He was born in San Fernando, Trinidad. He became active in calypso in the mid-1930s, and was considered a country bumpkin by his contemporaries, because of his humble beginning. It was Grant's tailor who gave him his moniker by commenting, "I tell you, Rupert, you should call yourself Lord Invader so when you go up to the city you be invadin' the capital." With a new name, in 1937 he went to the capital city of Port of Spain and began his career in earnest.
He competed in many calypso competitions (including the very first Calypso King competition) and recorded for RCA Bluebird. Lured by Decca Records, he travelled to New York City in 1941 with other calypsonians such as Roaring Lion and Atilla the Hun to make records and promote calypso music. He wrote many calypsos; his most famous lyrics, "Rum and Coca-Cola", were 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. Ironically, In the early 1940s, radio stations in the USA would not play his own version on the grounds of its using the copyrighted name, Coca-Cola, and its references to prostitution and alcohol. He stayed in New York for a few years because of the lengthy court case. During his tenure in New York City, he became a fixture in the local calypso scene and recorded many tracks for Moses Asch. Eventually, he won his court case, but would not see his settlement check for seven years, so he returned to Trinidad in the meantime. He opened a calypso club there and penned and recorded many original songs.
He is often credited with writing "Zombie Jamboree", although the song was actually written by Lord Intruder (Winston O'Conner), who released it on the B-side of his 1953 single "Disaster with Police". It was covered by Conrad Eugene Mauge Jr, who recorded it in 1959 and was also often credited for writing it. The confusion probably stems from the introduction of the version by the Kingston Trio, which mentions "Lord Invader and his Twelve Penetrators". At long last, Invader collected his money from his court case, and began to tour the U.S., later expanding to Britain and Europe. In the last half of 1958, he returned to New York City and continued recording for Moses Asch. He would continue to return to his homeland for business and pleasure, although by now he had, with Wilmoth Houdini, made himself one of America's most successful calypsonians. On 15 October 1961, Lord Invader died at a Brooklyn, New York hospital.
The following discs give a good idea of his work:
Calypso in New York (Smithsonian Folkways 40454), released in 2000, 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 Records also have a number of CDs that Invader recorded in the late 1950s in New York, including, Calypso (1955), Calypso Travels, and There's a Brown Boy in the Ring and Other Children's Calypso Songs (1959).
In 1961, Invader released an atypical LP, West Indian Folk Songs for Children (Caedmon Records).
Cat O'Nine Tails
Lord Invader Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
From causing panic in Great Britain
The only thing to stop these Teddy Boys
From causing panic in England
Well I hope that the Government
See they need another kind of punishment
I say one thing to cool down this crime
So the old time cat-o-nine beat them bad
And they bound to change their mind
Send them to Dartmoor with licks like fire
And they bound to surrender
The police is working harder and harder
To see this thing go no further
Every night they on duty
To safeguard us from violence and robbery
But they would not stop at all
Peter is going to pay for Paul
I say one thing to cool down this crime
Is to beat them with the old time cat-o-nine
So the old time cat-o-nine lash them hard
And they bound to change their mind
Is to send them to Dartmoor with licks like fire
And they bound to surrender
In the days of Judge Hitchins, as you know
Nothing never happen so
Many man pass under his hand
Can tell you of the rod of correction
He used to treat them meek and mild
He never spare the rod to spoil the child
I say one thing to cool down this crime
Just scratch them with the old time cat-o-nine
So the old time cat-o-nine beat them bad
And they bound to change their mind
Is to send them to Dartmoor with licks like fire
And they bound to surrender
And every night they walking about in a band
Attacking woman and man
Is seems as though they have no respect on a person
Beating innocent people
But the judge and jury
Can settle this thing easily
I say the cat is the only H-bomb to drop
And this "Robustness" must stop
So the old time cat-o-nine lash them bad
And they bound to change their mind
Send them to Dartmoor with licks like fire
And they bound to surrender
Lord Invader's "Cat O'Nine Tails" addresses the "Teddy Boys" of Great Britain, a youth subculture that emerged in the 1950s characterized by their style and aggressive behavior. Invader suggests that the government needs to bring back corporal punishment as a means of curbing their criminal activities. He proposes using the "old-time cat-o-nine," a whip made of nine knotted cords that was often used to discipline slaves in the Caribbean.
Invader argues that the police are working hard to combat the Teddy Boys but are not making much headway. He asserts that the cat-o-nine is the only thing that will deter them from their violent and criminal behavior. Invader refers to Judge Hitchins, who was known for his use of the rod of correction on offenders, as an example of how effective corporal punishment can be in deterring crime.
Overall, the song is a call to action, urging the government and law enforcement to take more drastic measures to confront the criminal element in society. It highlights the frustration and helplessness people often feel when faced with rampant criminal activities.
Line by Line Meaning
The only thing to stop those hooligans
From causing panic in Great Britain
The singer believes that the only solution to the hooligans that are causing chaos and disorder in Great Britain is a harsh punishment.
The only thing to stop these Teddy Boys
From causing panic in England
The singer posits that these Teddy Boys are the root cause of panic in England and must be dealt with severely.
Well I hope that the Government
See they need another kind of punishment
The singer expresses his hope that the government realizes the need for a stricter punishment to deal with the current problem of disorder in the country.
I say one thing to cool down this crime
Is to bring back the old time cat-o-nine
The artist suggests reintroducing the old punishment of cat-o-nine tails as the best way to curb this alarming rise in crime.
So the old time cat-o-nine beat them bad
And they bound to change their mind
Send them to Dartmoor with licks like fire
And they bound to surrender
The artist believes that using a cat-o-nine tail to punish these offenders would severely hurt and reform them, thus eradicating their violent and mischievous ways.
The police is working harder and harder
To see this thing go no further
Every night they on duty
To safeguard us from violence and robbery
The police force is putting in more effort to prevent violent incidents and robberies and work tirelessly every night to ensure the safety of the public.
But they would not stop at all
Peter is going to pay for Paul
I say one thing to cool down this crime
Is to beat them with the old time cat-o-nine
Despite their diligent efforts, the police have not been able to fully stop these criminal acts. The singer still believes that the cat-o-nine punishment is the most effective solution.
In the days of Judge Hitchins, as you know
Nothing never happen so
Many man pass under his hand
Can tell you of the rod of correction
In the days when Judge Hitchins held power, crime was rare. Many people that had been punished by Judge Hitchins can attest to the effectiveness of the punishment.
He used to treat them meek and mild
He never spare the rod to spoil the child
I say one thing to cool down this crime
Just scratch them with the old time cat-o-nine
Judge Hitchins was stern in his punishments but treated those he punished with kindness. The artist again suggests that the cat-o-nine punishment is the best way to deal with the current crime wave.
And every night they walking about in a band
Attacking woman and man
Is seems as though they have no respect on a person
Beating innocent people
But the judge and jury
Can settle this thing easily
I say the cat is the only H-bomb to drop
And this "Robustness" must stop
The criminals are not just causing chaos and disorder but are also attacking innocent people, which must be stopped. The artist suggests that the judicial system can easily solve this problem by enforcing stricter punishments, such as the cat-o-nine, to deter such behavior.
So the old time cat-o-nine lash them bad
And they bound to change their mind
Send them to Dartmoor with licks like fire
And they bound to surrender
Repeating his earlier suggestion, the singer emphasizes that the old-time punishment of cat-o-nine is the most effective way to reform these criminals and stop their mischievous and unlawful behavior.
Contributed by Carson D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.