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5All songs / Day-O (Banana Boat Song)
Number tabs for the steel tongue drum
Day-O (Banana Boat Song)
Free number tabs for Day-O (Banana Boat Song) on the steel tongue drum. 22 notes, C Major scale, Easy level — play it instantly in the free Tongue Drum Online player.
The tab
5
56
65
53
35
56
66
67
76
65
55
53
32
23
35
53
32
23
35
56
65
51–7 scale note• above = higher octave• below = lower octaveabc = key in the app
▶ Play it in Tongue Drum Online
Open the free player on the C Major scale, then tap the petals or press these keyboard keys in order, following the tab above:
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Day-O — the Banana Boat Song — is a Jamaican call-and-response work song rooted in the folk traditions of sugar-cane and banana dock workers, made world-famous by Harry Belafonte. On the steel tongue drum its bold, confident phrases ring out with joyful energy. The broad, unhurried melody and simple rhythmic structure make it a satisfying and crowd-pleasing easy-level piece.
How to play Day-O (Banana Boat Song) on a tongue drum
The numbers above are the standard tongue-drum number notation. Each digit is a note of the C Major scale, counting up from the lowest tongue. A dot above a number raises it one octave; a dot below lowers it. The small teal letters show the matching key in the Tongue Drum Online player.
Start slowly, one phrase at a time. Let each note ring out fully before striking the next — the long decay is the whole character of the instrument. This is a easy arrangement and a simplified, single-instrument version of Day-O (Banana Boat Song).
About this melody
Jamaican folk.