By Nelson A. King
Brooklyn-born Irving Burgie,
composer of the Barbados
National Anthem, whose adaptation
of the traditional Jamaican
folk song “Day-O” became
one of the definitive calypso
songs of the 20th century, died
at his home in Queens on Friday,
according to National Public
Radio (NPR). He was 95.
NPR said Burgie died as a
result of complications from
heart failure. His death was
confirmed by his son, Andrew
Burgie.
Burgie performed in nightclubs
as Lord Burgess, but he
was best-known as a songwriter
who helped Harry Belafonte
bring calypso to the American
mainstream, NPR said.
It said “Day-O,” often referred
to as “The Banana Boat Song,”
was based on a Jamaican folk
song and first recorded in 1952
by the Trinidadian singer, Edric
Connor.
But NPR said Burgie
reworked the lyrics for the version
Belafonte would sing on
the 1956 album “Calypso.”
Belafonte’s version of “Day-
O” went to No. 5 on the Billboard
singles chart and helped
“Calypso” become the first
full-length album ever credited
with selling 1 million copies in
the United States, according
to NPR.
“Day-O” was a traditional
Jamaican song that was sung
by dock workers who worked
throughout the night loading
bananas onto ships, according
to Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia.
Caribbean L 6 ife, DECEMBER 6-12, 2019
It said Belafonte’s version
used lyrics adapted by Burgie
and William Attaway, though
Belafonte is also credited.
Burgie later described “Day-
O” as “a song about struggle,
about black people in a
colonized life doing the most
grueling work”, saying “a lot of
my work is based on songs and
ditties that I’ve heard in the
Caribbean,” he told NPR.
The song “Jamaica Farewell”
was later recorded by Jimmy
Buffett, Carly Simon and others,
Wikipedia said.
It said Belafonte recorded
other songs written by Burgie,
including “Island in the Sun,”
one of 10 Burgie compositions
on his 1957 album “Belafonte
Sings of the Caribbean.”
Burgie also wrote eight of
the 12 tracks on his 1961 album
“Jump Up Calypso,” and also
wrote “Can’t Cross Over,” and
co-wrote “Goin’ Down Jordan,”
on Belafonte’s 1977 album
“Turn the World Around,”
according to Wikipedia.
It said Burgie wrote the
music and lyrics for the 1963
off-Broadway musical “Ballad
for Bimshire” and also co-wrote
the book with Loften Mitchell.
The show opened at the
Mayfair Theater on Oct. 15 and
ran for 74 performances, Wikipedia
said.
It said Burgie performed
rarely after his initial success,
but did appear in the early
1980s at venues, including
Gerde’s Folk City.
In 1996, the album “Island
in the Sun: The Songs of Irving
Burgie” was released, followed
by “The Father of Modern
Calypso” in 2003, Wikipedia
Comptroller Scott Stringer (left) presents commendation
to Brooklyn-born, renowned songwriter Irving Burgie, who
is of Barbadian ancestry. Photo by Tangerine Clarke, File
said.
It said Burgie’s life story was
recorded in the book “Day-O!!!
The Autobiography of Irving
Burgie” (2007).
Burgie, who was born on
July 28, 1924, was a secondgeneration
Caribbean-American;
his mother, Viola Calendar,
was from Barbados, and
his father, Louis Burgie, was
from Virginia. He grew up
hearing Caribbean music in
his home, according to the New
York Times.
It said Burgie graduated
from Automotive High School
in Brooklyn in 1941, and was
drafted into the Army in 1943,
during the Second World War,
serving in an all-black battalion
in China, Burma and India.
Irving Burgie who helped bring
calypso to United States, dies at 95
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