Prime Minister Mia Mottley says the Caribbean has lost a towering cultural figure with the passing of calypso legend Slinger Francisco, the Mighty Sparrow.
In a statement issued on his passing, Mottley said, “For 70 years, the Mighty Sparrow has been woven into our Caribbean civilisation. Listen to his recordings, and you hear our history.”
She added that calypso gave ordinary West Indians a voice and carried that voice to the world “with incomparable genius”. Born in Grenada and raised in Trinidad, Mottley said he “belonged to all of us”.
Reflecting on the recent death of Barbadian cricket icon Sir Garfield Sobers, whom Sparrow honoured in song, the Prime Minister said the region was again mourning one of its greats.
“Just months after losing our beloved Sir Garry, whose greatness Sparrow celebrated in song, we must now say goodbye to him too. Two extraordinary sons who made this Caribbean stand taller.”
Mottley extended condolences to Sparrow’s family and to the people of Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago, saying, “Barbados stands with you in sorrow and gratitude.”
“Let our children hear him. Let them know that this brilliance came from among us.”
Mottley ended her tribute by recalling Sparrow’s own famous declaration, ‘Sparrow take over now’, adding, “You did, Birdie. You took your place in the heart of a civilisation, and there you will remain.”
