Departures of note

Slinger Francisco, known professionally as the Mighty Sparrow, was born in Grand Roy, Grenada, on 9 July 1935 and raised in Laventille, Trinidad. He began singing calypso as a teenager, first billed as Little Sparrow before adopting the name Mighty Sparrow, and rose to local stardom through his residency at the Lotus Club in Port of Spain. In 1956 he won both Trinidad's Calypso King and Road March competitions with "Jean and Dinah," a sly commentary on the departure of American troops, and went on to claim the Calypso Monarch title eight times, the Road March eight times, and the Calypso King of Kings twice. He recorded prolifically for RCA and other labels, and found international success in the late 1960s with "Only a Fool Breaks His Own Heart," recorded with Byron Lee and the Dragonaires. Known for witty, ribald, and politically pointed lyrics, he commented on Trinidadian politics, independence, and social issues across a career spanning more than six decades, and helped improve conditions for calypso and steelband musicians. He was honored with the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the Order of the Caribbean Community, and an OBE, and continued performing into his eighties. He died in New York in September 2026 at the age of 91.