Banana Boat Song / Day De Light / Day O

I became interested late last night in the song of the title of this post. My interest leads out of previous conversations with Snowball with regard to sea shanties, and an overhearing of the explaination of what a “tallyman” is by the muppets!

The Banana Boat Song is a Jamaican Calypso folk song. The most commonly known version is the Harry Belafonte one. Traditionally it was sung by Jamaican banana workers loading bananas. Daylight has come, the shift is over and they want their work to be counted up so that they can go home (this is the meaning of the lyric “Come, Mr. Tally Man, tally me banana/ Daylight come and we wanna go home.”)

It is also perhaps worth noting that the song was used in the involuntary dancing at dinner scene in Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice.

Here are the most common lyrics:

Day-o, Day-o

Daylight come and me want go home

Day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day-o

Daylight come, and me want go . . .

Work all night on a drink of rum!

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Stack banana ’till the morning come!

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Come Mr. Tally Man, tally me banana

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Come Mr. Tally Man, tally me banana

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Lift 6 foot, 7 foot, 8 foot bunch!

(Daylight come and me want go home)

6 foot, 7 foot, 8 foot bunch!

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Day, is a day-o

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day-o

(Daylight come and me want go home)

A beautiful bunch of ripe banana!

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Hide the deadly black tarantula!

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Lift 6 foot, 7 foot, 8 foot bunch!

(Daylight come and me want go home)

6 foot, 7 foot, 8 foot bunch!

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Day, is a day-o

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day-o

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Come Mr. Tally Man, tally me banana

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Come Mr. Tally Man, tally me banana

(Daylight come and me want go home)

Day-o, Day-o

Daylight come and me want go home

Day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day-o

(Daylight come and me want go home)

There are many varient lyrics:

Day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day-o

(Daylight break and me wanna go home)
A clerk man a check but him a check with caution.

Day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day, is a day-o

(Daylight break and me wanna go home)
My back just broke with bare exhaustion.

I pack up all me things and I go to sea,
(Daylight break and me wanna go home)
Then all these bananas see the last of me.
(Daylight break and me wanna go home)

(let us know of other verses you have encountered!)

The origins of the “Banana Boat Song” are often stated incorrectly. The original folk song is of unknown authorship, it was sung with many different sets of lyrics, some possibly improvised on the spot. The first recorded version was performed by Trinidadian singer Edric Conner and his band “The Carribeans” in 1952, on the album Songs From Jamaica; the song was called “Day De Light”. You can find more information about this albulm here: http://www.mentomusic.com/edricConner.htm

It was also recorded by Louise Bennett in 1954.

In 1956, singer/songwriters Irving Burgie and William Attaway wrote a version of the lyrics that was recorded that same year by Harry Belafonte; it is this version that I have included the lyrics from above.

Also in 1956, folk singer Bob Gibson, who had travelled to Jamaica and heard the song, taught his version of it to the folk band The Tarriers. They recorded a version of that song that mixed in the chorus of another Jamaican folk song, “Hill and Gully Rider”, and released it, spawning what became their biggest hit. This version was re-recorded by Shirley Bassey in 1957, and became a hit here in the United Kingdom.

There is more information exploring the history and authorship of this song in another blog I found: http://soquoted.blogspot.com/2005/09/who-wrote-banana-boat-song.html

The lyrics to the traditional Tarriers / Shirley Bassey version sound quite different to the Harry Belafonte version:

Hill and gully rider, hill and gully
Hill and gully rider, hill and gully
Hill and gully rider, hill and gully
Day-o, day-o, day de light and I wanna go home
Day-o, day-o, day de light and I wanna go home

Well I’m loading the banana boats all night long
Day de light and I wanna go home
And all the workmen sing this song
Day de light and I wanna go home
Day-o, day-o, day de light and I wanna go home
Day-o, day-o, day de light and I wanna go home

Well I work by sun and I sleep by moon
Day de light and I wanna go home
When I get some money gonna quit so soon
Day de light and I wanna go home
Day-o, day-o, day de light and I wanna go home
Day-o, day-o, day de light and I wanna go home

Well I pack up all my things and I´ll go to sea
Day de light and I wanna go home
Den de bananas see the last of me
Day de light and I wanna go home

Day-o, day-o, day de light and I wanna go home
Day-o, day-o, day de light and I wanna go home
Hill and gully rider, hill and gully
Hill and gully rider, hill and gully
Hill and gully rider, hill and gully

Much of this information was snaffled from the wikipedia page relating to the Banana Boat Song: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banana_Boat_Song

Last night I found and listened to the following versions and varients:

• Harry Belafonte: Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)
• Tarriers: Banana Boat Song
• Shirley Bassey: Banana Boat Song

There are more heavily modified:

• Chubby Checker: Banana Boat Limbo song (Day-O)
• Shaggy: Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)