Banana Boat Song
Harry Belafonte and The Muppets Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
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
Work all night on a drink of rum
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Come, mister tally man, tally me banana
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Come, mister tally man, tally me banana
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Lift six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Day, me say day-o
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Day, me say day, me say day, me say day
Daylight come and me wan' go home
A beautiful bunch o' ripe banana
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Hide the deadly black tarantula
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Lift six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Day, me say day-o
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Day, me say day, me say day, me say day
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Come, mister tally man, tally me banana
Daylight come and me wan' go home
Come, mister tally man, tally me banana
Daylight come and me wan' go home
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
The "Banana Boat Song" by Harry Belafonte is about Jamaican dock workers who stack bananas during the night shift and eagerly wait for daylight to arrive so they can go home. The song's repetitive chorus of "day-o" serves as a call-and-response between the workers as they laboriously load the banana cargo onto ships. The verses describe the workers' toil and the dangerous creatures they encounter while on the job, such as the "deadly black tarantula" that hides among the bunches of bananas.
The song's melody and lyrics reflect the traditional Jamaican folk music style, which involves using call-and-response techniques and incorporating elements of storytelling. In addition to capturing the essence of Jamaican culture, the song has become a beloved anthem of the Caribbean and has been covered by various artists.
Line by Line Meaning
Day-o, day-o
Early in the morning the singer wakes up and hears the sound of the rooster crowing.
Daylight come and me wan' go home
The singer is working through the night and is asking for the daylight to come so that he can return home.
Day, me say day, me say day, me say day
The singer is feeling tired and recites a chant to keep himself awake.
Me say day, me say day-o
The artist continues the chant so that he can finish his work and go home.
Work all night on a drink of rum
The artist has been working all night without rest, fueled only by a drink of rum.
Stack banana 'til de mornin' come
The singer's job is to stack bananas until morning comes.
Come, mister tally man, tally me banana
The singer is asking the person in charge of counting bananas to tally his work so that he can go home.
Lift six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch
The artist is physically lifting bunches of bananas that are six, seven, or eight feet tall.
A beautiful bunch o' ripe banana
The artist is describing the bananas as a beautiful bunch that is ready to be harvested.
Hide the deadly black tarantula
The artist is warning his coworkers to be careful and avoid the dangerous black tarantula that could be hiding among the bunches of bananas.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Tratore, RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: Irving Burgie, William Attaway
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@angelayancey1686
RIP Harry Belafonte 1927-2023
This was one of my favorite moments from The Muppet Show 😔🙏💔🌹⭐!!
@joyunicycle
"The bananas, they're yellow!"
I almost thought he would bring lemons! 😂
@nylaire4739
Que votre âme se repose en paix 🙏Merci encore pour cette belle musique que vous nous avez laissée Mr Harry belafonte ❤Vous resterez dans nos coeurs à jamais. 🇨🇵
@andysbg77
R.I.P. Harry Belafonte!
@sweettea6706
The best thing about this was exposing children to Calypso music.
@adrienstarfaer
Why did you cut the shenanigans? It's not the Muppets without the shenanigans.
@petronalves
Some people would ask me for the original video. I didn't find it.
So, they just want the video with the music
@cainster
@petronalves I want to see Link drop an entire banana onto Fozzie. Frank Oz's ad-lib is hilarious.
@jakewhittle444
Muppets treasure island
@strawbearie5674
The onions- 😂
The cucumbers -🤣
The pineapples- 😭🤣
The spider- 😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣