Harry Belafonte - Calypso

Harry Belafonte: Calypso

Album #7 - June 1956

Episode date - March 15, 2023

The Top 500 of The Top 40
    0:00
    0:00

    By the mid-fifties, the horrors of World War II dissipated as America grew in strength and influence, but daily newspaper reports constantly reiterated places on the globe that were previously unfamiliar to the average American.

    When the war ended, an interest in foreign locales and cultures set in, particularly those that represented our side of the fight. Americans were itching to travel to peaceful destinations and to discover new cultures. A new musical offshoot of folk music called “Exotica” appeared, based on the music of other cultures, and it thrived. None were more successful than Harry Belafonte.

    In 1955, the “Belafonte” album contained Afro-Caribbean songs evoking locations such as Trinidad and/or Jamaica. “Belafonte” held the #1 spot until Elvis Presley released his debut album and knocked him down a peg. With “Calypso”, Belafonte reclaimed the number one spot with a vengeance, greedily hanging on the top spot for a full 31 weeks. His music conjured the sunny environs of a Caribbean paradise occupied by a presumably friendly, even playful population. As a side effect, the travel industry exploded, with cruise ships and commercial air travel benefiting from the fantasies that were being exploited by Exotica. Most listeners presumed the songs on “Calypso” to be traditional Caribbean material, not realizing they were mostly original compositions written by a Brooklyn-born Barbados descendant named Irving Burgie (aka Lord Burgess) and a Mississippi-born writer named William Attaway.

    Feature Tracks:

    Day-O

    I Do Adore Her

    Jamaica Farewell

    Will His Love Be Like His Rum?

    Dolly Dawn

    Star-O

    The Jack-Ass Song

    Hosanna

    Come Back Liza

    Brown Skin Girl

    Man Smart (Woman Smarter)

    June 1956 - Billboard Charted #1

    Related Shows

    Bruce Springstein: Born to Run

    Bruce Springstein: Born to Run

    Album #252 - August 1975

      0:00
      0:00
      Fleetwood Mac

      Fleetwood Mac: Fleetwood Mac

      Album #251 - July 1975

        0:00
        0:00
        Neil Young: Tonight's The Night

        Neil Young: Tonight's The Night

        Album #250 - June 1975

          0:00
          0:00
          Stephen Stills: Stills

          Stephen Stills: Stills

          Album #249 - June 1975

            0:00
            0:00
            Bob Dylan and The Band: The Basement Tapes

            Bob Dylan and The Band: The Basement Tapes - Part 2

            Album #248 - June 1975

              0:00
              0:00
              Bob Dylan and The Band: The Basement Tapes

              Bob Dylan and The Band: The Basement Tapes - Part 1

              Album #248 - June 1975

                0:00
                0:00
                Willie Nelson: Red Headed Stranger

                Willie Nelson: Red Headed Stranger

                Album #247 - May 1975

                  0:00
                  0:00
                  Aerosmith - Toys in the Attic

                  Aerosmith: Toys in the Attic

                  Album #246 - April 1975

                    0:00
                    0:00
                    Steely Dan Katy Lied

                    Steely Dan: Katy Lied

                    Album #245 - March 1975

                      0:00
                      0:00
                      Young Americans - David Bowie

                      David Bowie: Young Americans

                      Album #244 - March 1975

                        0:00
                        0:00
                        Earth, Wind & Fire: That's the Way of the World

                        Earth, Wind & Fire: That's the Way of the World

                        Album #243 - March 1975

                          0:00
                          0:00
                          Led Zeppelin, Physical Graffiti,  In The Light, Bron-Yr-Aur, Down by the Seaside, Ten Years Gone, Night Flight, The Wanton Song, Boogie With Stu, Black Country Woman, Sick Again

                          Led Zeppelin: Physical Graffiti - Part 2

                          Album #242 - February 1975

                            0:00
                            0:00