Mary's Boy Child Facts for Kids

The song "Mary's Boy Child" started with a fun idea. The writer, Jester Hairston, was sharing a room with a friend. His friend asked him to write a song for a birthday party. Hairston decided to use a calypso rhythm. This was because most people at the party were from the West Indies.

The first version of the song had a different name. It was called "He Pone and Chocolate Tea." "Pone" is a type of corn bread. This first version was never officially recorded.

From Party Song to Christmas Carol

Later, a conductor named Walter Schumann asked Hairston for a new Christmas song. Hairston remembered the catchy calypso rhythm from his old song. He then wrote new words for it, making it a Christmas song.

Harry Belafonte's Big Hit

Harry Belafonte heard the song and loved it. He asked if he could record it. In 1956, he released it as a single. A year later, in 1957, he put a longer version on his album An Evening with Belafonte.

This longer version became a huge hit in the UK. It was the first song in the UK to be number one and last over four minutes! It reached the top of the UK Singles Chart in November 1957. It has sold more than 1.19 million copies in the UK.

In 1962, the full song was also added to another one of Belafonte's albums. This album was called To Wish You a Merry Christmas.

Famous Versions of the Song

Boney M.'s Big Hit

One of the most well-known versions of "Mary's Boy Child" is by the German disco group Boney M.. They released their version, called "Mary's Boy Child – Oh My Lord," in 1978. This version also went to number one in the UK. It is one of the best-selling singles ever in the UK. It sold 1.87 million copies by 2015.

When Jester Hairston heard how popular Boney M.'s version was, he was very happy. He said, "God bless my soul. That's tremendous for an old fogey like me." He was 78 years old at the time!

Other Artists Who Sang It

Many other famous singers and groups have recorded "Mary's Boy Child."

Andy Williams recorded it twice, in 1965 and 1997.
The Four Lads and Mahalia Jackson sang it in the 1950s.
Other artists include Anne Murray, Charlotte Church, Jim Reeves, Rolf Harris, John Denver, and Harry Connick Jr..
Even the cast of Glee sang it in 2013.
The Bee Gees recorded it as part of a medley with "Silent Night" in 1968.

The song was also part of a live concert in 1991. This concert was called A Carnegie Hall Christmas Concert.

More recent versions include:

The Australian pop group Hi-5 in 1998.
The Wiggles on their 2004 album Santa's Rockin.
Mandisa on her 2008 album It's Christmas.
Joe McElderry on his 2011 album Classic Christmas.

In 2012, a priest from Portugal named António Cartageno made a special choir arrangement for the song.

Different Languages

"Mary's Boy Child" has been translated into many languages around the world.

In Finnish, it's been recorded as "Hankien Joulu" and "Marian Poika".
In Swedish, you can find versions like "Varje människa har ett ljus" and "Det hände sig för länge sen".
There's a Dutch version called "Maria's Kind".
The Sinhala translation is "Kalakata Pera e Bethleheme".

One Swedish version, "Du är som en sommardag" by the band Schytts, was very popular. It was number one on the Swedish chart Svensktoppen for 10 weeks in 1979.

More About the Song

The words and music of "Mary's Boy Child" were even featured on a special stamp sheet. This was issued in 1983 for Christmas by the Caribbean island of St Kitts.

The tune of the song is also used in a popular chant in British football. Fans often sing it about rival teams during special holiday games.

Mary's Boy Child facts for kids

Contents

The Story of "Mary's Boy Child"

How the Song Began