Midnight Special (Harry Belafonte album)
The Midnight Special is a 1962 album by Jamaican-American singer, Harry Belafonte. The album notably contains the first officially-released recording by Bob Dylan, who plays harmonica on the title track. For many years the Belafonte session was thought to have been Bob Dylan’s first professional recording, simply because this RCA Victor album was released first. However, documentation found in 2001 in the RCA vaults along with the tapes dates the session definitively as having been recorded at Webster Hall, New York City, in February 1962. This places it later than Bob's recording session with folksinger Carolyn Hester, which dates from September 1961, also in New York City, although her album was not released until later in 1962.
| The Midnight Special | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1962 | |||
| Genre | Vocal | |||
| Label | RCA Victor LSP2449 | |||
| Producer | Hugo Montenegro | |||
| Harry Belafonte chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| New Record Mirror | [2] |
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Midnight Special" | Traditional | 4:02 |
| 2. | "Crawdad Song" | Traditional | 3:39 |
| 3. | "Memphis, Tennessee" | Harry Belafonte | 5:00 |
| 4. | "Gotta Travel On" | Paul Clayton / Dave Lazar | 4:26 |
| 5. | "Did You Hear About Jerry" | Harry Belafonte / Irving Burgie | 2:57 |
| 6. | "On Top of Old Smokey" | Traditional | 6:01 |
| 7. | "Muleskinner" | Traditional | 3:34 |
| 8. | "Makes a Long Time Man Feel Bad" | Traditional | 5:47 |
| 9. | "Michael, Row the Boat Ashore" | Traditional | 3:55 |
Critical reception
Pig River Records praised "The Midnight Special" on its 50th anniversary giving it 8.1/10.
Personnel
- Harry Belafonte – vocals
- Ernie Calabria – guitar
- Millard Thomas – guitar
- Norman Keenan – bass
- Percy Brice – drums
- Danny Barrajanos – drums
- Don Lamond – drums
- Joe Wilder – trumpet solo
- Jerome Richardson – saxophone
- Bob Dylan – harmonica on track 1
Production notes:
- Hugo Montenegro – producer
- Conducted and arranged by Jimmy Jones
- Bob Simpson – engineer, mastering
- Peter Perri – cover photo
- Bob Bollard – liner notes
References
- Allmusic review
- Watson, Jimmy (14 July 1962). "Belafonte: The Midnight Special" (PDF). New Record Mirror. No. 70. p. 10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.