"Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" is a 1979 single by German Euro disco band

Boney M. Boney M. was a German-Caribbean vocal group that specialized in disco and funk created by German record producer Frank Farian, who was the group's primary songwriter. Originally based in West Germany, the four original members of the group's o ...

as an adaptation of nursery rhyme ''

Polly Wolly Doodle "Polly Wolly Doodle" is a traditional American children's song. It was sung by Dan Emmett's Virginia Minstrels, who premiered at New York's Bowery Amphitheatre in February 1843, and is often credited to Emmett (1815–1904). It was known to have ...

''. Despite breaking their row of 7 consecutive German #1 singles, peaking at #4, the single was a big hit all over Europe, peaking at #3 in the UK. The song and its B-side, "Ribbons of Blue", were taken from the movie ''Disco Fever''. "Ribbons of Blue" has a strong country feel with the addition of a pedal steel guitar. Even though the single cover announced the arrival of the next Boney M. album, ''

Oceans of Fantasy ''Oceans of Fantasy'' is the fourth studio album by Euro- Caribbean group Boney M. Released in September 1979, ''Oceans Of Fantasy'' became the second Boney M. album to top the UK charts and features the hits " El Lute / Gotta Go Home" and "I'm B ...

'', it would still be another six months before the album was released, and of the two songs, only "Ribbons of Blue" (penned by the group's drummer,

Keith Forsey Keith Forsey (born 2 January 1948) is an English pop musician and record producer. Early life Forsey began his career as a percussionist in the mid-late 1960s as the drummer for The SpectrumCaptain Scarlet and the Mysterons - The Vault - Chris ...

) was included and just in a one- or two-minute edit, depending on the pressing.

Single

Unlike other Boney M. singles, there appears to be no different mixes. In Germany, this was the first single to picture a specially designed label with a star-spangled Boney M. logo on a blue background. In the UK, the single was released in a picture sleeve – it was also pressed on a

picture disc Picture discs are gramophone (phonograph) records that show images on their playing surface, rather than being of plain black or colored vinyl. Collectors traditionally reserve the term picture disc for records with graphics that extend at lea ...

and a 12" clear yellow vinyl with card picture cover insert.

Reception

'' Smash Hits'' said, "If a knees-up in a holiday camp is your idea of a good time, then you might possibly - just possibly - enjoy this excruciatingly dreadful singalongaboney. But make no mistake, whether you love it or hate it, you will hear it.

Releases

7" singles * "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" (3:56) / "Ribbons of Blue" (4:02) – (Hansa Int. 100 444–100, Germany) * "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" (3:56) / "Ribbons of Blue" (4:02) – (Atlantic K 11279 / Picture disc K 11279P, UK) 12" single * "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" (3:56) / "Ribbons of Blue" (4:02) – (Atlantic K 11279T, UK)

"Hooray! Hooray! (Caribbean Night Fever)"

"Hooray! Hooray! (Caribbean Night Fever)" is a Double A-side Boney M. single from 1999 with a new remix of their 1979 hit "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" and a

Megamix A megamix is a remix containing multiple songs in rapid succession. It often features various artists. There may be only one verse or even just a brief chorus of each song used, sometimes in addition to samples of the same or other songs. It is ...

of their hits " Brown Girl in the Ring", "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" and "

No Woman No Cry "No Woman, No Cry" is a reggae song by Bob Marley and the Wailers. The song was recorded in 1974 and released on the studio album ''Natty Dread''. The live recording of this song from the 1975 album '' Live!'' was released as a single and i ...

", all taken from their remix album ''

20th Century Hits ''20th Century Hits'' is a remix album of recordings by Boney M. released by BMG in 1999. This remix project which was credited as 'Boney M. 2000' spun off a series of new single releases; "Ma Baker – Somebody Scream" in early 1999 and p ...

'', released at the same time. The single fared poorly, peaking at just #79 in the German charts and #80 in the Swiss charts. After producer Frank Farian had dropped the idea of launching an all-new Boney M. line-up with young people, he announced that original lead singer

Liz Mitchell Liz is a female name of Hebrew origin, meaning "God's Promise". It is also a short form of Elizabeth, Elisabeth, Lisbeth, Lizanne, Liszbeth, Lizbeth, Lizabeth, Lyzbeth, Lisa, Lizette, Alyssa, and Eliza. People * Liz Balmaseda (born 1959), P ...

and her Boney M. line-up would promote the album before dropping this idea again. Consequently, the accompanying video featured a cartoon movie of the original group. The 12" single featured "Tropical" and "Carnival" mixes, both unavailable on CD.

Releases

CD * Boney M. 2000: "Hooray! Hooray! (Caribbean Night Fever)" (BMG 74321 71064 2, 1999) # "Caribbean Night Fever – Megamix" (Radio Edit) – 3:55 # "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" (Radio Edit) – 3:30 # "Caribbean Night Fever" (Extended Version) – 5:28 # "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" (Extended Version) – 4:26 # "Brown Girl in the Ring" (Remix) – 4:01 12" single * Boney M. 2000: "Hooray! Hooray! (Caribbean Night Fever)" (BMG 74321 71114 1, 1999) "Caribbean Night Fever – Megamix" (Extended Version) – 5:26 / "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday" (Extended Version) – 4:26 / "Caribbean Tropical Mix" – 6:02 / "Caribbean Carnival Mix" – 6:02

Chart positions

Certifications

Cover versions

*The Spanish group

Parchís Parchís is a Spanish board game of the Cross and Circle family. It is an adaptation of the Indian game Pachisi. Parchís was a very popular game in Spain at one point as well as in Europe and north Morocco - specifically Tangiers and Tetouan, ...

covered the song on their first LP under the same title, but sung completely in Spanish by the two female vocalists in the group: Gemma and Yolanda. *Hong Kong singer Susanna Kwan covered the song in Cantonese in 1979 as "Summer Delight" (夏日多歡享 ha yat dor foon heung) on her album ''Wing han dik foo pak'' (永恒的琥珀). *Danish singer

Birthe Kjær Birthe Kjær (born 1 September 1948) is a Danish singer. She finished second at the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix in 1980, 1986 and 1987, before winning in 1989, and went on to finish third at the 1989 Eurovision Song Contest in Lausanne. She also fin ...

covered the song in Danish in 1980 as "Hurra! Hurra! Sikken dejlig dag". *

Ricky Martin Enrique Martín Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography spanning ...

covered the song in Spanish in 1993 on his album '' Me Amarás''. *

The Cheeky Girls The Cheeky Girls are a Romanian singing duo consisting of identical twin sisters Gabriela and Monica Irimia (both born 31 October 1982). After appearing as auditionees on '' Popstars: The Rivals'', they achieved success in the UK charts with fou ...

did a cover of this song, "(Hooray Hooray) It's a Cheeky Holiday", as a follow-up to their successful debut single, "

Cheeky Song (Touch My Bum) "Cheeky Song (Touch My Bum)" is a song by '' Popstars: The Rivals'' contestants the Cheeky Girls. Written by Pete Kirtley and Tim Hawes (under the name The Cheeky Boyz) and the girls' mother Margit Irimia, the song was released as a single on 2 ...

". Their version gave them their third top-five hit in the UK, peaking at number three.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hooray! Hooray! It's A Holi-Holiday 1979 singles 1999 singles 2003 singles Boney M. songs European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Hansa Records singles Multiply Records singles Song recordings produced by Frank Farian Songs written by Frank Farian