Roaring Lion's Eulogy
Written by Eddy Grant, and Read At Lion's Funeral
Ladies and Gentlemen,

We are here today to celebrate the life and works of the Roaring Lion. I’m sure right now that Lion is having a quiet chuckle as I stand here trying to convince you of his date of birth. Most people seem to think that Lion is at least one hundred years old but in fact current thinking seems to place him at ninety-one having been born on the 22nd February, 1908. To any normal thinking person Rafael De Leon should be a Piscean however if you were to ask most of his friends and family they would tell you that Lion is Gemini while still sticking to the 22nd. February as his date of birth. Such was the man Rafael De Leon, the Roaring Lion.

Rafael De Leon was born in Aroquita in the hills of Caura to a woman by the name of Basalicion De Leon. Being an illegitimate child Lion was treated like an outcast and according to him, he spent some of his early years in two orphanages before ending up in San Fernando at the home of a Miss Charles on Coffee Street. By that time he was working at the Usine factory in St. Madeline and before long Coffee Street became his stomping ground as Lion would always be in the thick of things. It was during this period that he endeared himself to the Muslim community in San Fernando and in particular Najeeran Khan who became his adopted mother (yes you guessed it, Lion adopted her). Full of curiousity and a sense of adventure Lion even back then had a tremendous passion for life and learning.

Lion was a man known to have engaged some of the finest luminaries like Messrs. Hannays and Wooding, two great lawyers of the thirties, in discussion even though he himself was of humble origins and not ‘highly educated’. It is fondly remembered that in the 30’s Lion and Atilla would meet at the Bake and Accra Fry Shop owned by Miss Chin on Prince Street in Port-of-Spain and talk on many subjects often into the wee hours of the morning.

Lion told me that as a youngster he wrote poetry and at that on one particular occasion at about the age of eighteen while attending a competition he was coaxed on to the stage by one Douglas Walter also known as Lord Walter host of Trinidad’s Grand Calypso Competition and while in the middle of his first rendition a shout went up from one of the patrons ‘all yuh doh see de boy is a young lion? Roar Lion Roar. The song he sang was entitled ‘Shango Cult’ which was a humourous song. Encouraged by this, young Hubert as he was called then, returned for the second round and walked away with the first prize for his original song entitled ‘Send your children to the Orphan Home’ which he later recorded.

Even after this incident it was still not his impression that he had gotten a new name. This didn’t sink in until one day he turned up at a show place to perform and while looking at the marquee to see who else was on the bill happened to see the name Roaring Lion and when he asked who that person was he was told that it was in fact he.

Lion is generally credited as being the calypsonian who changed calypso from being a music with only a few melodies around which different vocal themes were placed, to one with wildly varying melodies and vocal themes. He is called the great experimenter in the book Kaiso, written by his great friend and brother calypsonian ATILLA THE HUN (Raymond Quevedo). In Atilla’s book Lion is described as one not only musically gifted but one of the very few men able to carry a bevvy of the most beautiful women on both arms and being endowed with the necessary personality to enable them all to live peacefully together. His celebrity was such that patrons often wanted to confirm that he was actually at the venue before they would pay their entrance fee as no one else but the lion would do.

In 1933 the merchant Edwardo Sa Gomes sent Roaring Lion and Atilla The Hun to New York to record, history was created, as they were the first genuine calypsonians to record "abroad" and the event was heralded both at home and abroad thus ushering in a truly golden age of calypso and calypsonians emanating out of Trinidad and Tobago.

It is said that upon being introduced to President Franklin D. Roosevelt and being asked if he was from the Land of the Hummingbird Lion replied, "no sir from Trinidad, "The Land Of Calypso", a name it is destined to be called forevermore.

And so began the legend and recognition of a talent which has carried Roaring Lion to many foreign shores. He has performed in the United States, singing at the famed Village Vanguard and Blue Angel nightclubs, as well as the Waldorf Astoria. His versatility and charm, combined with his award winning music and lyrics prompted those agents to further his career by giving him the opportunity to perform at New York’s prestigious Carnegie Hall, and at the celebrity studded Hollywood Cafe owned by the then world famous Rudy Vallee.

The Lion’s way with words and music brought him to the attention of royalty when he penned the song entitled "Three Cheers For The Red White And Blue, " to commemorate the crowning of King George VI, another at the time of the King’s death entitled "The Death Of King George VI" and yet another still in honor of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. For these efforts he received acknowledgements from the Crown.

In addition to being the world’s greatest authority on the subject of Calypso and Caribbean Folklore, Lion has written some of the greatest calypsos of all time, many sung by the artist Harry Belafonte in his prime, were songs written and originally sung by the Roaring Lion.

To name a few there is the legendary MARY ANN, WE COME FROM THE GLORY, TIC TIC TIC, MAN CENTIPEDE (which he wrote with his great friend ATILLA) and UGLY WOMAN which was not only the first calypso to be used in a Hollywood movie, but whose lyrics and theme were appropriated ( that means stolen in common language ) to create a hit for JIMMY SOUL an American rhythm & blues singer in 1962 called "If You Want To Be Happy" and like so many others of his time Lion never got any credit or recompense for his song; in fact he was encouraged by those who should have known better to "keep his song" and the other guy will "keep his separate". Songs by the Lion have since appeared in films such as Captain Ron and Beetle Juice both of which have been big box office hits.

It is a well known fact that "Lion collects everything to do with calypso" and it was exactly this idiosyncracy that enabled Lord Invader to prove ownership of the song ‘Rum and Coca Cola’ and managed to negotiate a settlement and some money from Maury Amsterdam who’d downright stolen it and given it to the Andrews Sisters. They made it into a million selling standard…thanks again Lion.

Before his departure for England in the early 1950’s Lion had won more Road Marches (then called Leggoes) than any other calypsonian. This record stands till today albeit that the afficionados from time to time seek to create a spurious distinction between the title Road March and Leggo.

Upon arriving in England, where he then relaunched his career as an entertainer, Lion lived in the area of London known as West Kensington where at that time a great number of West Indians settled. There was during this time some difficulty for balck people fidning accomadation but using his power of charm he was able to convince an English woman who owned several properties that he should start a Cloured People’s Accomodation Bureau. This he did successfully which in the end made life much easier for the coloured population of London and in particular West Indians.

Further to being an agent he decided to acquire his own properties but had no money. So he decided to use that old charm of his and convinced a Managerof Barclays Bank to give him a loan of a thousand pounds without any security. Needless to say the manager susequently became his personal friend and Lion went on to own several properties on Fairholme Road in London.

In the mid 1950’s, Lion embarked on new project of producing and marketing Cosmetics aimed at the coulred people’s market. Business grew rapidly and in 1960, he opened a shop on North End Road which he named Caribbean Bazaar. At this time his calypso Mary Ann was used in the motion picture ‘Tiger Bay’ without his consent and on the advice of a friend he contacted the Perfroming Rights Society to have the matter straightened out. During this same period he made several visits to the U.S.A. where he had an ongoing lawsuit against Harry Bellafonte.

In 1965 he made a decision to return to Trinidad and Tobago after having travelled to all parts of Europe and Scandinavia where through his calypso and personality he had hoped to create cultural alliances between those countries and T & T.

He was surprised and disappointed at the indifference showed to his ideas by the government of the day but not to be easily deterred he decided to set up a plant for the manufacture of cosmetics here in Trinidad. This venture was bound to fail at best for the salient reason that although he was provided with a site for his factory the nearest source of water was a very long way away. He therefore had to abort this particular mission and in fact the various components of this aborted business can be found today under his house at Mt. Lambert.

Lion was not an ordinary person. His interest in history and logic was astonishing. He had such reverence for people of great stature that the names of his sons reflect the intensity to which he thought. He was above race and colour and none of his philosophies and or his utterances were ever it seems circumscribed by these; what was right was right it didn’t matter who you were, with all due respect he would say. As a matter of fact I can remember very well the occasion on which he regaled myself Gabby, Doctor Oswin Rose and a good friend of ours named Serpico with the history of calypso and when he actually told us of France’s involvement in calypso. I’m not sure if words have ever hurt me so bad as an African, but such was the charisma and downright innocence of the man that instead of walking away in vexation and remaining in ignorance, all present stayed to be further educated like the so many who have been to the shrine at Mt. Lambert in the past.

A number of those same students have turned around and when he’s seemed most vulnerable, denied him and his ideas in public while privately hailing him as the Calypso messiah or walking encyclopaedia. Lion says the truth has a very long shelf life.

His song"Welcome Calypso" was written to welcome His Holiness Pope John Paul to Trinidad and Tobago, and Roaring Lion was honored to present His Eminence with an autographed copy of the record for which he received the Pope’s blessing.

Now, I came into the Lion’s orbit in 1991 after he had been out of favour in the calypso world for a great number of years. In fact I may have barely heard his name in passing along with so many other great forgotten or barely remembered calypso heroes such as Executor, Atilla the Hun, Lord Beginner, Invader, Radio, Dictator, Railway Douglas, Destroyer, Spoiler, Terror, and the whole pantheon of other great calypso performers that Lion has taught me about. I, like so many others of my generation was too busy worshipping at the altar of the Mighty Sparrow in my case and Lord Kitchener in a lot of others.

I was introduced to the man who was to become my mentor, father and friend by Dr. Oswin Rose who is a well known collector and fan of calypso music. I was interested in archiving and restoring classic calypso to its rightful place in popular music. He said to me that there is only one man who can give me the true knowledge of calypso from A to Z and that man is the Roaring Lion.

We eventually ended up at Mt. Lambert where after sussing me out as they say in England, Lion sang me a number of his great old songs and I remember the first one being Dorothy Went To Bathe…..I thought absolutely marvellous then Tic, Tic, Tic then Sally Sally Water…unbelievable….then Mary Ann which the whole world knew… Land of Calypso, Out De Fire…….Ithought I can’t believe this. How is it possible that such an old man can sing with so much power and total recall when Sinatra and men half his age are using teleprompters to sing on stage? This had to be a genius of serious proportions. Why was he not still making records? and better still why was he talking about burning his very important archive and more important why was he this strong handsome Lion of a man crying. I found myself on the verge of disliking all the things I’d found so attractive about Trinidad. How could the people who’d shown me so much love as a Guyanese show such disregard for one of their own one so great? I offered to purchase his great archive and to leave it with him for the rest of his life but more importantly I promised him that he will make great music again and in such a way that children will call his name just like Superblue or any of the others. I promised him that in front of Gabby, Dr. Oswin Rose, My friend Serpico and Almighty God.

Ladies and gentlemen The Roaring Lion is an entertainer, a hero arguably the finest Classic calypsonian there’s ever been but history will deal with that. I am an entertainer as are a lot of you here today. We know the pain of being ostracised in a society that loves us a few days in the year. Today Lion feels no more of that pain.

Let us stand for our hero and give him release with the love that maybe only an artiste can appreciate……a round of applause for a job well done. ….. Papa Chunks I’ve kept my promise …OH YEAH.



He Was the Voice, the Sound, of Calypso

Raphael de Leon, the Roaring Lion, was both the Grand old man of Calypso and a living embodiment and "walking encyclopedia" of the Trinidadian art form itself.

His career, which began in 1927 at the age of 18, spans the development of Calypso and he outlived all the early generation of calypsonians, many of whom died in obscurity and poverty: Chieftain Douglas, King Radio, Atilla the Hun, Lord Executor, Beginner, Invader, Casesser, Tiger, Destroyer, Growler and Gorilla. "All of them died except for me. I haven't decided to die yet," remarked the Lion of his fellow pioneers, with characteristic sardonic humour. The Lion's long reign ended in July 1999.

In Trinidad, he will remain a legend as much for his prodigious memory and bubbling energy as his sartorial elegance, sparkling wit, old world charm and impeccable manners. The dapper young dandy of the 20's, "The Beau Brummel of Calypso", a distinctive figure with his silver topped cane which he carried until his death, Lion won his way into many female hearts. Both his "I Can Make More Love Than Romeo" ("For I am a genius and a cinch in making love. And I swear, this gift was sent from above") and his plentiful progeny ("I was good enough to leave my imprint wherever I went!") attest he was also a master in the art of love!

His association with Eddy Grant and Ice Records preserved this legend in hours of recordings, world wide releases of his material, and allowed his to follow his passion into the last years of his life, as live performances in Miami and Trinidad demonstrate.

Regal by name and nature, the Lion was justifiably proud of his achievements. "This little fellow who didn't go to no college and grew up without a mother is responsible for all the landmarks in Calypso." His was no empty boast.

In the early 30's, with the realization of the commercial possibilities of Calypso, several calypso Tents were opened, the Lion performing at the leading Victory tent in Port of Spain. In 1933 along with Atilla the Hun, King Radio and Lord Beginner, Lion made his first pioneering move, introducing Calypso to the other Caribbean islands.

Edwardo Sa Gomes, Caribbean agent for Brunswick Records chose Lion and Atilla to make the first Calypso recordings in New York in 1934. While in the States, Lion entertained President Roosevelt in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria and along with Atilla appeared at Rudy Callee's Hollywood Café on Broadway.

Every year until 1942, except for 1935 when he was contracted to sing on the American cruise ship SS Scanpen, Lion made the trip to New York to record.

A pioneer in many ways, it was Lion who opened the doors of high society to his fellow calypsonians, after his performance at Trinidad's elite Country Club. He was subsequently hired as the official entertainer at Government House, where he entertained the governors, visiting members of the Royal Family and dignitaries from 1937 until he left for England in 1951.

Among Lion's many firsts was his appearance in "Happy Go Lucky," the first Hollywood produced movie shot in Trinidad which also featured his classic composition "Ugly Woman." "If you want to be happy and live a king's life, Never make a pretty woman your wife. All you have got to do is just as I say, Then you'll be happy, merry and gay. That's from a logical point of view, Always love a woman uglier than you."

"Caroline" which featured in the 1993 release "Captain Ron" is only the most recent example of his many compositions used in films. What many people fail to realize is that the supposed Harry Belafonte number "He Come From The Glorious Kingdom" was originally composed by Lion.

The present generation of calypsonians might have cause for envy if they knew of his success in the Road March competition (the most popular song played on the road during Carnival). Starting in 1953, Lion had five consecutive "Leggos" (as the Road March was then called): "Wanga," "Bamsi Lambay," "Woopsin," "Old Lady Run a Mile and a Half," and "Ask No Questions." Among his other Leggos, "Saga Boy," "Donkey," and the classics "Dorothy" and "Netty Netty."

Lion did much for the war effort during the Second World War, entertaining British and American Troops stationed in Trinidad, then being sent for to continue his good work at the Village Vanguard Club in New York. On his return, he opened Calypsoville, a popular night spot devoted to entertaining cruise ship visitors and frequented by the likes of George Raft and Orson Wells.

In 1951, he traveled to England along with the Trinidad All Steel Percussion Orchestra, to represent Trinidad at the Festival of Britain. He was to remain until 1963, performing in the UK and on the continent. During his sojourn, he devoted some of his considerable energy to founding the Coloured People's Accommodation Bureau (which became famous for its unofficial welfare work, welcoming and settling West Indian and African immigrants) and his own cosmetics company, Rafael de Lion Beauty Products.

In his 90's, Lion retained his many talents and his regal pride in his achievements. "There's nobody… who has contributed more to Calypso, culture and the country than I have from 1927 up till now." He was the only calypsonian ever to have entertained a Pope (John Paul II on his 1985 visit to Trinidad). The l993 Lifetime Achievement Award he received from Everybody's Magazine can be only a partial recognition of this legend of Calypso, whose memory provided a whole databank for research into Calypso and the social history of 20th century Trinidad and whose humanity remained undimmed.

"I'm hoping and praying that hate and malice, Will soon disappear, And tolerance, love and peace will be practiced, And preached everywhere; For we are all one people, the children of Eve, The Bible did emphasize, So regardless of colour, you better believe, Six feet of earth makes us all one size."