Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo]

Raymond Quevedo (24 March 1892 – 22 February 1962), better known as Atilla the Hun, was a calypsonian from Trinidad. He began singing in 1911 and was at his most prominent in the 1930s and 1940s. He was one of the pioneers in spreading awareness of calypso beyond its birthplace in Trinidad and Tobago. Together with the Roaring Lion (Rafael de Leon) he brought calypso to the United States for the first time in 1934. One of his popular calypsos was "FDR in Trinidad", commemorating U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's 1936 trip to Trinidad.

Atilla competed in the first Calypso King contest in 1939, and won the title in both 1946 and 1947.

Known as a defender of the poor, Atilla was able to transition to a political career. When several of his records were censored he composed "The Banning of Records", which was itself banned.

Atilla was the first calypsonian to hold elected public office; he was elected to the Port of Spain City Council in 1946 and was elected to the Legislative Council of Trinidad and Tobago in 1950 representing the St. George County East. (See: Elections in Trinidad and Tobago). He also authored Atilla's Kaiso: A Short History of Trinidad Calypso with John La Rose, published posthumously in 1983.

Birth and Death Data: Born March 24, 1892 (Trinidad), Died February 22, 1962

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1934 - 1941

Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 1-25 of 75 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Columbia 14907 10-in. 3/7/1934 Graf zeppelin Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] Male vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble vocalist  
Decca 61956 10-in. 2/16/1937 Abdication Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61960 10-in. 2/16/1937 Zingue talala Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61962 10-in. 2/16/1937 Intercolonial tournament Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61966 10-in. 2/16/1937 Roosevelt in Trinidad Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61968 10-in. 2/16/1937 Food scandal Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 61969 10-in. 2/16/1937 Hold up blackbird, hold up Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 61972 10-in. 2/18/1937 West Indian federation Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61974 10-in. 2/18/1937 Friends Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61976 10-in. 2/19/1937 Treasury scandal Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61984 10-in. 2/19/1937 Man man Biscope Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61985 10-in. 2/19/1937 Street vendors Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] vocalist  
Decca 61987 10-in. 2/19/1937 Josefita Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] vocalist  
Decca 61988 10-in. 2/23/1937 Believes in the land of glory Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61990 10-in. 2/25/1937 His Majesty King George VI coronation Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61993 10-in. 2/23/1937 Mi ropa Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 61995 10-in. 2/25/1937 Martiniquen Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] vocalist  
Decca 61997 10-in. 2/23/1937 Miss Bimbilla Brown Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 62003 10-in. 2/23/1937 Bowl and bat Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 62004 10-in. 2/23/1937 The rats Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 62007 10-in. 2/23/1937 Ah Gertie Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 62009 10-in. 2/25/1937 I will string along with you-1, 2 Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 62010 10-in. 2/25/1937 Louis Schmeling Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 62011 10-in. 2/24/1937 Netty's defense Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
Decca 62012 10-in. 2/24/1937 Selassie is held by the policeman Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo] ; The Caresser [Rufus Callender] ; The Executor [Philip Garcia] ; The Lion [Hubert R. Charles] vocalist  
(Results 1-25 of 75 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Atilla, the Hun [Quevedo, Raymond]," accessed April 25, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/302219.

Atilla, the Hun [Quevedo, Raymond]. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved April 25, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/302219.

"Atilla, the Hun [Quevedo, Raymond]." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 25 April 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/302219

External Sources

Wikipedia: Atilla the Hun

Discogs: Atilla, the Hun [Raymond Quevedo]

Linked Open Data Sources

LCNAR: Quevedo, Raymond, 1892-1962 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n84143217

Wikidata: Atilla the Hun - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q4818464

VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/59127248

MusicBrainz: Atilla the Hun - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/80613ae2-ce1e-44c3-8efc-e5fb57efb360

FAST: http://id.worldcat.org/fast/138432

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