Dr. Kitch - funniest song ever? Maybe. But just about everything Lord Kitchener did was was fantastic, and I just came across a really good video (posted below) of the man himself talking about his childhood, moving to the UK (including some the famous footage of him singing London is the Place for Me as he arrived in Britain) and more. It made me dig out two of my fav comps that I haven't listened to in awhile - they're part of a series that started out chronicling the music of West Indian immigrants to Britain and later branched out to include more immigrant groups:
I stole both of those images from one of the best labels ever, Honest Jon's (stealing from Honest Jon's, have I no shame?). The first one is subtitled Trinidadian Calypso in London, 1950 -1956 and with a few exceptions is essentially a Lord Kitchener comp. The second one is subtitled Calypso and Kwela, High Life and Jazz from Young Black London and has a much more varied track listing. So, I can't recommend these collections enough, and if you're a little bit nerdy like me and like to understand the historical and cultural stuff behind the music, you'll really like the liner notes.
Last but not least, here's that Lord Kitchener video. I know, I know, someday I'll write about something for real instead of just posting videos, but come on, people, I'm tired. Cut me some slack. Please?
