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Donald R. Hill overviews the musical scene of the island of Carriacou in the Grenadines, tracing the series of cultural roots branching out to West Africa, Europe, the Mediterranean, the greater... more

This compilation is an introduction to the golden age of calypso and to some of it's greatest exponents. The genre is known for it's incisive social commentary, and the songs on this album retain the... more

George Eaton Simpson, of Oberlin College, traveled to Trinidad in 1960 to study and record the music of two cults whose members are largely of African descent. The Shango Cult derives it's beliefs... more

According to the original liner notes, this selection of 1930s Trinidadian calypso is colorful and exuberant and richly expressive and often hilariously funny. From tales of Ethiopian emperor Haile... more

The Dominican Republic is a culturally complex country and is roughly divisible into several different culture zones. These include the more Hispanic or Iberian North (the Cibao), and the more... more

When reading Samuel Charters' saga of his search for Frederick McQueen, one gets the sense that he is chasing a ghost on the Bahamas' largest island of Andros - coincidentally known for it's... more

Louise Bennett leads irresistible ring games that have been the favorites of Jamaican children across generations. Many songs retain a specifically African or British flavor.

Jamaican singer and folklorist Louise Bennett sings Jamaican folk songs, work songs, dancing songs and banana-boat-loading songs. Amongst these songs are parables, cautionary tales and opportunities... more

Cruise the Caribbean during the mid-twentieth century heyday of "the society ballroom and the honky-tonk [music] of the West Indies." Stop by Martinique, the Virgin Islands, Guadeloupe, Trinidad,... more

Whether purely instrumental or with a chorus, each of these recordings manages to capture the spirit of the English, Spanish, and French speaking Caribbean. Many of the recordings are of dance music... more

RELATED LESSON PLAN "Steel band Style, Calypso Culture and Childhood Chants: Trinidadian Music for the Classroom" in your class.

Haitian guitarist and composer Frantz Casseus charged himself with the mission of building a repertoire for guitar blending Haitian folk music and European classical music, much as Villa Lobos had... more

Puerto Rican-born, Haitian-bred vocalist Lolita Cuevas and Haitian guitarist and composer Frantz Casseus lyrically come together in rendering some of the most beautiful folk songs of Haiti. Arranged... more

This recording combines vocal interpretations of Vodou (an Afro-Haitian religion) ceremonial songs and popular secular melodies by legendary Haitian singer, dancer and folklorist Emerante de Pradines... more

In the Dominican Republic, syncretism between African traditions and Catholicism often manifests itself in songs and rituals. On this album "Sarandunga," a celebration that honors St. John the... more

Music from the Dominican Republic: Vol. 3, Cradle of the New World, continues in the vein of prior volumes in the series, offering songs that range from religious salves in praise of the Virgin Mary... more

Calypso survives sporadically in Limon and Bocas del Toro (Panama), especially around Carnival time, in the spring. Elsewhere on the mainland, the calypso culture is gone, driven out by radios and... more

The year 1862 brought a wave of Baptist missionaries to Jamaica, thus beginning the Great Revival. In a melding of fundamentalist Christian practices with African religious and magical beliefs,... more

Jamaican folk music blends African, European and East Indian (in dialect: Bongo, Backra and Coolie) roots into something distinctly Jamaican. Kumina, a magico-religious cult of predominantly rural... more

I didn't go to a Music School, it's just an in-born talent. I experience and learnt the hardest way," says Jamaican vocalist Horace Johnson. You'll recognize Belafonte's "Island in the Sun" and... more

Even in the 21st century, the evolution of the word Junkanoo remains uncertain. One popularized theory suggests that the word is derived from an African prince, John Canoe, who gained control of an... more

Calypsois a collection of eight songs recorded by Lord Invader (Rupert Westmore Grant) during one of his periodic visits to the United States. Modern calypso music emerged in the early 20th century... more

RELATED LESSON PLAN "Steel band Style, Calypso Culture and Childhood Chants: Trinidadian Music for the Classroom"

Released in 1960, West Indian Folksongs for Children features original compositions by the Trinidadian Calypso singer Lord Invader. Some of the tunes are twists on other classics. For example,... more