Belfast (Boney M. song): Difference between revisions

"Belfast"
"Belfast"
Single by Boney M.
from the album Love for Sale
Released	19 September 1977
Recorded	March 1977
Genre	Pop, Europop, Euro disco
Length	3.30
Label	Hansa Records (FRG) ; Atlantic Records (UK) ; Carrere (FR)
Songwriter(s)	James Robert Bilsbury, Drafi Franz Richard Deutscher, Joe Menke
Producer(s)	Frank Farian
Boney M. singles chronology
Music video
	"Belfast" (TopPop, 1977) on YouTube

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"Belfast" is the second single of the Euro disco band Boney M.'s 1977 album Love for Sale. "Belfast" was the first Boney M. single to feature lead vocals by Marcia Barrett and became their 4th consecutive German chart-topper. In the UK Singles Chart it peaked at No. 8.^[1] It remained a popular track in the group's live shows over the years and was re-recorded by Marcia Barrett as a solo track on her album Come Into My Life (2005).

Background and composition

"Belfast", written in 1971 by Drafi Deutscher and Jimmy Bilsbury, was originally entitled "Derry".^[2] The lyrics refer to the divided city during the height of The Troubles in Northern Ireland. Deutscher had written the song for Marcia Barrett when she was a solo artist in the early 1970s. Frank Farian also recorded a German version of "Belfast" with Gilla. Her version was included on the album Zieh mich aus which was released in June 1976.

Due to shortage of material when Boney M. performed their first live gigs in 1976, having only one album with eight songs, Marcia Barrett also performed "Belfast" which had been a popular live track for her. "Belfast" turned out to be as popular for Boney M. on stage as it had been for Barrett. The sound engineer of the group noticed the response at each gig where the song was performed. He told Frank Farian about it and Farian decided to record the track for the second Boney M. album, Love For Sale, in early 1977.

In the US and Canada, the song was never released and was replaced by "Daddy Cool" on the album due to the political context of the song.

The track

The single was backed with "Plantation Boy" in all territories.^[2] In Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, the UK and Turkey, the singles featured the B-side fading 20 seconds earlier than the album version.

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "Belfast"
Chart (1977–1978)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)^[3]	57
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)^[4]	2
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[5]	1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)^[6]	2
Finland (Suomen Virallinen)^[7]	15
Ireland (IRMA)^[8]	1
Italy (Musica e dischi)^[9]	20
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[10]	3
Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[11]	3
Spain (AFE)^[12]	3
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[13]	1
UK Singles (OCC)^[14]	8
West Germany (GfK)^[15]	1

Year-end charts

1977 year-end chart performance for "Belfast"
Chart (1977)	Position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[16]	7
Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[17]	10

1978 year-end chart performance for "Belfast"
Chart (1978)	Position
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[18]	27

Sales

Sales for *Belfast*
Region	Sales
France	600,000^[19]

References

^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 69/70. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
^ ^a ^b Baron, Alexander. "Belfast by Boney M". Songfacts. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
^ "Boney M. – Belfast" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ "Boney M. – Belfast" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ "Boney M. – Belfast" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Boney M". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ Racca, Guido (2019). M&D Borsa Singoli 1960–2019 (in Italian). ISBN 9781093264906.
^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 45, 1977" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ "Boney M. – Belfast" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
^ "Boney M. – Belfast". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Boney M. – Belfast" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ "Jaaroverzichten 1977" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1977" (in Dutch). Dutch Charts. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1978" (in German). Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
^ Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP). Fabrice Ferment (ed.). "TOP – 1977". 40 ans de tubes : 1960–2000 : les meilleures ventes de 45 tours & CD singles (in French). OCLC 469523661. Archived from the original on 11 January 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2024 – via Top-France.fr.

[British_Hit_Singles_&_Albums-1] Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 69/70. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.

[songfacts-2] Baron, Alexander. "Belfast by Boney M". Songfacts. Retrieved 12 April 2018.

[3] Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.

[sc_Austria_Boney_M.-4] "Boney M. – Belfast" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[sc_Flanders_Boney_M.-5] "Boney M. – Belfast" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[sc_Wallonia_Boney_M.-6] "Boney M. – Belfast" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[7] Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.

[sc_Ireland2_Boney_M-8] "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Boney M". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[9] Racca, Guido (2019). M&D Borsa Singoli 1960–2019 (in Italian). ISBN 9781093264906.

[sc_Dutch40_-10] "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 45, 1977" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[sc_Dutch100_Boney_M.-11] "Boney M. – Belfast" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[12] Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.

[sc_Switzerland_Boney_M.-13] "Boney M. – Belfast". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[sc_UK_-14] "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[sc_West_Germany_Boney_M.-15] "Offiziellecharts.de – Boney M. – Belfast" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[16] "Jaaroverzichten 1977" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[17] "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1977" (in Dutch). Dutch Charts. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[18] "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1978" (in German). Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 18 July 2022.

[19] Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP). Fabrice Ferment (ed.). "TOP – 1977". 40 ans de tubes : 1960–2000 : les meilleures ventes de 45 tours & CD singles (in French). OCLC 469523661. Archived from the original on 11 January 2021. Retrieved 11 November 2024 – via Top-France.fr.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{Refimprove|date=October 2016}}
+{{More citations needed|date=October 2016}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
-{{Infobox single
+{{Infobox song
-| Name           = Belfast
-| Cover          = Boney M. - Belfast (1977 single).jpg
+| name       = Belfast
+| cover      = Boney M. - Belfast (1977 single).jpg
-| Artist         = [[Boney M.]]
+| alt        =
+| type       = single
-| from Album     = [[Love for Sale (Boney M. album)|Love for Sale]]
-| Released       = September 19, 1977
+| artist     = [[Boney M.]]
-| Format         = [[Single (music)|7" Single]]
+| album      = [[Love for Sale (Boney M. album)|Love for Sale]]
-| Recorded       = March 1977
+| released   = 19 September 1977
+| recorded   = March 1977
-| Genre          = [[Pop music|Pop]], [[Europop]], [[Euro disco]]
-| Length         = 3.30
+| studio     =
+| venue      =
-| Label          = [[Hansa Records]] <small>(FRG)</small> <br>[[Atlantic Records]] <small>(UK)</small> <br />[[Carrere Records|Carrere]] <small>(FR)</small>
+| genre      = [[Pop music|Pop]], [[Europop]], [[Euro disco]]
-| Writer         = [[Jimmy Bilsbury|James Robert Bilsbury]], [[Drafi Deutscher|Drafi Franz Richard Deutscher]], Joe Menke
-| Producer       =[[Frank Farian]]
+| length     = 3.30
+| label      = [[Hansa Records]] <small>(FRG)</small> <br>[[Atlantic Records]] <small>(UK)</small> <br />[[Carrere Records|Carrere]] <small>(FR)</small>
-| Last single = "[[Ma Baker]]" <br> (1977)
+| writer     = [[Jimmy Bilsbury|James Robert Bilsbury]], [[Drafi Deutscher|Drafi Franz Richard Deutscher]], Joe Menke
-| This single = '''"Belfast"'''<br />(1977)
+| producer   = [[Frank Farian]]
-| Next single = "[[Rivers of Babylon]]"<br />(1978)
+| prev_title = [[Ma Baker]]
+| prev_year  = 1977
+| next_title = [[Rivers of Babylon]]
+| next_year  = 1978
+| misc       = {{External music video|{{YouTube|Wxm-4x0xQ1M|"Belfast" (''TopPop'', 1977)}}}}
 }}
@@ Line 28: / Line 34: @@
 | isbn= 1-904994-10-5
 | pages= 69/70}}</ref> It remained a popular track in the group's live shows over the years and was re-recorded by Marcia Barrett as a solo track on her album ''Come Into My Life'' (2005).
+== Background and composition ==
+"Belfast", written in 1971 by [[Drafi Deutscher]] and [[Jimmy Bilsbury]], was originally entitled "Derry".<ref name="songfacts">{{cite web|website=Songfacts|url=http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=18113|title=Belfast by Boney M|first=Alexander|last=Baron|accessdate=12 April 2018}}</ref> The lyrics refer to the divided city during the height of [[The Troubles]] in Northern Ireland. Deutscher had written the song for Marcia Barrett when she was a solo artist in the early 1970s. [[Frank Farian]] also recorded a German version of "Belfast" with [[Gilla (singer)|Gilla]]. Her version was included on the album ''Zieh mich aus'' which was released in June 1976.
+Due to shortage of material when Boney M. performed their first live gigs in 1976, having only one album with eight songs, Marcia Barrett also performed "Belfast" which had been a popular live track for her. "Belfast" turned out to be as popular for Boney M. on stage as it had been for Barrett. The sound engineer of the group noticed the response at each gig where the song was performed. He told Frank Farian about it and Farian decided to record the track for the second Boney M. album, ''Love For Sale'', in early 1977.
+In the US and Canada, the song was never released and was replaced by "[[Daddy Cool (single)|Daddy Cool]]" on the album due to the political context of the song.
+== The track ==
+The single was backed with "Plantation Boy" in all territories.<ref name="songfacts"/> In Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, the UK and Turkey, the singles featured the B-side fading 20 seconds earlier than the album version.
 ==Charts==
+{{col-begin}}
-{|class="wikitable sortable"
+{{col-2}}
+===Weekly charts===
+{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
+|+Weekly chart performance for "Belfast"
+! scope="col" | Chart (1977–1978)
+! scope="col" | Peak<br>position
 |-
+! scope="row" | Australia ([[Kent Music Report]])<ref>{{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|edition=illustrated|publisher=Australian Chart Book|location=St Ives, N.S.W|year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6}}</ref>
-!align="left"|Chart (1977-1978)
+| 57
-! style="text-align:center;"|Peak<br>position
 |-
+{{single chart|Austria|2|artist=Boney M.|song=Belfast|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
-|align="left"|Belgium
-| style="text-align:center;"|1
 |-
+{{single chart|Flanders|1|artist=Boney M.|song=Belfast|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
-|align="left"|France
-| style="text-align:center;"|1
 |-
+{{single chart|Wallonia|2|artist=Boney M.|song=Belfast|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
-|align="left"|Germany
-| style="text-align:center;"|1
 |-
+! scope=row | Finland ([[Suomen virallinen lista|''Suomen Virallinen'']])<ref>{{cite book|first=Jake|last=Nyman|year=2005|title=Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja|edition=1st|publisher=Tammi|location=Helsinki|isbn=951-31-2503-3|language=fi}}</ref>
-|align="left"|Ireland
-| style="text-align:center;"|1
+|align="center"|15
 |-
+{{single chart|Ireland2|1|artist=Boney M|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
-|align="left"|Switzerland
-| style="text-align:center;"|1
 |-
+! scope=row | Italy (''[[Musica e dischi]]'')<ref>{{cite book|last=Racca|first=Guido|title=M&D Borsa Singoli 1960–2019|language=it|date=2019|isbn=9781093264906}}</ref>
-|align="left"|Austria
+| 20
-| style="text-align:center;"|2
 |-
+{{single chart|Dutch40|3|week=45|year=1977|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
-|align="left"|Netherlands
-| style="text-align:center;"|3
 |-
+{{single chart|Dutch100|3|artist=Boney M.|song=Belfast|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
-|align="left"|Spain
-| style="text-align:center;"|3
 |-
+! scope="row" | Spain ([[Productores de Música de España|AFE]])<ref>{{cite book|first=Fernando|last=Salaverri|title=Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002|edition=1st|date=September 2005|publisher=Fundación Autor-SGAE|location=Spain|isbn=84-8048-639-2}}</ref>
-|align="left"|United Kingdom
+| 3
-| style="text-align:center;"|8
 |-
+{{single chart|Switzerland|1|artist=Boney M.|song=Belfast|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
-|align="left"|Italy
-| style="text-align:center;"|20
 |-
+{{single chart|UK|8|date=19771217|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
+|-
+{{single chart|West Germany|1|artist=Boney M.|song=Belfast|songid=473|rowheader=true|access-date=18 July 2022}}
 |}
+{{col-2}}
-==The song==
+===Year-end charts===
+{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
-"Belfast" was written by [[Drafi Deutscher]] and originally entitled "Londonderry".{{citation needed|date=December 2014}} The lyrics refer to the divided city during the height of [[The Troubles]] in Northern Ireland.
+|+1977 year-end chart performance for "Belfast"
+! scope="col" | Chart (1977)
+! scope="col" | Position
+|-
+! scope="row" | Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ultratop.be/nl/annual.asp?year=1977&cat=s|title=Jaaroverzichten 1977|publisher=Ultratop 50|language=nl|access-date=18 July 2022}}</ref>
+| 7
+|-
+! scope="row" | Netherlands (Single Top 100)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/jaaroverzichten.asp?year=1977&cat=s|title=Jaaroverzichten – Single 1977|publisher=[[Dutch Charts]]|language=nl|access-date=18 July 2022}}</ref>
+| 10
+|}
+{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
-Deutscher had written the song for Marcia Barrett when she was a solo artist in the early 1970s. Due to shortage of their own material when Boney M. performed their first live gigs, Marcia Barrett performed the song which had been a popular live track for her. "Belfast" turned out to be as popular for Boney M. on stage as it had been for Barrett. The sound engineer of the group noticed the response at each gig where the song was performed. He told Frank Farian about it and Farian decided to record the track for the next Boney M. album, ''Love For Sale''.
+|+1978 year-end chart performance for "Belfast"
+! scope="col" | Chart (1978)
+! scope="col" | Position
+|-
+! scope="row" | Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://swisscharts.com/charts/jahreshitparade/1978|title=Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1978|publisher=[[Swiss Hitparade|Swiss Singles Chart]]|language=de|access-date=18 July 2022}}</ref>
+| 27
+|}
+{{col-end}}
+==Sales==
-Farian also recorded a German version of "Belfast" with [[Gilla (singer)|Gilla]]. Her version was included on the album ''Zieh mich aus'' which was released around four months earlier than Boney M.'s ''Love For Sale''.
+{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
+|+ Sales for ''Belfast''
-In the US and Canada, the song was never released and was replaced by "[[Daddy Cool (single)|Daddy Cool]]" on the album due to the political context of the song.
+|-
+! scope="col"| Region
-==The single==
+! scope="col"| Sales
-The single was backed with "Plantation Boy" in all territories - in Germany, Benelux, France, the UK and Turkey, the singles featured the B-side fading 20 seconds earlier than the album version.
+|-
+! scope="row"| France
+| 600,000<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.top-france.fr/html/annuel/1977.htm|title=TOP – 1977|work=40 ans de tubes : 1960–2000 : les meilleures ventes de 45 tours & CD singles|author=[[Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique]] (SNEP)|editor=Fabrice Ferment|access-date=11 November 2024|language=fr|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210111054910/http://www.top-france.fr/html/annuel/1977.htm|archive-date=11 January 2021|via=Top-France.fr|oclc=469523661}}</ref>
+|-
+|}
 ==References==
 {{Reflist}}
+{{Boney M. singles}}
-==External links==
-* {{MetroLyrics song|boney-m|belfast}}<!-- Licensed lyrics provider -->
-{{Boney M.}}
+{{authority control}}
-{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2011}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Belfast (Boney M. Song)}}
@@ Line 98: / Line 138: @@
 [[Category:Hansa Records singles]]
 [[Category:1977 songs]]
+[[Category:Songs about Ireland]]

v t e Boney M. singles
Discography
1970s	"Baby Do You Wanna Bump" "Daddy Cool" "Sunny" "Ma Baker" "Belfast" "Rivers of Babylon" "Brown Girl in the Ring" "Rasputin" "Mary's Boy Child – Oh My Lord" "Painter Man" "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" "El Lute"/"Gotta Go Home" "I'm Born Again"/"Bahama Mama"
1980s	"I See a Boat on the River"/"My Friend Jack" "Children of Paradise"/"Gadda-Da-Vida" "Felicidad (Margherita)" "Malaika"/"Consuela Biaz" "We Kill the World"/"Boonoonoonoos" "The Little Drummer Boy" "6 Years of Boney M. Hits" "The Carnival Is Over"/"Going Back West" "Zion's Daughter" "Jambo – Hakuna Matata (No Problems)" "Somewhere in the World" "Kalimba de Luna" "Happy Song" "My Chérie Amour" "Young, Free and Single" "Daddy Cool (Anniversary Recording '86)" "Bang Bang Lulu" "Rivers of Babylon (Remix)"/"Mary's Boy Child – Oh My Lord" (Remix)" "Megamix" "The Summer Mega Mix" "Malaika (Lambada Remix)" "Everybody Wants to Dance Like Josephine Baker"
1990s	"Stories" "Christmas Mega Mix" "Mega Mix" "Brown Girl in the Ring (Remix '93)" "Ma Baker (Remix '93)" "Papa Chico" "Somebody Scream – Ma Baker" "Daddy Cool '99" "Hooray! Hooray! (Caribbean Night Fever)"
2000s	"Sunny (Remix) 2000" "Daddy Cool 2001" "Sunny (Mousse T. Remix)" "Felicidad America (Obama-Obama)"
Category