One of the very first calypso recordings with vocals (a kalenda) recorded in 1914.
This kalenda is accompanied by tamboo bamboo and bottle & spoon which were the main instruments that poor ex-slaves could have afforded before they developed the steelbands after tamboo bamboo was banned. It is also interesting to note that the African drum was temporarily banned in Trinidad by the colonialists leading to ex-slaves developing the Tamboo Bamboo.
The older kaisos from before calypsos started being recorded were sung in a French-African dialect (patois) and were mostly stick-fighting songs or kalendas as they were then called that were sung by the ex-slaves during stick-fighting competitions. In fact many of the very first kaisonians were also stick-fighters who fought and sung to show their prowess in the stick-fighting ring and to attract the admiration of the opposite sex.
Jules Sims - "Native Trinidad Kalenda" 1914 http://www.youtube.com/v/hR5dRNsdjBUAlso most folks don't know that calypso was one of the first music genres to be recorded in stereo after the development of stereo recording technology for commercial use during the early 1900’s.