onward, soca has developed into a range of new styles.
"Soca" is a portmanteau of the words "soul" and "calypso". The genre was defined by Lord Shorty as the "Soul of Calypso."
The word was originally spelled s-o-k-a-h by Lord Shorty. In a 1979 interview with Carnival Magazine, Lord Shorty stated that he "came up with the name soca. I invented soca. And I never spelt it s-o-c-a. It was s-o-k-a-h to reflect the East Indian influence." The use of kah (the Hindi word for ‘divine’) referenced the genre's Indo-Caribbean influence. However, s-o-c-a quickly became the popular spelling after a journalist, Ivor Ferreira, misspelled the name. The article, which included an interview with Lord Shorty, was published during the 1976 Trinidad Carnival season. The article said "Shorty is doing soca". Lord Shorty confirmed the error, but chose to leave it that way to avoid confusion.[citation needed]
Soca began its development in the early 1970s and grew in popularity throughout that decade. Soca's development as a musical genre included its fusion with calypso, kaiso, chutney, reggae, zouk, Latin, cadence, and traditional West African rhythms.
A sound project started in 1970 at KH Studios in Trinidad to find a way to record the complex calypso rhythm in a new multi-track recording era. Musicians involved in the initiative were Robin Imamshah (guitar, project lead), Angus Nunez (bass), Errol Wise (drums), Vonrick Maynard (drums), Clarence James (percussion), Carl Henderson (keyboards) and David Boothman (strings).[citation needed]
Some of the early songs recorded in 1972 at the KH Studios which benefited from this project were "Indrani" by Lord Shorty and "Calypso Zest" by Sensational Roots. Later came the soca hits "Endless Vibrations" and "Sweet Music" by Lord Shorty, recorded in 1974 and 1975 respectively, and "Second Fiddle" by Ella Andall, recorded in 1975. In 1976, "Savage" by Maestro and "Trinidad Boogie" by Last Supper (composed by Robin Imamshah) also benefited from the improving multi-track recording technology at KH Studios.
Soca continues to incorporate contemporary music styles and trends. Bollywood films, bhangra, the new Punjabi pop, and disco music in the United States have also experimented with soca.
The "father" of soca was a Trinidadian named Garfield Blackman, who rose to fame as Lord Shorty with his 1964 hit "Cloak and Dagger". He adopted the name "Ras Shorty I" in the early 1980s. He started out writing songs and performing in the calypso genre. A prolific musician, composer and innovator, Shorty experimented with fusing calypso and elements of Indo-Caribbean music after 1965, before debuting "the Soul of Calypso" (or "soca") music in the early 1970s.
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Soca music
Soca music, or the "soul of calypso", is a genre of music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago in the 1970s. It is considered an offshoot of calypso, with influences from Afro-Trinidadian and Indo-Trinidadian rhythms. It was created by Ras Shorty I (or Lord Shorty) in an effort to revive traditional calypso, the popularity of which had been declining amongst younger generations in Trinidad due to the rise in popularity of reggae from Jamaica and soul and funk from the United States. From the 1980s onward, soca has developed into a range of new styles.
"Soca" is a portmanteau of the words "soul" and "calypso". The genre was defined by Lord Shorty as the "Soul of Calypso."
The word was originally spelled s-o-k-a-h by Lord Shorty. In a 1979 interview with Carnival Magazine, Lord Shorty stated that he "came up with the name soca. I invented soca. And I never spelt it s-o-c-a. It was s-o-k-a-h to reflect the East Indian influence." The use of kah (the Hindi word for ‘divine’) referenced the genre's Indo-Caribbean influence. However, s-o-c-a quickly became the popular spelling after a journalist, Ivor Ferreira, misspelled the name. The article, which included an interview with Lord Shorty, was published during the 1976 Trinidad Carnival season. The article said "Shorty is doing soca". Lord Shorty confirmed the error, but chose to leave it that way to avoid confusion.[citation needed]
Soca began its development in the early 1970s and grew in popularity throughout that decade. Soca's development as a musical genre included its fusion with calypso, kaiso, chutney, reggae, zouk, Latin, cadence, and traditional West African rhythms.
A sound project started in 1970 at KH Studios in Trinidad to find a way to record the complex calypso rhythm in a new multi-track recording era. Musicians involved in the initiative were Robin Imamshah (guitar, project lead), Angus Nunez (bass), Errol Wise (drums), Vonrick Maynard (drums), Clarence James (percussion), Carl Henderson (keyboards) and David Boothman (strings).[citation needed]
Some of the early songs recorded in 1972 at the KH Studios which benefited from this project were "Indrani" by Lord Shorty and "Calypso Zest" by Sensational Roots. Later came the soca hits "Endless Vibrations" and "Sweet Music" by Lord Shorty, recorded in 1974 and 1975 respectively, and "Second Fiddle" by Ella Andall, recorded in 1975. In 1976, "Savage" by Maestro and "Trinidad Boogie" by Last Supper (composed by Robin Imamshah) also benefited from the improving multi-track recording technology at KH Studios.
Soca continues to incorporate contemporary music styles and trends. Bollywood films, bhangra, the new Punjabi pop, and disco music in the United States have also experimented with soca.
The "father" of soca was a Trinidadian named Garfield Blackman, who rose to fame as Lord Shorty with his 1964 hit "Cloak and Dagger". He adopted the name "Ras Shorty I" in the early 1980s. He started out writing songs and performing in the calypso genre. A prolific musician, composer and innovator, Shorty experimented with fusing calypso and elements of Indo-Caribbean music after 1965, before debuting "the Soul of Calypso" (or "soca") music in the early 1970s.