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It is a call and response work song, from the point of view of dock workers working the night shift loading bananas onto ships. The lyrics describe how daylight has come, their shift is over, and they want their work to be counted up so that they can go home.
Apr 24, 2024 · The Banana Boat Song, also known as Day-O, has been covered by many musicians worldwide since its release in 1956. But aside from its catchy tune and upbeat rhythm, what is the meaning behind the song that has made it a classic?
Sep 1, 2024 · “Day-O” is Harry Belafonte’s signature song, but it’s now also part of the world of Beetlejuice. The dinner scene is so famous that even those who have never watched Beetlejuice know exactly what it is about, and the movie and the song now go hand in hand.
- Adrienne Tyler
This is a traditional Jamaican song that was sung by dock workers who worked throughout the night loading bananas onto ships. It's daylight, and they look forward to the arrival of the Tallyman (who will take inventory) so they can go home.
- Origins
- Notable Covers
- Parodies and Alternate Lyrics
- Samples and Interpolations
The song was first recorded by Trinidadian singer Edric Connor and his band Edric Connor and the Caribbeans on the 1952 album Songs From Jamaica; the song was called "Day Dah Light". Belafonte based his version on Connor's 1952 and Louise Bennett's 1954 recordings. In 1955, American singer-songwriters Lord Burgess and William Attaway wrote a versio...
In 1980, Canadian children's singer Raffi covered the song, releasing it as a single from his album Baby Beluga.Sarah Vaughan and an orchestra conducted by David Carroll recorded a jazzy version for Mercury Recordsin 1956, credited to Darling, Carey, and Arkin of the Tarriers. It charted at number 19 on the..."Banana Boat (Day-O)", a parody by Stan Freberg and Billy May released in 1957 by Capitol Records, features ongoing disagreement between an enthusiastic Jamaican lead singer and a bongo-playing bea...Dutch comedian André van Duin released his version in 1972 called Het bananenlied: the banana song. This song asks repetitively why bananas are bent. It reaches the conclusion that if the bananas w...German band Trio performed a parody with "Bommerlunder" (a German schnapps) substituted for the words "daylight come" in the 1980s.The Serbian comedy rock band the Kuguars, consisting of famous Serbian actors, covered the song in 1998, with lyrics in Serbian dedicated to the, at the time, Yugoslav national soccer team player D...Chilean program 31 minutosused the song "Arwrarwrirwrarwro" by Bombi which was based on "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)".Lil Wayne's song "6 Foot 7 Foot" samples and derives its title from "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)".Apr 26, 2023 · “Banana Boat (Day-O)” is said to have originated around the turn of the 20th century in Jamaica. Dockworkers who loaded shipping vessels with bananas would work all through the night until the...
Cargo ships traveled to the British Isles to purchase bananas. Wealthy Brits paid to travel on these ships to see the islands (comparable to cruise ships of today). At nighttime the ships docked to allow the island women to bring their bananas to sell. When the daylight came they would collect their pay from the tally man and return to their ...
