Coconut (song)

Not to be confused with Coconuts (song).

For other uses, see Coconut (disambiguation).

"Coconut" is a novelty song written^[3] and first recorded by American singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson, released as the third single from his 1971 album, Nilsson Schmilsson. It was on the U.S. Billboard charts for 14 weeks, reaching #8,^[4] and was ranked by Billboard as the #66 song for 1972. It charted in a minor way in the UK, reaching #42.^[5] "Coconut" did best in Canada, where it peaked at #5.^[6]

"Coconut"
Side A of the US single
Single by Nilsson
from the album Nilsson Schmilsson
B-side	"The Moonbeam Song"
Released	June 1972
Recorded	1971 (1971)
Genre	Novelty calypso[1] exotica[2]
Length	3:52
Label	RCA Victor
Songwriter(s)	Harry Nilsson
Producer(s)	Richard Perry
Nilsson singles chronology
"Jump into the Fire" (1972) "Coconut" (1972) "You're Breakin' My Heart" (1972)
Official audio
"Coconut" by Harry Nilsson on YouTube

Lyrics

The lyrics feature Nilsson singing three characters (a narrator, a woman, and a doctor), each in a different voice.^[7] The woman drinks a mixture of lime juice and coconut milk, becomes sick, and calls the doctor. The doctor, annoyed at being woken up, tells her to drink the same thing again and call in the morning.

Music

An arpeggiated C⁷ chord accompanies the song throughout.

Personnel

According to the 1971 LP credits:^[8]

• Harry Nilsson – vocals
• Caleb Quaye – guitar
• Ian Duck – acoustic guitar
• Herbie Flowers – bass
• Jim Gordon – drums, percussion
• Roger Pope – drums

Chart history

Weekly charts Chart (1972) Peak position Canada RPM Top Singles[9] 5 UK (OCC) 42 US Billboard Hot 100[10] 8 US Cash Box Top 100[11] 12

Year-end charts Chart (1972) Rank Canada[12] 55 US Billboard Hot 100[13] 66 US Cash Box[14] 87

Dannii Minogue version

"Coconut"
Single by Dannii Minogue
from the album Girl
B-side	"Everybody Changes Underwater" "Heaven Can Wait" "Someone New"
Released	16 November 1998 (1998-11-16)
Recorded	1994–1995
Genre	Dance-pop techno-pop
Length	4:50
Label	WEA
Songwriter(s)	Harry Nilsson
Producer(s)	Flexifinger (Original vocal production: DNA)
Dannii Minogue singles chronology
"Disremembrance" (1998) "Coconut" (1998) "Everlasting Night" (1999)
Music video
"Coconut" by Dannii Minogue on YouTube
Audio
"Coconut" (from The 1995 Sessions) by Dannii Minogue on YouTube

Dannii Minogue recorded the song in 1994 with UK dance producers DNA. When Minogue parted ways with Mushroom Records in 1995 and signed to Eternal Records in 1996, she had the track remixed by producers Flexifinger.

The track was originally used as a hidden bonus track on her third album Girl. It was subsequently released in Australia on 16 November 1998 as the fourth and final single from that album, peaking at number 62 on the ARIA singles chart upon its debut, on the chart dated week commencing 23 November 1998.^[15]

In 2009, the original version of "Coconut" was made available on the compilation The 1995 Sessions.

Charts

Chart performance for "Coconut" by Dannii Minogue

Chart (1998)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)[15]	62

Muppets version

The Muppets performed a version in The Muppet Show episode 4x10 with Kenny Rogers. In this version, Kermit the Frog portrays the patient, so the lyric about a “belly ache” is changed to a “flipper ache.”

References

1. Taylor, Kate (2005). "Harry Nilsson - Nillson Schmilsson". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. London: Cassell Illustrated. p. 251.
2. Moon, Tom (28 August 2008). "Harry Nilsson - Nilsson Schmilsson". 1,000 Recordings To Hear Before You Die. Workman Publishing Company. p. 551. ISBN 9-780761-139638.
3. Jones, Dylan (22 October 2010). "You may remember Harry Nilsson as the man who led John Lennon astray during a lost LA weekend". The Independent. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
4. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Billboard Top 40 Hits (8th ed.). Billboard Books. p. 458. ISBN 0-8230-7499-4.
5. UK Official Charts, 27 September 1969
6. RPM Top Singles, 9 September 1972
7. Alyn Shipton (2013). Nilsson: The Life of a Singer-Songwriter. Oxford University Press. 9780199330690
8. Nilsson Schmilsson (CD booklet: reproduced 1971 LP sleeve). Harry Nilsson. BMG Entertainment. 2000.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
9. "RPM 100 Singles - Volume 18, No. 3". Library and Archives Canada. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
10. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
11. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, September 2, 1972". Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
12. "Best of 1972 songs and music, on". Musicandyears.com. 12 November 2010. Archived from the original on 16 September 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
13. "Musicoutfitters.com". Archived from the original on 27 April 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
14. "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 30, 1972". Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
15. "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart: Week Commencing 23 Nov 1998". Australian Record Industry Association Ltd. Archived from the original on 11 October 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2015.