"Choucoune" is a 19th-century Haitian song composed by Michel Mauléart Monton with lyrics from a poem by Oswald Durand. It was rewritten with English lyrics in the 20th century as "Yellow Bird". Exotica musician Arthur Lyman made the song a hit in 1961.
One of Oswald Durand's most famous works, the 1883 Choucoune is a lyrical poem that praises the beauty of a Haitian woman of that nickname.
Here's a transcription of the original poem: Choucoune
Michel Mauléart Monton, an American-born pianist with a Haitian father and American mother composed music for the poem in 1893, appropriating some French and Caribbean fragments to create his tune.
The song "Choucoune" was first performed in Port-au-Prince on 14 May 1893.
Which French and Caribbean fragments could Michel Monton have used to "compose" the music for "Choucoune" ?
In Donald R. Hill's "Calypso Calaloo", published in 1993, we can read the following:
"The Haitian tune "Chaconné" is another well-known song borrowed by chantwells in the 1890s (from the melody of a song about a hot-air balloon that flew over Trinidad)."
[Donald R. Hill, Calypso Calaloo, (Gainesville: Univ. Press of Florida, 1993) p.8]
What melody of a song about a hot-air balloon could Donald R. Hill possibly mean ?
In John Cowley's "Carnival, Canboulay and Calypso" publihed in 1998, we can read the following:
"Stickney and Donovan's Great American Circus – balloon ascent and parachute descent
Lord Executor's observation is of great interest in that versions of a song about Stickney and Donovan's Great American Circus can be traced to Martinique and Trinidad.
The lyrics concern the activities of 'Professor' Colby, whose stunt was to ascend in an hot air balloon and, on reaching a great height, make a parachute jump from the balloon basket.
Although New Era (8 November 1899) reported this Circus had arrived direct from New York, it is likely to have proceeded to Trinidad by staging performances island by island. This was a recognized pattern for performers of all sorts throughout the nineteenth century. Thus, Colby would have first presented his display in Martinique.
In the French island (presumably at St Pierre, on the Savannah, by the Fort), a wind squall disrupted his first attempt. On the second occasion Colby achieved his aim, dropping by parachute, landing in the sea, and being picked up by boat.
An appropriate Carnival satirical song, entitled "Colby", was composed.
And the melody-line of the chorus in "Colby" is similar to the melody-line of "Choucoune"/"Yellow Bird"
The chorus of "Colby" is:
Jusqu' Colby que lé badiné nous!
Jusqu' Colby que lé badiné nous!
Colby monté, Colby descende,
Colby tombé dans d' l'eau!
Colby monté, Colby descende,
Colby tombé dans lan me!
In English this means:
Even Colby is teasing us
Even Colby is teasing us
Colby goes up, Colby goes down,
Colby falls into the water
Colby goes up, Colby goes down,
Colby fall into the sea
The song was also published in 1930 on page 87 of the songbook: Le carnaval de St-Pierre (Martinique) : folklore martiniquais, 45 chansons créoles, 24 pages de texte, 53 pages de musique, recueillies de 1920 à 1925, par Victor Coridun.
But already in 1910 the song "Colby" is mentioned on pages 251 and 252 of the book Trente ans de Saint-Pierre written by Salavina (=Virgile Savane)
Versions were recorded commercially by black migrants from Martinique in France during the 1930s and the song remains well known in the islands.
Donovan's circus arrived in Trinidad on 4 November 1889. They set up on the patch of ground known as Shrine's Pasture (now Victoria Square) in Port of Spain. Colby carried out his first aeronautical operation the following Thursday. As in Martinique, this was aborted, but on 11 November, the balloon reached a height of 500 feet, and there was a successful parachute jump. The exploit and song associated with it was recalled by Patrick Jones, in recorded reminiscences of part Carnival songs, made in 1956. His performance is directly related to the Martinique song about Colby's bravura."
[John Cowley: Carnival, Canboulay and Calypso (New York, Cambridge Press, 1998) pp.119-120]
Patrick Jones:
"Then in...early nineties, the...one Mr. Colby came here and give an exhibition by going up in a balloon [Cook: "Oh?'] and they sung this...that was one of the themes for the carnival".
Then he sings:
Monseur Colby qui lé badiné nous.
Monseur Colby qui lé badiné nous!
Balon monté, balon descende,
Balon tombé dans d'l'eau!
Balon monté, balon descende,
Balon tombé dans d'l'eau!
(c) Patrick Jones (1956) (as "Colby")
Released on the album "Calypso Lore and Legend" (Road Recordings 5016)
The same album was re-released in 2006 on Smithsonian Folkways.
Listen here (after 2 min and 49 sec in the soundfile below)
Or listen here (after 2 min and 51 sec in the YT below)
The first recorded version of the balloon-song "Colby" I could find, is by Maiotte Almaby.
She was born in France, but her parents were from Martinique.
Towards the end of the 1910's she followed her parents back to Martinique. Upon arrival; she obtained a position as a music teacher at the colonial boarding school (high school for young girls at the time.)
On October 15, 1921, she married Monsieur Marcel Almaby Athanase, public works engineer.
At that time, making an artistic career in Martinique turned out to be impossible; at the end of the 1920's, she decided to settle permanently in Paris.
(o) Mme Maiotte Almaby et son Orchestre des Iles (1937) (as "Colby")
Recorded November 25, 1937 in Paris
Released on Odeon 281.229
On the label it says: "Vieil Air de Saint-Pierre, Martinique".
Listen here (the chorus with the "Choucoune"/"Yellow Bird" melody-line starts at 46 sec in the YT below):
The first recording of "Choucounne", written in 1893 by Durand and Monton, I could find is by American dancer, choreographer, creator of the Dunham Technique, author, educator, anthropologist, and social activist, Katherine Dunham.
She was born in Chicago in 1909, and in 1935, Dunham was awarded travel fellowships from the Julius Rosenwald and Guggenheim foundations to conduct ethnographic fieldwork in Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, and Trinidad studying the dance forms of the Caribbean. One example of this was studying how dance manifests within Haitian Vodou. Dunham also received a grant to work with Professor Melville Herskovits of Northwestern University, whose ideas about retention of African culture among African Americans served as a base for her research in the Caribbean.
So she probably picked up "Choucounne" around that time and recorded it 10 years later in New York City for the Decca company.
(c) Katherine Dunham and Ensemble (1946) (as "Choucounne")
with Jean Leon Destine, La Rosa Estrada, Julio Mendez & Orchestra
Recorded November 8, 1945 in New York City
Released on Decca 40028 as part of 78 RPM album Decca A-511
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Or here:
(c) Lolita Cuebas (1950) (as "Choucoune")
and Quarteto Astoria
Released on Quisqueya Records 108-A
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A few years later Lolita made a new recording for Moses Asch's Folkways-label.
Listen here:
(c) Celia Cruz (1952) (as "Choucoune")
Recorded August 26, 1952
Released in 1953 on Seeco 7231
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Listen here:
(c) The Tarriers (1956) (as "Chaucoun")
Recorded end 1956
Released on Glory 45-254
Listen here:
The Tarriers also lip-synched the version above in the movie "Calypso Heat Wave" (1957)
Watch it here: (The Tarriers sing it at 1 hour 14 min and 10 sec in the YT below)
In the early 1950's Irving Burgie started writing songs based on calypso songs he had heard during his childhood, his mother being from Barbados in the British West Indies.
Burgie began a career playing and singing in various clubs under the name Lord Burgess.
(c) Lord Burgess' Calypso Serenaders (1954) (as "Choucounne")
Around the same time, in 1954, Lord Burgess played his first show at the Village Vanguard, where he was heard by a writer for Harry Belafonte's television show.
The next year Burgie wrote/adapted a traditional Jamaican folk song for Harry Belafonte, which became his signature song: "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)".
This was the start of a longtime relationship between Burgie and Belafonte.
Burgie co-wrote/adapted 8 of the 11 songs on Belafonte's 1956 "Calypso" album.
The next year Burgie co-wrote/adapted 10 of the 11 songs on Belafonte's "Belafonte Sings of the Caribbean", one of them "Don't Ever Love Me", his English adaptation of "Choucounne", which, as we saw here above, he had recorded himself 3 years before.
(c) Harry Belafonte (1957) (as "Don't Ever Love Me")
Recorded January 27, 1957 at Webster Hall in New York City.
Released on the album "Belafonte Sings Of The Caribean" (RCA Victor LPM 1505)
Listen here:
At about the same time, in 1957, the most popular English version of this Haitian song was written.
The version, "Yellow Bird", first appeared on the album "Calypso Holiday", a 1957 release by the Norman Luboff Choir, with Luboff having arranged the song in the calypso style that became popular in the English-speaking world in the mid-1950s.
The lyrics for "Yellow Bird", by Alan and Marilyn Bergman, have no connection with the narrative of the Durand poem, other than the poem features the words "ti zwazo" (little bird) in its refrain, and so the original Haitian song is sometimes called "Ti Zwazo" or "Ti Zwezo".
(c) Norman Luboff Choir (1957) (as "Yellow Bird")
Recorded February 1957
Released in April 1957 on the album "Calypso Holiday"
Listen here:
The German version by Caterina Valente and Silvio Francesco, with lyrics by Kurt Hertha, was a Top 10 Hit in the German charts.
(c) Caterina und Silvio (1959) (as "Sonnenschein")
German lyrics by Kurt Hertha
Released on Decca D 18 936
Listen here:
After the German success, 2 years later, Kurt Hertha decided to write another, different German version.
(c) Ilse Werner (1961) (as "Kleiner Fink")
German lyrics by Kurt Hertha.
Relaesed on Ariola 45 193 A
Listen here:
And in 1980 Kurt Hertha wrote yet another different German version for Rex Gildo.
(c) Rex Gildo (1980) (as "Zwei Wie Wir")
German lyrics by Kurt Hertha.
Released on teh album "Hello Jamaica".
Its most successful incarnation of the song came in the summer of 1961 when Arthur Lyman reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 2 on the newly formed Easy Listening chart with their Hawaiian-flavored instrumental version, which bested a rival instrumental single release by Lawrence Welk (number 61).
(c) Arthur Lyman (1961) (as "Yellow Bird")
Released early 1961 on the album "Percussion Spectacular"
Listen here:
In 1970, Fairport Convention played the song live at the L.A. Troubadour.
This throwaway version was finally released in 1977.
(c) Fairport Convention (1970) (as "Yellow Bird")
Recorded September 1970 live at the Troubadour in Los Angeles, CL
Listen here:
More cover-versions of Colby / Choucoune / Yellow Bird:
Already in 1932 a Colby related song was recorded by Leona Gabriel
Although the orchestra is from Guadeloupe on the label, the biguine "Célestin Roi Diable", recorded in July 1932, is one hundred percent Martiniquan since it is a political song making fun of one of the mayors of Saint-Pierre before the 1902 disaster.
It is Miss Estrella, alias Léona Gabriel, who gives us the lyrics, ending her song with the chorus composed in honor of Colby, this American aeronaut who amazed the inhabitants of Saint Pierre with his hot air balloon.
(c) L'Orchestre Guadeloupéen A. Kindou (1932) (as "Célestin Roi Diable")
chante par Mlle Estrella (=Leona Gabriel)
Recorded August 1932 in Paris
Listen here:
NB: some sources trace the melody back to an old French chanson from the Anjou region: "Non, Non, Non, Je Ne Marierai Pas". Till now I didn't find any proof for that.
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