Mighty Striker

Percival Oblington (April 1930 – 5 February 2011), better known as Mighty Striker, or simply Striker, was a Trinidadian calypsonian who twice won the Calypso King title.

Career

Percival Oblington was born in 1930 in D'Abadie, Trinidad, the son of a blacksmith.^[1][2] He initially made a living as a coconut husker along with fellow calypsonians Mighty Cypher, Lord Montgomery, and his cousin Lord Eisenhower.^[2] He began performing in 1945 and became a professional calypso singer in 1949, performing as 'Striker' and 'Mighty Striker', a name given to him by his mentor Mighty Cypher in reference to his exploits as a boxer in his youth.^[1][2] In 1957 he reached the final of the Calypso King contest held as part of Trinidad's carnival, finishing third behind Lord Pretender and the Mighty Spoiler.^[1] He won the title the following year with "Don't Blame The PNM" (Striker was a supporter of Eric Williams' People's National Movement party) and "Can't Find A Job To Suit Me", and became the first person to retain the title in 1959 with "Ban The Hula Hoop" and "Comparison".^[1][3][4] He finished third in 1960 behind Mighty Sparrow and Lord Melody and feeling that he had been robbed of a third title did not enter the contest again.^[2] In 1965 he won the 'Buy Local Calypso' competition, a contest introduced by the country's government.^[1] Striker continued to perform regularly in the Kaiso Karavan calypso tent.^[1]

By the late 1970s his popularity had faded and he worked as a taxi driver.^[2] He returned to performance in 2002 for the documentary Calypso Dreams, which included one of his best known songs, "Grandfather's Clock".^[2]

Oblington researched the history of calypso, with his book The True History of Calypso published in 2000.^[1]

His last performance was in July 2010 at the Ministry of Arts and Multiculturalism's NAPA FEST.^[2]

He died on 5 February 2011, aged 80, after suffering from prostate cancer.^[5][2]

References