Note: When you embed the widget in your site, it will match your site's styles (CSS). Get the embed code Harry Belafonte - Beetlejuice (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) Album Lyrics1.Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)2.Day-O (The Banana Boat Song) (Beetlejuice / Soundtrack Version)3.Day-O (The Banana Boat Song) - Beetlejuice/Soundtrack VersionHarry Belafonte Lyrics provided by Engle.Lift six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch The Ballad Index Copyright 2022 by Robert B. Go to the Ballad Index Bibliography or Discography In Attaway and Engel, the attributions say whether the texts include "special lyrics by Attaway" that is *not* the case for "Banana Boat Loader's Song." - BS Incidentally, both Attaway and Belafonte share two calls with Bennett. Which, if any, of Attaway's and Belafonte's calls were not from the docks I cannot say. Attaway, in his book, has four calls not in any other version, and none of those are in the Belafonte version (Attaway is one of the credited writers of Belafonte's text, along with Irving Burgie - dba Lord Burgess - and Belafonte himself) the Belafonte version has five calls not in other texts and one interesting variant: a call common to all but Dexter is "six han' seven han' eight han' bunch," a "hand" being a bunch of bananas Belafonte's text, followed by the singers that "sampled" his version afterwards, replaces "hand" with "foot" and has the worker "lift" the bunch so many feet. Bennett is probably the source for most of the calls we have. This is a call and answer work song, where the call is a single line and the answer is "day dah light and me wan' go home." There were probably dozens of calls but the versions listed here so far have only seventeen, and of those, three have what I consider significant variants. I take it as a song that seems to have originated in tradition and certainly moved there, as witness its adoption by the civil rights movement ("freedom come and I want go home"). NOTES : The song is, of course, best known as a 1956 pop hit for revival performer Harry Belafonte. I," RCA BMG LC 0316)Ĭalypso Freedom (RECORDING: Willie Peacock, on VoicesCiv) Harry Belafonte with Tony Scott's Orchestra and Chorus, "Day O" (1956, as "Banana Boat" on RCA Victor 45 rpm 47-6771, 1980, "Harry Belafonte All Time Greatest Hits Vol. Louise Bennett, "Day Dah Light (Day O)" (on WILBennett01, n.d., on "Jamaica-Mento: 1951-58," Fremaux and Associes CDFA 5275).ĭenzil Laing and The Wigglers, "Linstead Market/Day O)" (2004, on "Mento Madness, Motta's Jamaican Mento: 1951-56," V2 Music Ltd CD 63881-27201-2) A traditional work song, The Banana Boat Song most likely originated around the turn of the twentieth century when banana trade in Jamaica increased. 50-51, "Day Oh" (1 text, 1 tune)Įdric Connor with the Caribbeans and Earl Inkman, "Day Dah Light" (on WIEConnor01) / Daylight come and me wanna go home / Day, me say day, me say day, me say day, me say day, me say day o / Daylight come and me wanna go home / Work all night on a Featured Charts Videos Promote. Noel Dexter and Godfrey Taylor, _Mango Time - Folk Songs of Jamaica_ (Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers, 2007), pp. Come, Mister tally man, tally me banana Daylight come and me. Work all night on a drink of rum Daylight come and me wan go home Stack banana till de mornin come Daylight come and me wan go home. 18-19, "Banana Boat Loader's Song" (1 text, 1 tune) Day-o, day-o Daylight come and me wan go home Day, me say day, me say day, me say day Me say day, me say day-o Daylight come and me wan go home. William Attaway and Lyle Kenyon Engel, _Calypso Song Book_ (New York: Calypso Music, Inc, 1957), pp. 2-4, "Day Dah Light" (1 text, 1 tune)ĪDDITIONAL: Jim Morse, _Folk Songs of the Caribbean_ (New York: Bantam Books, 1958), pp. KEYWORDS: ship work worksong worker nonballad food Banana Boat Song (Day-O) Banana Boat Song (Day-O) DESCRIPTION: Work song about loading bananas refrain: "Daylight come and me want go home" or "Day the light and me want go home." The workers ask the "tally man" to count the bananas so they can go home after loading all night.ĪUTHOR: Unknown, but the lyrics to the version made popular by Belafonte (and adapted for the civil rights movement) were written by pop songwriters Irving Burgle (Lord Burgess) and William AttawayĮARLIEST DATE: 1951 (Murray-FolkSongsOfJamaica)
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |