Music
Harry Belafonte on retirement: 'I didn't want to be like Cher'
Published Thursday, Oct 20 2011, 20:21 BST | By Justin Harp | Add comment
© PA Images / Kai-Uwe Knoth/AP
The 'Banana Boat Song' musician revealed that he chose not to publicise his decision to quit so as not to be compared to Cher, who headlined a nightly stage show in Las Vegas only a few years after her farewell tour.
"[I retired] a few years ago. I was in Germany playing to some 20,000 people and it just hit me: 'This is the time to step away'," Belafonte told Parade.
"I didn't want to be like Cher, on my 19th comeback or farewell performance. I love Cher, but I didn't want to make an absolute statement that I might have to retrieve."
Belafonte was also quizzed on whether he regrets walking away from the spotlight, to which he replied: "I don't. I had a great life."
The star released his first hit single 'Matilda' in 1953 and went on to work with the likes of Bob Dylan, Lena Horne and Julie Andrews.
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Watch Harry Belafonte perform 'Banana Boat Song' with The Muppets below:
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