The Mighty Sparrow - Hot And Sweet
If you must possess only one calypso album, so this must be this one. Maybe because it's one of the best and most accessible work of The Mighty Sparrow, dubbed the "Calypso King Of The World". Probably one of the greatest entertainer of the small Trinidad music scene, The Mighty Spparow have been dominating the calypso music for the last 50 years. But Hot And Sweet doesn't really sound just like an exotica curiosity, the kind of music you find OK during your vacations in the sun but just cheesy once back at home. Produced by überproducer Van Dyke Parks, with arrangements by Earl Rodney and orchestrations from Asquith Clarke, Hot And Sweet is strong on percussions and horns but incorporates pop, boogaloo and salsa influences. Probably quickly recorded in only a couple of sessions, the album was then reworked in studio by Van Dyke Parks. This album is just an incredible breath of sun in a cold and long winter.
