MARY'S BOY CHILD
by HARRY BELAFONTE

Already dubbed King of Calypso after his album Calypso spent 31 weeks on top of the US chart, singer, actor and activist Harry Belafonte started to make impressions in the UK earlier in 1957 with his chart debut The Banana Boat Song, and ended the year with Mary’s Boy Child as the UK Christmas Number 1 1957. 

Mary’s Boy Child was the first UK Number 1 to have a playing time of over four minutes, and reached the top spot on the UK Singles Chart in November 1957 spending seven weeks there. It has gone on to become one of the UK's best-selling singles of all time.

Mary’s Boy Child has been a Christmas Number 1 twice for totally different artists, while Harry Belafonte topped the charts with it in 1957, Boney M took a one-horse open sleigh all the way to Number 1 with it (mashed up with Oh My Lord) in 1978.