I first heard Trinidad’s great calypsonian, the Mighty Chalkdust belt out his satirical classic “Three Blind Mice” from our ancient, hoarse radiogram. Sharply attired in a scarlet ranch-styled embroidered vest, the stern, hard-staring “Chalkie” is shown on the cover of the long-playing vinyl record sporting a silver firearm and preparing to shoot straight, given the winning title song “Ah put on me guns again.”
Referring to a party convention of the ruling People’s National Movement (PNM) in which the country’s famously irascible Prime Minister Eric Williams supposedly slammed his equally strong-headed counterparts in Guyana, Jamaica and Barbados for backing out of a proposed joint smelter project, Chalkdust asked through his close friend, Ivan Williams, a party founding member, “Doctor, can you tell me why Jamaica vex with we?”
Williams’ immortal response to his namesake, as conveyed by the calypsonian in a deadly shot was: “Tell (Jamaica’s Michael) Manley and (Guyana’s Forbes) Burnham ah got oil, let (Barbados’ Errol) Barrow kiss me tail, oil don’t spoil…don’t you know Manley, Burnham, Barrow, they running bout only setting strife, cutting meh tail with Venezuela’s knife, did you ever see such jackasses in your life, as dem three blind mice?”
