Melody was born Fitzroy Alexander at San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, raised at an orphanage in Port of Spain, and met Alwyn Roberts (soon to become better known as Lord Kitchener) after moving to Arima while still in his teens. Roberts took him under his wing and they returned to Port of Spain, where Lord Kitchener became the leading calypso star, with Melody one of his main challengers. His popularity increased locally when Lord Kitchener emigrated to England in 1947. Melody began singing in the calypso tents in the mid 1940s and was one of the leaders of the Young Brigade tent during the 1950s and early 1960s. He also regularly toured the Caribbean. His early successes included "Berlin on a Donkey", mocking Adolf Hitler, and "Boo Boo Man". In 1954 he won Trinidad's Calypso King title with "Second Spring", and he was signed to the American Emory Cook's record label, Cook Records, in 1956.
He was one of six calypsonians who were chosen to sing for Princess Margaret at the Governor's House during her visit to Trinidad in 1956; the others were Sir Galba, Mighty Dictator, Mighty Spitfire, Mighty Panther, and Lord Viper.
Melody went on to compose a number of other songs that poked fun at his own appearance, such as "Creature from the Black Lagoon".
His first album, Lord Melody Sings Calypso, was released in 1957, with a second album, Again! released the following year.
He frequently sparred in song with the Mighty Sparrow. Rivalry between Melody and the Mighty Sparrow was recorded in the calypsos "Ten to One is Murder" and "Cowboy Sparrow". The humorous rivalry between the two calypsonians was immensely popular with audiences. Another one of Melody's calypsos, "Shame & Scandal" (composed in 1962), became an international hit and was recorded in the U.S., Europe and Australia.
His greatest success came when Harry Belafonte recorded his songs "Boo Boo Man" (retitled "Mama Look at Bubu") and "Sweetheart From Venezuela" (aka "Juanita"), having a top 20 hit in the US with the former in 1957. "Mama Look a Boo Boo" was also recorded by Robert Mitchum and many other singers. In 1958, his "Cricket, Lovely Cricket" became a favourite on British radio, and his records started to become available in Europe, with several singles becoming favourites with Britain's West Indian community in the late 1950s. In the first half of the 1960s, his popularity waned, but he again found success in 1965 when his "Melody Mas" won the panorama at the Carnival.
In the late 1960s Melody moved to New York, and he subsequently toured with Belafonte. He was diagnosed with cancer in the early 1970s and the illness restricted his career, although in 1979 he released the I Man album, a reggae tinged album on which he expressed his embrace of Rastafari, the singles "Rastaman Be Careful" and "Brown Sugar" becoming local hits in the same era. In 1982 he made another album, the soca-styled Lola.
His health continued to deteriorate and he died from cancer in September 1988, in Port of Spain.
Creature From The Black Lagoon
Lord Melody Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The people say that I ugly
I takin' a plastic surgery
The people say that I ugly
Oh, Lo'd, I send me child by de neighbour
Last Sunday to get some butter
I find the child was stay too long
The neighbour calls for send a child upside the dung
Me boy child, just tell them no
"Yesterday he pass by we
And your father really ugly"
"When I go home, I going to tell me mammy
All you say me daddy ugly"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"No, I gon' tell me mama!"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
I t'ink I could lose me temper
They gon' charge me for manslaughter
Because this thing getting chronic
Especially me neighbour Monkey Eric
And his children t'ink I'm a coolie
All the Belgian missile behind me
When they meet me son is a different t'ing
They will flock around him and start to sing
"Boy, how you father ugly so!"
Me boy child, just tell them no
"Yesterday he pass by we
And your father really ugly"
"When I go home, I going to tell me mammy
All you say me daddy ugly"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"No, I gon' tell me mama!"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
I always discuss my beauty
And I know I'm not so ugly
Me, I does see tea in my sister
Callin' me a hideous creature
You know de neighbour was there
So she started laughing
I nearly killed the girl in the kitchen
She scrambled me son from behind me head
I nearly killed me poor boy child dead
Singing, "You're ugly, just like your father, Mel"
Me son tell her, "Go to hell!
My father have a good voice
And he is my mother's choice
And if he ugly, he ugly
He's me father a'ready
I can't help, believe me
I am definitely sorry"
"... If the creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"No, I gon' tell me mama!"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"Oh, no, I gon' tell me mama!"
The song "Creature from the Black Lagoon" by Lord Melody is a satirical take on the idea of beauty and ugliness. The singer is someone who has been ridiculed and insulted for their supposed ugliness by their neighbors and even their own child. The constant belittling drives the singer to consider taking drastic measures like undergoing plastic surgery or losing their temper and committing manslaughter. The title of the song is a reference to the 1954 horror film of the same name about a prehistoric creature that terrorizes a scientific expedition. The song plays on the idea that the singer is just as hideous as the creature from the film.
The lyrics show the way the singer and their family are mocked and ostracized by their neighbors for their looks. Despite the singer's attempts to defend their own appearance and self-worth, they are constantly bombarded with negative comments about their looks. The song touches on larger themes like body image, self-esteem, and the pressure to conform to societal beauty standards.
Overall, "Creature from the Black Lagoon" is a catchy and humorous soca song that satirizes how people can be cruel to those who don't fit into their idea of what is beautiful.
Line by Line Meaning
I takin' a plastic surgery
I am undergoing plastic surgery
The people say that I ugly
People say that I am ugly
Oh, Lo'd, I send me child by de neighbour
Oh Lord, I sent my child to the neighbor’s house
Last Sunday to get some butter
Last Sunday to get some butter
I find the child was stay too long
I found that the child was taking too long
The neighbour calls for send a child upside the dung
The neighbor calls for sending a child to inspect the excreta
"Boy, how you father ugly so!"
"Boy, why is your father so ugly?"
Me boy child, just tell them no
My son just tells them no
"Yesterday he pass by we
"Yesterday he passed by us
And your father really ugly"
And your father is really ugly"
"When I go home, I going to tell me mammy
"When I go home, I am going to tell my mother
All you say me daddy ugly"
All you say about my father being ugly"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"Your father is the creature from the black lagoon"
"No, I gon' tell me mama!"
"No, I am going to tell my mother"
"I t'ink I could lose me temper"
"I think I could lose my temper"
They gon' charge me for manslaughter
They are going to charge me with manslaughter
Because this thing getting chronic
Because this thing is becoming chronic
Especially me neighbour Monkey Eric
Especially my neighbor Monkey Eric
And his children t'ink I'm a coolie
And his children think I am a coolie
All the Belgian missile behind me
All the Belgian women are behind me
When they meet me son is a different t'ing
When they see my son, it is a different thing
They will flock around him and start to sing
They will gather around him and start to sing
"Boy, how you father ugly so!"
"Boy, why is your father so ugly?"
Me boy child, just tell them no
My son just tells them no
"Yesterday he pass by we
"Yesterday he passed by us
And your father really ugly"
And your father is really ugly"
"When I go home, I going to tell me mammy
"When I go home, I am going to tell my mother
All you say me daddy ugly"
All you say about my father being ugly"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"Your father is the creature from the black lagoon"
"No, I gon' tell me mama!"
"No, I am going to tell my mother"
I always discuss my beauty
I always talk about my beauty
And I know I'm not so ugly
And I know I am not that ugly
Me, I does see tea in my sister
I see tea in my sister
Callin' me a hideous creature
Calling me a hideous creature
You know de neighbour was there
You know that the neighbor was there
So she started laughing
So she started laughing
I nearly killed the girl in the kitchen
I almost killed the girl in the kitchen
She scrambled me son from behind me head
She pulled my son away from behind my head
I nearly killed me poor boy child dead
I almost killed my poor son
Singing, "You're ugly, just like your father, Mel"
Singing, "You're ugly, just like your father, Mel"
Me son tell her, "Go to hell!
My son told her, "Go to hell!
My father have a good voice
My father has a good voice
And he is my mother's choice
And he is my mother's choice
And if he ugly, he ugly
And if he is ugly, he is ugly
He's me father a'ready
He is already my father
I can't help, believe me
I can't help it, believe me
"... If the creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"...If the creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"No, I gon' tell me mama!"
"No, I am going to tell my mother"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"The creature from the black lagoon is your father!"
"Oh, no, I gon' tell me mama!"
"Oh, no, I am going to tell my mother!"
Contributed by Muhammad N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@tafimutekwe2855
They declared Sparrow and Kitchner as the "twin peaks" of Trinidadian calypso but I assert that Lord Melody makes it the "unholy trinity" of Trinidadian calypso. He definitely is up there with the rest of the best.
@roybrown7357
i see why lord melody was the calypso king for a long time,the lyrics to the songs that he sang was superb indeed.
@VoltairesRevenge
My dad (from NYC) used to sing this to me when I was a kid. I just thought it was some folk song that his stepdad knew from the islands. Turns out it was a real song. 😮👀
@lifeskater9899
Whoa! Growing up in St. Thomas back then, all I remembered was hearing this from a jukebox, and the chorus. This brought back great memories. thanks much for posting!
@krnewman
I have two copies of this LP, one has a booklet that comes with it. Whole album is great
@unclefredwilson
A man from New York named Emory Cooke is largely responsible for the popularity of Calypso in the USA in the 50s with his field collections. Thanks to the covers by Harry Belafonte the accent challenged were able to understand the lyrics. It's some of the best musical art that ever lived.
@521gmj
My absent father never knew this is what we called him...LOL
@joehiggs100
Thank you so much! My LP bought many years ago in a second hand shop is so scatched, half of it is missing! I first heard this even longer ago and always thought it hilarious. I even remember the film! Classic!
@Atomank68
Being a mainland 'Americano', I've always enjoyed my stepfather's Calypso records. the Mighty Sparrow, etc. Raunchy as they were, with the strange 'pidgeon' accents, somehow they gave me a sense of...well, a sense of down -home "coziness", and as familiar as being with relatives in South Carolina, the times I used to visit there!!!
@petranilla14
VINTAGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!