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Harry Belafonte, Almanac, 18 February 1954. "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)" is a traditional Jamaican folk song. The song has mento influences, but it is commonly classified as an example of the better known calypso music. It is a call and response work song, from the point of view of dock workers working the night shift loading bananas onto ships.
Jul 3, 2024 · The Banana Boat Song, also known as “Day-O,” is a Caribbean folk song that gained worldwide popularity when it was recorded by Harry Belafonte in 1956. This iconic song carries a deeper meaning that reflects the struggles and resilience of the working class in the Caribbean. The lyrics depict the monotonous and backbreaking work carried out ...
- Ken Chamberlain
Apr 24, 2024 · The Banana Boat Song tells the story of Jamaican dock workers who load bananas onto ships headed for the United States. The workers toil all night, from six to six, to earn a meager wage. They face the hardships of hard labor, the harsh weather conditions, and the danger of working in the dark. But despite the hardships, the workers remain ...
Apr 26, 2023 · “It’s not my song,” Belafonte once said after being asked about Wayne’s use of “Banana Boat (Day-O).” “It’s a song that belongs to millions of people in the Caribbean. An ancient ...
- Staff Writer
- 4 min
Sep 1, 2024 · Beetlejuice uses Harry Belafonte’s version of “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)”, which is the best-known one, but the song wasn’t his. “The Banana Boat Song” is believed to have originated around the beginning of the 20th century in Jamaica. The song was sung by Jamaican dockworkers during a time when the banana trade in the country ...
- Adrienne Tyler
Jun 3, 2024 · 3. What does “Day-O” mean? The term “Day-O” is a Jamaican phrase that is short for “Daylight comes.” In the context of the song, it represents the workers calling for the night shift to end and for daylight to arrive so they can go home. Answer: The repetitive chant of “Day-O” throughout the song serves as a symbolic act of ...
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Burgie, sometimes credited as "Lord Burgess," is a popular Caribbean composer. Attaway was a novelist and songwriter who was friends with Belafonte. Burgie and Attaway wrote most of the songs on the Calypso album. This song was first recorded in 1952 by Edric Conner, a musician from Trinidad who sang it with his band The Carribeans as "Day De ...