Covers:

1945:

Gerald Clark & his Calypso Orchestra [with Macbeth The Great on Guild as My Donkey Want Water]

1946:

Macbeth The Great [idem; real name: Patrick MacDonald; like Lord Invader recorded in New York; also a live version on Rounder cd Calypso After Midnight in the Alan Lomax Collection]

1947:

Shep Fields [as Hold It Joe; vocal by Toni Arden & Bob Johnstone]

1954:

Louise Bennett [pre Belafonte, along with an early Day Dah Light (see there)]

1954:

Harry Belafonte [as Hold 'Em Joe in his first musical John Murray Anderson's Almanac]

1954:

Charmer [idem; referring to Belafonte's success version in the lyrics; real name: Louis Farrakhan, calypsonian and future leader of the Nation Of Islam; from the Broadway musical John Murray Anderson's Almanac]

1956:

Randy Weston

1958:

Jo Leemans [as Lieve Jo]

1960:

Rolf Harris [lyrical inspiration for his Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport; while his 'kangaroo' counts an extra syllable compared to the original 'donkey', Rolf altered the tune]

1960:

Cocktail Trio [as Op Een Kangoeroe Eiland; top 10 NL]

1965:

Sonny Rollins

1979:

Monty Alexander

1982:

Yellowman & Fathead [in Donkey Want Water]

1988:

Golden Eagles

2009:

Ziggy Marley