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Harry Belafonte

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Harry Belafonte was born in Harlem, New York, in 1927 as Harold George Bellanfanti. His parents came from Jamaica, and from 1932 to 1940 he lived with his grandmother on that island. Back in New York he left secondary school and served in the Navy in the Second World War. Afterwards he fell under the spell of the theatre. He took acting lessons, alongside Sidney Poitier and Marlon Brando among others, and in 1954 received a Tony Award for his role in a Broadway revue.

Music and breakthrough

As a singer, Belafonte made Caribbean calypso popular with a worldwide audience. His album Calypso (1956) was the first LP by a single artist to sell more than a million copies. It includes Day-O (The Banana Boat Song) and Jamaica Farewell. Later came Mary's Boy Child and Jump in the Line (Shake, Senora), among others. He also sang blues, folk, gospel and American standards, and acted in films such as Carmen Jones (1954) and Island in the Sun (1957).

Influence

Belafonte was not only an artist but also an activist. He saw the singer and actor Paul Robeson as his example and in the 1950s and 1960s was a confidant of Martin Luther King in the civil rights movement. In this way he linked his fame to political ideals, far beyond America as well. He died in 2023. A year earlier he had been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as one of the artists who influenced early popular music.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Jump in the Line (Shake, Senora) and notice the skipping calypso rhythm and the horns. Hear how Belafonte and the chorus answer each other, like a question and an answer.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

See also

Categories: ArtistsCalypso