"Montego Bay" is a song co-written and performed by Bobby Bloom about the city in Jamaica of the same name. The song was a top ten hit for Bloom in the Fall of 1970 on both sides of the Atlantic. It reached No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart, No. 5 on the Canadian RPM 100 Singles Chart, No. 7 on the Australian Go-Set Singles Chart and No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song was co-written and produced by Jeff Barry. In the master tape of the song, Bloom breaks into a chorus of "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" at the end of the recording. The song features a whistler, as well as Jamaican instruments in a calypso style.
Chart history Weekly charts Chart (1970)Peakposition Argentina (CAPIF) 7Australia (Kent Music Report)9Australia (Go-Set)7Austria (Hitradio Ö3)12Canada RPM Adult Contemporary15Canada RPM Top Singles5France (IFOP)43New Zealand (Listener)Flavour of New Zealand, 14 December 197012Singapore Rediffusion, SingaporeBillboard, December 19, 1970 – Page 60 Billboard HITS OF THE WORLD, SINGAPORE, This Week 1, Last Week 11South Africa (Springbok)5UK Singles Chart3US Billboard Hot 100Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 – 8US Billboard Easy Listening18US Cash Box Top 100Cash Box Top 100 Singles, December 5, 19706 Freddie Notes & the Rudies cover Chart (1970)PeakpositionUK Singles Chart45 Sugar Cane cover Chart (1978)PeakpositionUK Singles Chart54 Jon Stevens cover Chart (1980)PeakpositionNew Zealand (RIANZ)1 Quarrington/Worthy cover Chart (1980)PeakpositionCanada RPM Adult Contemporary15 Allniters cover Chart (1983)PeakpositionAustralia (Kent Music Report)19 Amazulu cover Chart (1986–1987)PeakpositionSouth Africa (Springbok)16UK Singles Chart16US Billboard Hot 100Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 – 90
Year-end charts Chart (1970)RankAustralia84Canada77UK41
Jon Stevens version
In January 1980, New Zealand recording artist Jon Stevens released a version as a single. It peaked at No.1 in New Zealand, allowing Stevens to replace himself at No.1, and stayed there for two weeks.
Track listing Vinyl, 7-inch, 45 RPM "Montego Bay" 2:50 "Sha La La" 4:25
Charts +Weekly chart performance for "Montego Bay" Chart (1980) Peakposition New Zealand (RIANZ) 1
Year-end charts +Year-end chart performance for "Montego Bay" Chart (1980) Position New Zealand (RIANZ)43
Other recordings (1970) Freddie Notes & The Rudies – (Trojan Records) (1971) The Bar-Kays on their album Black Rock (1978) Sugar Cane – a minor UK disco hit for the U.S. male/female vocal group. Highest position in UK Singles Chart – No. 54 (1983) Allniters – a Top 20 hit for an Australian ska band. (1986) Amazulu – reached No. 16 in the UK and No. 6 in Canada and was a minor hit in the U.S. in September 1986
See also List of number-one singles from the 1980s (New Zealand) List of 1970s one-hit wonders in the United States
References
External links NZ On Screen – Montego Bay music video