Belafonte Sings Five Early Songs

LP Coronet CXS115 version 1
LP Coronet CXS115 version 2
LP Celebrity UTS154
LP Deacon DEA1018
LP Oxford OX-3012
LP World Sound TP-276
R2R World Sound TT-276

All songs also on CD BCD16262


CXS115 (1)
UTS154
TP-276
and TT-276:

CXS115 (2):

DEA1018:
OX-3012

  Time Audio clip
A1 A1 A1 Venezuela #
(Belafonte)
2:38
A2 B4 A2 Simple, Simple #
(Belafonte)
3:04
A3 B1 A4 Annabelle Lee #
(Belafonte)
2:37
A4 B5 A3 Only One Like Me #
(Belafonte)
2:39
A5 A2 A5 The Night Has A 1000 Eyes# (Belafonte) 2:46
- A5 - Smoke Gets In Your Eyes # (Belafonte) 2:53
B1 - - When The Yankees Are Gone (Islanders)    
B2 - - Lie Stone Dead In The Market (Islanders)    
B3 - - The Donkey Song (Islanders)    
B4 - - Tomorrow Man (Islanders)    
B5 - - Mary Walk (Islanders)    
- A3 - Hold'em Joe # (Islanders)  
- A4 - Goombay Drums (Islanders)    
- B2 - Rum & Coca Cola (Islanders)    
- B3 - Brown Skin Girl # (Islanders)  
- - B1 Scarlet Ribbons # (Bob Jones Singers)  
- - B2 Shenandoah # (Bob Jones Singers)  
- - B3 John Henry # (Bob Jones Singers)  
- - B4 Boll Weevil (Bob Jones Singers)    
- - B5 Erie Canal (Bob Jones Singers)    

In an attempt to capitalize on the success of calypso and the Harry Belafonte name, the Coronet label found some old masters from the early '50s of Belafonte singing tepid versions of pop songs, some of which had been released on the Jubilee label. Coronet in turn tried to pass these off as "folk songs" by interspersing them with authentic calypso songs performed by a group called the Islanders. Of the six Belafonte tracks, one was a genuine West Indian folk song: "Venezuela," which had been released as a single by Jubilee in 1954. A better version was released by RCA Victor in 1957. The additional Belafonte tracks are "Annabelle Lee," "Only One Like Me," "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes," "Simple, Simple, Simple," and "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes." For completists only.
~ Cary Ginell, All Music Guide

CXS115 ver 2 front

CXS115 ver. 2 back

Deacon DEA1018 front

DEA1018 back

OX-3012 front
 

SP602 front

SP602 back

TP-276(LP) & TT-276 (tape)

TP-276 back

UTS154 front

UTS154 back