Senorita from Havana

Senorita from Havana (also known as Senorita or The Senorita from Havana) is a Galantian becasse song written in the late 1940s and made famous in the 1950s. This is considered to be the best-known song from Marigalante, especially as it was the first to find some measure of success abroad.

Background
Senorita from Havana was written by Waterman E. Charles in 1945 or 1946. Charles was a proficient songwriter, known for incorporating rhythms from Jamaica, Haiti and elsewhere in his music and one of the figures in the creation of becasse. Becasse music, established by the 1940s, was related to Jamaican mento, calypso and the later Haitian compas. While bands and songs were to be found in Marigalante, musicians were too poor or unwilling to record their music, instead only performing live, of which some songs were recorded on tape. The 1921 recordings of James Hollis' Troupe, brought to Mariana to record a set of contradance songs, was the only Galantian music professionally recorded up to that point.

Jerrold Martin recording
Senorita from Havana would mark the start of a golden age of music on the island. Jerrold Martins' Galantians, a becasse band, played the song extensively and in 1950, Charles was able to get them recorded on a Kalypso Records Ltd. (of Jamaice) release. The 78 rpm single saw fewer than 1000 presses made and was not a big hit, but achieved significance as the first Galantian music recorded and sold. Today such presses are rare and fairly valuable.

George Pierre recording
During carnival of 1953, the song, as played by George Pierre and his Orchestra, was recorded on tape. Pierre made the song much livelier than Martin's 1949 recording, and became a hit that summer. The recording made its way to Anglo-America, where executives at RCA Victor were impressed enough to release a recording of the song, tweaked by Charles and arranged by Pierre.