There are some band names that seem well planned and designed for a sense of mystery. Others feel as if they were created during a late night buddies
There are some band names that seem well planned and designed for a sense of mystery. Others feel as if they were created during a late night buddies catch in which companions just wished to make an additional other giggle. Bananarama definitely falls under the latter and that is why it is just as appealing.
The easiest Bananarama meaning is that it’s a name of the popular English pop group, originally established by Sara Dallin, Keren Woodward, and Siobhan Fahey. The very name of it is a whimsical creation and not one found in the pages of a standard English dictionary.
It was based on the word “banana”, for its exuberant sunny, tropical, slightly silly vibe, and was also inspired by Roxy Music’s song “Pyjamarama.” It was catchy, rhythmic and didn’t sound like any other act. Little could anyone have known that this will soon transform into the name for their hits, “Cruel Summer,” “Venus” and “Love in the First Degree.
What Is the Bananarama Meaning?
In normal speech, the term Bananarama typically refers to the internationally successful British pop band of the ’80s. It is not a common noun, one that is used to identify a specific thing, feeling or activity.
Split up the name, though, and its personality becomes apparent. “Banana” conjures up images of something tropical, colourful, cheerful and a bit silly. Ending with “-rama,” it seems more like a whole festival of bananas than one banana.
It is a playful not literal interpretation. Bananarama is not technically a “banana celebration” or “banana excitement.” But it’s the group, its music and the pop culture memories that come with it that really add to the meaning.
However, when people hear the word, they’re much more apt to recall an infectious chorus instead of a fruit bowl.
Where Did the Name Bananarama Come From?
The group was involved in naming the group with a tropical theme combined with being inspired by the Roxy Music song “Pyjamarama.” The young musicians liked Roxy Music and the unusual song title rhythm stuck in their heads.
Then they included “banana,” a word that was appropriate for the tropical taste of their first songs. Their first single, “Aie a Mwana,” was performed in Swahili and was definitely warm and exotic. The opening of Bananarama was as strange—and jubilant—without fail.
It wasn’t some sort of branding agency, record company bake off, or months of market research process. It was an improvised pop name, prior to the idea of the group being a feature or not.
Now the story is more of a fun read! The name was calculated in that it had an easy recall factor, but it was an instinct of youth. It was something to say, sounded unique on a record sleeve—and it worked well with a band that wasn’t being a typical, slick-sounding band.
How Did “Pyjamarama” Influence the Band Name?
Roxy Music is an English rock band which had released the song “Pyjamarama” in 1973. The ‘pyjama’ in the title is an invented word with a dramatic ‘rama’ ending. It felt like something for the movies, like it comes out of a dream and a bit of a joke, and that’s exactly what Roxy Music wrote, which is exactly what they were.
Bananarama used the same structure as a bit of fun, but didn’t copy the actual word. With the word “pyjama” replaced by “banana,” the friends made a thing that was similarly bouncy, but also sort of his or her own.
Say the names out loud: Pyjamarama. Bananarama. When the link is made heard.
More of a sound than hidden symbolism. Many musicians have selected names that they know have a good sound or look, or feel a certain way, even though they are not particularly meaningful. Bananarama is natural on the lips, there are some double vowels and there’s enough not to make complete sense, which is a good thing.
That’s sometimes more important than a thoughtful explanation in pop music.
Did The Banana Splits Inspire Bananarama Too?
Several sources state that The Banana Splits, an American children’s television series going by a cartoon with animal characters, also played a role in naming the town. This notion has been circulating for years to fill biographies, radio talk features, and pages on pop music reviewers.
The direct relationship to the group’s own story, however, focus on two ingredients: the tropical feel to “Aie a Mwana” and, more obviously, Roxy Music’s “Pyjamarama.” But not all Banana Splits references are necessarily knowingly false. As pop stories pass through the decades they become simplified, repeated and combined.
Reading into that, it seems obvious that the main word play inspiration was “Pyjamarama” and that the banana was as obligatory to their original more tropical tone as it was in the US. The use of “banana” as a funny entertainments word may stem from the TV show, however, this shouldn’t be necessarily given as the source.
Much like history writ at large, good music history isn’t always tidy, and it doesn’t for anyone seem to be a bad idea to get warm and cozy, even if it means being a little scuzzy.
Who Were the Original Members of Bananarama?
Dallin, Woodward and Fahey were the original line up. Originally, Dallin and Woodward were childhood friends, and Dallin got to know Fahey when they were studying fashion journalism in London.
Their start was very natural. They were pals who became friends through music, the punk movement and fashion, and through the excitement of the post-punk London experience. They couldn’t be channeled into a pop group by another pop group auditioning them – they were living and hanging around with musicians.
All of that played a role in their public perception. The first Bananarama concerts were laid back and natural. The members would quite often sing together and perhaps not structure each song so that one member is always the lead singer. Their dance and choreography were also not as polished as that of some of the younger girl groups.
In 1988, Fahey stepped down, and Jacquie O’Sullivan took over some years. Things were green for a while, with Dallin and Woodward carrying on the Bananarama legacy with Bananarama 2. Later the original three members got together and did a successful tour.
Was Bananarama Formed in 1980 or 1981?
Both dates have been mentioned extensively on the web, and sometimes the group’s story seems ambivalent. That’s when it’s easy to see how the confusion can be sparked, treating formation as a process rather than one single moment.
Although Sara Dallin met Siobhan Fahey in 1980 at the London College of Fashion. Dallin, Fahey, and Keren Woodward then developed friendships; began to write material; started performing informally; became involved with artists from London.
Due to the crystalization of the act and its earliest recording activity, 1981 is often cited as the year that Bananarama was ‘officially’ formed, even though the band’s roots are from 1977. In 1981, they also released their first single, “Aie a Mwana.”
Thus it would seem more appropriate to state that Bananarama’s formation as a group started circa 1980 and that the group was formed as a professional group circa 1981 than saying that one event must necessarily exclude the other.
Bands don’t start out as cleanly as businesses. Don’t always get a certificate stating “You became a group today.” In fact, many times the only thing is just a friendship, a song, a sort of slowly forming awareness that something is real.
How Bananarama Became More Than a Funny Name
Although a catchy name can achieve recognition, it isn’t enough to maintain a career. Bananarama quickly stopped being a novelty, and over the following steady flow of songs, took on a mix of pop, new wave, dance music and bright vocal harmonies.
Their early relationship with Fun Boy Three gained them exposure via such tracks as “It Ain’t What You Do (It’s the Way That You Do It)” and “Really Saying Something.” Soon, the group was achieving hits under its own name.
One of their most lasting songs was ‘Cruel Summer,’ which blended a happy arrangement with themes of isolation and discomfort. “Robert De Niro’s Waiting” proved their capacity to bring a strange modifier to popular music. Later, they had larger international listener numbers with their energetic “Venus.”
Now Bananarama wasn’t a random word at all. It was a recognisable style – bold, catchy, informal and obviously of the 80s pop age.
What Songs Is Bananarama Best Known For?
I’m afraid it’s “Cruel Summer” and “Venus” that people tend to talk about Bananarama first. Both also went well beyond the decade of their time and are still used for many a retro dance compilation, film score, radio show, etc.
“Venus” was not originally written by Bananarama. It is better known due to the Dutch band Shocking Blue. It was turned into a Stock Aitken Waterman made, high energy 80s dance-pop by Bananarama.
There are also other significant songs, such as:
Movie: Love in the First Degree
“I Heard a Rumour”
The title of Robert De Niro’s Waiting
“Shy Boy”
“Really Saying Something”
– Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye”
“More Than Physical”
“I Want You Back”
Thus these tracks exist, as they don’t fit into the simplistic category of one novelty name or one hit cover. They stocked various producers with evolving lineups and changing fashions, and the various levels of British pop.
Does Bananarama Have a Meaning Outside the Band?
Bananarama is sometimes found in businesses, desserts, events, cocktails, games, or products which wish to have a funny banana name. In such circumstances, it can imply “banana abound” or even “banana action”.
Typically, these are those phrases which are actually “puns” and not definitions. For instance, a café could name a large banana sundae the “Bananarama” for its festive and indulgent sound. It has no one culinary significance.
The band is the source of diffusion, usually outwards. The name became linked to the bright colors, the parties, ’80s style, a lack of inhibitions and playful nostalgia due to the band’s widespread recognition.
Context therefore matters. Bananarama is almost certainly the name of the pop group on a music site. When listed on an ice-cream menu, it most likely refers to a tropical ice cream dish that’s composed of bananas. When a crossword or trivia question asks for the answer the answer can be “Venus” or “Cruel Summer.”
Why Is the Name Still So Memorable?
Because it is a rhythmic name. It has lots of this open “a” and no odd consonant combinations, and concludes with a flourish. Just about anyone who’s seen the band should be able to say it after one go.
It also produces contrast. “Banana” sounds kiddish and “-rama”, sounds huge and bombastic. They are a combination of unweaker and unserious.
The group’s most important act in the end was to imbue the word with emotional meaning over its decades of music. Fans aren’t just listening to a bit of wordplay. They recall summer radios, colourful videos, tape tapes, filled-out dancing floors as well as songs being developed painstakingly yet really sounding very easy.
When a name is spoken regularly enough, it can become a common occurrence. Coca-Cola sounds less strange, as does Google and Bananarama, because culture has educated us about the objects they refer to.
In fact, it may be this – the band didn’t just pick a catchy name. It filled that name with memories, for decades.
Conclusion
The Bananarama meaning is straightforward and multifaceted. Most obviously, it’s the name of the English pop group that formed in 1980/81 with Sara Dallin, Keren Woodward and Siobhan Fahey.
The term is a melding of banana-tropical ambiance and a nod to “Pyjamarama” by Roxy Music. By no means was it meant to bear a heavy dictionary definition. It was to be catchy,different,fun.
But as years passed, Bananarama became so much more than ingredients. It got linked to “Cruel Summer”, “Venus”, friendship, changing line-ups, dance-pop and a definite part of 80s UK musical history.
For a name that started out as some youthful wordplay, it’s not always bad.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there such a word as Bananarama?
Bananarama is not a conventional dictionary term; it is a made up proper name. It is the name of the British pop group and has been occasionally revived to provide names for banana-inspired foods, products and events.
Is it Bananarama or Bananarama?What is the correct way to pronounce Bananarama?
The pronunciation is typically bun-NANA-RA; the last three letters can be hyphenated, and so is often done in print. The word is spoken in a rhythmic fashion with the most emphasis on the Rah.
Because was Bananarama named after a Roxy Music song?
Yes. The song “Pyjamarama” by Roxy Music (1973) proved to propel a big influence. The band took the funky beat from their music and morphed it with “banana” which really went with their tropical music.
Has Bananarama become a one-woman band?
Yes. Sara Dallin, Keren Woodward have been performing and recording as Bananarama. The original trio, Siobhan Fahey, has also rejoined the group for special performances and tours.
Which one of Bananarama’s songs was the biggest?
“Venus” was their highest charting success in the USA and “Cruel Summer” is one of their most internationally known and culturally touching tracks.
