Bali Ha'i

Album: South Pacific (1949)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "Bali Ha'i" (also spelt "Bali Hai") has three things in common with "Over The Rainbow"; it is a song from a musical; it is about a mythical place; and its melody includes a jump of an octave and a descending major seventh at its beginning.

    With lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and music by Richard Rodgers, the song appears in the 1949 Broadway musical/1958 film South Pacific. Although Bali Ha'i is not a real place, it is based on Ambae, which is also known as Leper's Island, a name that unsurprisingly was not featured in the film, where it is sung by the Matriach of the island Bloody Mary to US serviceman Joseph Cable soon after his arrival during the Second World War. >>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Gary Brooker of Procol Harum

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Andy McClusky of OMD

Andy McClusky of OMDSongwriter Interviews

Known in America for the hit "If You Leave," OMD is a huge influence on modern electronic music.

Waiting For The Break of Day: Three Classic Songs About All-Nighters

Waiting For The Break of Day: Three Classic Songs About All-NightersSong Writing

These Three famous songs actually describe how they were written - late into the evening.

Donald Fagen

Donald FagenSongwriter Interviews

Fagen talks about how the Steely Dan songwriting strategy has changed over the years, and explains why you don't hear many covers of their songs.

Graham Nash

Graham NashSongwriter Interviews

Graham Nash tells the stories behind some of his famous songs and photos, and is asked about "yacht rock" for the first time.

Michael Sweet of Stryper

Michael Sweet of StryperSongwriter Interviews

Find out how God and glam metal go together from the Stryper frontman.