Well maybe Harry should keep his mouth shut and let others speak. It seems that the music was written by his arranger William Attaway and Irving Burgie (Lord Burgess) was responsible for those words. Bellafonte was just a singer (who was considered a fraud among the folkies of the early 1960s).
William Attaway - The Mississippi Writers and Musicians Project at Starkville High School
William Attaway wrote songs for Harry Belafonte, in whose home he was married in 1962 (Drapher 56), including the famous Day-O Banana Boat Song. Altogether, Attaway wrote over 500 songs.Singer/songwriter/folklorist/teacher Irving Burgie is a modest man. Even so, he wants the world to know his name. It's not as if he hasn't made his musical mark yet. For more than forty years now, the world has been singing along to his songs. One song in particular has become an international phenomenon. In fact, you only have to utter the song's two-syllable title to incite just about anyone, anywhere to start singing its joyous refrain: "Day-O, Day-ay-ay-O, daylight come and me wan' go home." You know the rest.
Of course Belafonte receives songwriting credit from many people on the internet. Maybe he even wrote that phoney Shakespeare quote.
It's an outrage that Bush has failed to appoint not even one washed up 50's era reggae singer to the State Department.
Well Robert Mitchum didn't live long enough to serve in a cabinet position under President George W. Bush but I'm sure that he would have appreciated the consideration...
Had it been Algore Jr. we might have had to endure Calypso Louis Farrakhan in a cabinet position...