Lord Invader

Rupert Grant, more commonly known as Lord Invader, was a prominent calypsonian with a very distinctive, gravelly voice. He was born in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago in 1915, and died in New York in 1962.

Related Topics:
Calypsonian - Port-of-Spain - Trinidad and Tobago - 1915 - New York - 1962

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Invader became active in calypso in the mid-1930s. He wrote many calypsos; his most famous, Rum and Coca-Cola, was plagiarised by Morey Amsterdam and became a hit for the Andrews Sisters. Invader travelled to New York and sued, eventually winning compensation, although the final settlement allowed Amsterdam to retain his copyright.

Related Topics:
Calypso - 1930s - Rum and Coca-Cola - Morey Amsterdam - Andrews Sisters

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He is often credited with writing Zombie Jamboree, although there is no evidence he actually wrote the song.

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The following disks give a good idea of his work:

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• Calypso in New York (Smithsonian Folkways 40454) is a collection of Invader's recordings across his whole career.
• Calypso at Midnight and Calypso After Midnight come from a live recording organized by Alan Lomax in New York in 1946.
• Calypso War, Kings of Calypso, and Trojan Calypso boxed set all feature the same set of songs recorded in the United Kingdom in the 1950s.
• Folkways recordings also have a number of CDs that Invader recorded in the late 1950s in New York.