Sun of Jamaica

"Sun of Jamaica" is a song performed by German group Goombay Dance Band, written by Ekkehard Stein and Wolfgang Jass. The song was released at the end of 1979, and subsequently included on their debut album, Sun of Jamaica.

"Sun of Jamaica"
Single by Goombay Dance Band
from the album Sun of Jamaica
ReleasedDecember 1979 (1979-12)
Recorded1979
GenreEuro disco, schlager
LabelCBS
Songwriter(s)Ekkehard Stein & Wolfgang Jass
Goombay Dance Band singles chronology
"Ring Ting Ting"
(1979)		 "Sun of Jamaica"
(1979)		 "Aloha-Oe, Until We Meet Again"
(1980)

The lyrics recount the narrator's desire to visit Jamaica after seeing Mutiny on the Bounty as a boy. He explicitly mentions Marlon Brando in the lyrics, thus referring to the 1962 film version. When he visits, he falls in love with a woman, and vows to later return to be with her. The song was highly successful across Europe, reaching number 1 in no less than five countries. Goombay Dance Band have re-recorded the track a number of times later in their career.

Track listings
  • 7" Single (1979)[1]
A. "Sun of Jamaica" – 4:22
B. "Island of Dreams" – 3:26

Charts and certifications

Chart performance
Chart (1980–82) Peak
position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[2] 1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[3] 1
France (SNEP)[4] 38
Ireland (IRMA)[5] 14
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[6] 1
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[7] 19
Spain (AFYVE)[8] 1
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[9] 5
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[10] 3
UK Singles (OCC)[11] 50
West Germany (Official German Charts)[12] 1

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Germany (BVMI)[13] Platinum 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions
  • German singer Tony Holiday recorded a German version of the song in 1980, "Nie mehr allein sein".
  • In 1980, Czech singer Helena Vondráčková covered the song as "Léto je léto", which was a minor hit.
  • In 1980, Slovak band Expres covered the song with Slovak lyrics by Albín Škoviera under the name "Náhrdelník z perál".
  • In 1983, German cross-culture band Cusco released an instrumental version of the song on their album Virgin Islands.
  • In 1980, Argentinian Jairo (singer) reached Number one in France with a French version (Les Jardins du Ciel), he also recorded a Spanish version called "Nuestro Amor Será un Himno", which was a top 10 hit in Argentina.
  • In 1982, Croatian singer Darko Domijan made song 'Ruze u snijegu' as a copy of this song
  • In 1980, Belgian Band "The Strangers" recorded a Flemish version in the Antwerp dialect "'t Strand Van St-Anneke"

References
  1. "Goombay Dance Band - Sun Of Jamaica (Vinyl) at Discogs". www.discogs.com. Retrieved 2015-02-10.
  2. "Austriancharts.at – Goombay Dance Band – Sun of Jamaica" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  3. "Ultratop.be – Goombay Dance Band – Sun of Jamaica" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  4. "InfoDisc : Tout les Titres par Artiste". www.infodisc.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 2013-07-03. Retrieved 2015-01-31.
  5. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Sun of Jamaica". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  6. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Goombay Dance Band" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  7. "Charts.nz – Goombay Dance Band – Sun of Jamaica". Top 40 Singles.
  8. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  9. "Swedishcharts.com – Goombay Dance Band – Sun of Jamaica". Singles Top 100.
  10. "Swisscharts.com – Goombay Dance Band – Sun of Jamaica". Swiss Singles Chart.
  11. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  12. "Offiziellecharts.de – Goombay Dance Band – Sun of Jamaica". GfK Entertainment Charts.
  13. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Goombay Dance Band; 'Sun of Jamaica')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
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