Edited by Azizi Powell
This post showcases three examples of Harry Belafonte singing the Calypso song "Matilda". Lyrics of this song and information about Harry Belafonte are also included in this post.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to Harry Belafonte for his musical legacy. Thanks also to those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publisher of this sound file on YouTube.
Note that the song "Mathilda" ("Matilda") was composed in the 1930s by Trinidad & Tobago Calypsonian King Radio. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/01/king-radio-mathilda-matilda-sound-file.html for a pancocojam's post about King Radio's lyrics and performance of "Mathilda" ("Matilda").
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INFORMATION ABOUT HARRY BELAFONTE
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Belafonte
"Harold George "Harry" Bellanfanti, Jr. (born March 1, 1927), better known as Harry Belafonte, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, and social activist. One of the most successful Caribbean American pop stars in history, he was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s. His breakthrough album Calypso (1956) is the first million selling album by a single artist.[1] Belafonte is perhaps best known for singing "The Banana Boat Song", with its signature lyric "Day-O". He has recorded in many genres, including blues, folk, gospel, show tunes, and American standards. He has also starred in several films, most notably in Otto Preminger's hit musical Carmen Jones (1954), Island in the Sun (1957) and Robert Wise's Odds Against Tomorrow (1959).
Belafonte was an early supporter of the civil rights movement in the 1950s, and one of Martin Luther King Jr.'s confidants. Throughout his career he has been an advocate for humanitarian causes, such as the anti-apartheid movement and USA for Africa...."
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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SONG "MATHILDA" ("MATILDA)
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matilda_(song)
"Matilda" (sometimes spelled Mathilda) is a calypso lamenting a woman who took a man for all he was worth.
The song dates back to at least the 1930s, when calypso pioneer King Radio (the stage name of Norman Span) recorded the song.[1] Harry Belafonte recorded the song in 1953 and it became a big hit.[2]...
The song was often performed in concerts, and the audience would be encouraged to sing that line. An example is in his Harry Belafonte at Carnegie Hall concert album where the total playing time for "Matilda" is nearly 12 minutes.[5]"...
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SHOWCASE EXAMPLES:
Example #1: Harry Belafonte - Matilda
Ferry Samuel Siahaan, Published on Feb 4, 2013
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Example #2: Matilda
tomitzae, Uploaded on Oct 17, 2007
Harry belafonte live
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Example #3: Harry Belafonte - Matilda (Live At Carnegie Hall) (HD) Officiel Seniors Musik
Seniorsmusik, Published on Jun 6, 2014
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LYRICS: MATILDA
(one of Harry Belafonte's versions of this song)
Hey! Matilda, Matilda, Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Once again now!
Matilda, Matilda, Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Five hundred dollars, friends, I lost:
Woman even sell me cat* and horse!
Heya! Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Everybody!
Matilda,) Sing out the chorus,
Matilda,) Sing a little louder,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Once again now!
(Matilda,) Going 'round the corner,
(Matilda,) Sing out the chorus,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Well, the money was to buy me house an' lan'
Then she got a serious plan,
A-hey, ah!
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Everybody!
(Matilda,
Matilda,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.)
Once again now!
(Matilda,) Going 'round the corner,
(Matilda,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.)
Well, the money was just inside me bed,
Stuck up in a pillow beneath me head.
Don't you know,
Matilda, she found me money and...
Everybody...
(Matilda,
Matilda,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.)
Once again now!
(Matilda,) Hooma locka chimba,
(Matilda,) Bring me little water,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Women over forty?
(Matilda,
Matilda,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.)
Everybody!
(Matilda,) Goin' round the corner,
(Matilda,) Bring me little water,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Well, me friends, never to love again,
All me money gone in vain!
Uh, heya...
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.
Everybody!
(Matilda,
Matilda,) Oom, ba-locka-chimba!
(Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.)
Sing a little softer!
(Matilda,
Matilda,
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela.)
Everybody!
(Matilda,
Matilda,) Sing out the chorus!
Matilda, she take me money and run Venezuela
-snip-
Source: Lyrics mode: Matilda/ Harry Belafonte.
*I believe that King Radio, the composer of this song, sung "cart and horse". However, "cart" sounded like "cat" to American English speaking people, which is why Belafonte sung it that way.
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