Caribbean music pioneer Granville Straker dies at 86

Granville Leonard Straker, the Vincentian-born music producer and entrepreneur whose influential Straker’s Records helped bring generations of calypso and soca artists to international audiences, has died. He was 86.

Straker died on Aug. 27, according to his family, which announced his passing in a statement.

Born in St. Vincent and the Grenadines on Sept. 12, 1939, Straker became one of the most influential figures in the production, preservation and distribution of Caribbean music, building an operation that connected artists from the region with audiences throughout the diaspora.

His involvement in the music business began in Brooklyn in the 1960s, where he established record stores catering to New York’s growing Caribbean immigrant community.

His businesses included the landmark Straker’s Records store at 242 Utica Ave. and another location on Nostrand Avenue, with additional retail operations in St. Vincent and Trinidad.

In 1971, Straker founded the Straker’s Records label in Brooklyn, creating a platform for Caribbean performers at a pivotal period in the growth of New York’s West Indian community.

Over approximately three decades, the label built an extensive catalog of Caribbean popular music. Straker estimated that it released between 600 and 700 albums, more than 1,000 12-inch records and several thousand singles.

Its roster included some of the biggest names in calypso and soca, among them Calypso Rose, The Mighty Shadow, Black Stalin, Chalkdust, Lord Nelson, Lord Melody, Mighty Duke, Explainer, Winston Soso, Singing Francine and Machel Montano.

Among the recordings associated with the label was The Mighty Shadow’s “Bassman,” which became one of the Trinidadian calypsonian’s signature songs. Black Stalin’s “Ah Feel to Party” also became part of the influential Straker’s catalog and later provided the title for the retrospective collection “The Best of Straker’s: Ah Feel to Party.”

Straker’s influence extended beyond his role as a label owner. During his career, he worked as a producer, promoter, talent scout and distributor, travelling throughout the Caribbean in search of performers and helping artists gain access to professional recording and international distribution.

His Brooklyn businesses also became gathering places for Caribbean immigrants looking for the music and culture of home, while helping establish the borough as an important center for Caribbean music production and distribution.

Another important chapter in Straker’s career began in 1978 when fellow Vincentian musician and arranger Frankie McIntosh joined Straker’s Records as musical director.

McIntosh led studio band The Equitables, arranged music for numerous artists and oversaw hundreds of recording sessions. Their partnership helped develop a distinctive Brooklyn-based calypso and soca sound that reached audiences across the Caribbean and its diaspora.

Straker's contribution to Caribbean music earned him several honors during his lifetime.

He received the Martin’s International/Inter-Culture Award of Honor at the 2009 International Reggae & World Music Awards. In 2014, he was honored in Brooklyn for “Excellence in Worldwide Music Production over the Years.”

His family said his work created opportunities for Caribbean artists who otherwise might have struggled to gain access to the international recording industry, connecting performers with audiences in New York, Toronto, London and elsewhere.

“My father spent his life creating opportunities for Caribbean artists and making certain that our music could be heard beyond the shores of the islands,” his daughter, Dr. Suzanne Straker Greenidge-Hewitt, said.

“For our family, preserving his legacy means preserving an important part of Caribbean history. His work lives in the music, in the artists he championed and in generations of people around the world who still hear home when they hear those recordings.”

Straker was predeceased by his first wife, Jean “Patsy” Straker Jackson, who his family said played a foundational role in the early development of Straker’s Records.

He is survived by his wife of 24 years, Beverly Straker; his children, Leroy, Shirley, Suzanne, Granville Jr., Lavern, Clement and Allan; 15 grandchildren; and other relatives.

His family described him as a husband, father, grandfather, mentor and friend whose entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to Caribbean culture influenced generations.

From his beginnings in St. Vincent and the Grenadines to the record stores and studios of Brooklyn, Straker spent decades building connections between Caribbean artists and their audiences, leaving behind a catalog that chronicles a significant period in the development of calypso and soca music.