Mary's Boy Child is a 1956 Christmas song, written by Jester Hairston. It is widely performed as a Christmas carol. The song had its genesis when Hairston was sharing a room with a friend. The friend asked him to write a song for a birthday party. Hairston wrote the song with a calypso rhythm because the people at the party would be mainly West Indians. The song's original title was He Pone and Chocolate Tea, pone being a type of corn bread. It was never recorded in this form. The song was also recorded by Mahalia Jackson in 1956 but titled "Mary's Little Boy Child".