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