Popular Calypsos and Related Songs

"Mary Ann" / "Marianne" "Mary Ann," composed by calypsonian Roaring Lion, was popular with steelbands and revelers during a spontaneous Carnival celebration on V-J Day in Trinidad in 1945, at the end of World War II. The song alluded to Mary Ann's occupation: All day, all night, Miss Mary Ann Down by the seaside, she sifting sand.

The Roaring Lion

Sheet music Easy Riders record Latin bandleader Xavier Cugat recorded a version of "Mary Ann" in the late 1940s. During the 1956-57 American calypso craze, the Easy Riders, Burl Ives and other interpreters of folk music further popularized the calypso, generally under the title of "Marianne." The song continued to be a favorite with steelbands and calypso entertainers at Caribbean tourist hotels for many years.

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