# Coconut (song)
"Coconut" is a novelty song written and first recorded by the American singer-songwriter [Harry Nilsson](https://www.edgepedia.org/harry-nilsson), released on his 1971 album *[Nilsson Schmilsson](https://www.edgepedia.org/nilsson-schmilsson)* and issued as a single in 1972, when it reached No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100[1](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647) • [2](https://www.connollyco.com/discography/harry_nilsson/coconut7.html). Built on a single chord and sung by Nilsson in several cartoonish voices, it became one of his best-remembered original compositions[1](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647) • [3](https://www.vice.com/en/article/guide-to-harry-nilsson/).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Writer and artist | Harry Nilsson; produced by Richard Perry[1](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647) • [2](https://www.connollyco.com/discography/harry_nilsson/coconut7.html) |
| First release | Album track on *Nilsson Schmilsson* (RCA, November 1971); track 7, running 3:48[4](https://harrynilsson.com/music/the-rca-albums-collection/) • [5](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/song/114822-coconut/) |
| US single | RCA 74-0718, May 1972, B-side "Down"; No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, charted June 10, 1972 for 14 weeks[2](https://www.connollyco.com/discography/harry_nilsson/coconut7.html) |
| UK single | RCA Victor 2214; peak No. 42, five weeks on the Official Singles Chart from 03/06/1972[6](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/nilsson-coconut/) |
| Musical structure | One chord throughout, an arpeggiated C7, with a calypso-like feel[3](https://www.vice.com/en/article/guide-to-harry-nilsson/) • [7](https://www.charttimemachine.com/?title_id=4547&view=title) |
| Notable covers | The Muppets, Dannii Minogue (1998), Baha Men (2002), Roland (2003), Ty Segall (2020)[8](https://www.originals.be/en/originals/9236) |
| Film use | Featured in Quentin Tarantino's *Reservoir Dogs*, Ang Lee's *The Ice Storm*, and *Practical Magic*[8](https://www.originals.be/en/originals/9236) |
## Origin and writing
The song grew out of a tropical vacation. According to SongFacts, Nilsson wrote the word "coconut" on a matchbook while in Hawaii, thinking it would work well in a song; after returning home he found the matchbook while driving and wrote the song in his car[9](https://www.aol.com/articles/harry-nilssons-coconut-became-billboard-132320000.html). AllMusic's Matthew Greenwald describes the lyrics as based on the old saying "the cause is the cure," sounding like a recipe for a hangover cure, a subject the piece says Nilsson knew intimately[1](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647).
In the song, a woman with a stomach ache calls her doctor in the middle of the night to complain about a lime-and-coconut drink, and the annoyed doctor tells her to drink the same thing again and call in the morning[10](https://soundday.wordpress.com/2026/07/09/july-9-harrys-recipe-was-a-hit/comment-page-1/).
## Recording and voices
**Richard Perry's suggestion.** Nilsson originally planned to sing the entire song in his regular voice. Perry, the record's producer, recalled in the documentary *Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)* that Nilsson played it straight through on guitar with no changes, and that he thought the song had the potential to be "like a little animated cartoon" with at least three different characters, so he suggested using different voices[9](https://www.aol.com/articles/harry-nilssons-coconut-became-billboard-132320000.html). Nilsson took the suggestion, voicing the woman, the doctor, and the narrator[10](https://soundday.wordpress.com/2026/07/09/july-9-harrys-recipe-was-a-hit/comment-page-1/).
The arrangement is deliberately minimal. The whole song sits on one chord, an arpeggiated C7, with many cartoonish enunciations of the cry "Doctor!"[3](https://www.vice.com/en/article/guide-to-harry-nilsson/). AllMusic notes a lazy, fingerpicking blues guitar figure and a strong Bahamian feel[1](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647), and drummer Jim Gordon added the calypso-like percussion[10](https://soundday.wordpress.com/2026/07/09/july-9-harrys-recipe-was-a-hit/comment-page-1/).
## Chart performance
The single was Nilsson's surprise [Top 40](https://www.edgepedia.org/top-40) hit[1](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647). In the United States it entered the Billboard Hot 100 on June 10, 1972, stayed for 14 weeks, and peaked at No. 8[2](https://www.connollyco.com/discography/harry_nilsson/coconut7.html) • [9](https://www.aol.com/articles/harry-nilssons-coconut-became-billboard-132320000.html). In Canada it reached No. 5[11](https://thesoundofonehandtyping.com/2020/08/24/song-of-the-day-harry-nilsson-coconut/). In the United Kingdom it was a modest performer: on the Official Singles Chart it debuted at No. 48 on 03/06/1972, peaked at No. 42 on 17/06/1972, and left the chart after five weeks[6](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/nilsson-coconut/).
The single appeared in different regional pressings: the US release paired it with "Down," the UK release with "The Moonbeam Song," and a Brazilian pressing with "Jump Into The Fire"[12](https://www.charts.nz/showitem.asp?cat=s&interpret=Nilsson&titel=Coconut). Nilsson's official site lists the song as single 74-0604 with Hot 100 No. 8, while discographic sources give the US single number as 74-0718[4](https://harrynilsson.com/music/the-rca-albums-collection/) • [2](https://www.connollyco.com/discography/harry_nilsson/coconut7.html).
## Later use and covers
The song has circulated widely in film and advertising. It was used in a couple of early-1970s television advertisements[1](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647), and it appears prominently under the end scene of Tarantino's *Reservoir Dogs*, in [Ang Lee](https://www.edgepedia.org/ang-lee)'s *The Ice Storm*, and in *Practical Magic* with [Sandra Bullock](https://www.edgepedia.org/sandra-bullock)[8](https://www.originals.be/en/originals/9236). When [Coca-Cola](https://www.edgepedia.org/coca-cola) introduced Lime Coke, ads used the tune with the lyrics changed to "you put the lime in the Coke! You nut!"[10](https://soundday.wordpress.com/2026/07/09/july-9-harrys-recipe-was-a-hit/comment-page-1/)
Cover versions span several decades: the Muppets recorded it in the 1970s as "Ain't There Nothing I Can Take To Relieve This Flipper Ache," Dannii Minogue covered it in 1998 for the album *Girl*, [Baha Men](https://www.edgepedia.org/baha-men) recorded it in 2002 as "Put The Lime In The Coconut," Roland released "Lime In The Coconut" in 2003, and [Ty Segall](https://www.edgepedia.org/ty-segall) covered it in 2020[8](https://www.originals.be/en/originals/9236). [Fred Schneider](https://www.edgepedia.org/fred-schneider) of the B-52's recorded a version for the *Everybody Sings Nilsson* tribute album[1](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647). Kermit sang the song on *The Muppet Show*[10](https://soundday.wordpress.com/2026/07/09/july-9-harrys-recipe-was-a-hit/comment-page-1/).
## Place in Nilsson's work
"Coconut" is track 7 on *Nilsson Schmilsson*, Nilsson's most commercially successful album, which also contains "Without You" and "Jump Into the Fire"[5](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/song/114822-coconut/) • [13](https://www.the-independent.com/incoming/pop-nilsson-schmilsson-and-other-disguises-there-was-far-more-to-harry-nilsson-who-died-last-week-than-without-you-chris-salewicz-looks-back-over-an-exemplary-record-1408130.html). Chris Salewicz, writing in *The Independent* in 1994, called it the album's wistful children's tune[13](https://www.the-independent.com/incoming/pop-nilsson-schmilsson-and-other-disguises-there-was-far-more-to-harry-nilsson-who-died-last-week-than-without-you-chris-salewicz-looks-back-over-an-exemplary-record-1408130.html). A Pitchfork feature on 1970s Los Angeles singer-songwriters describes it as Nilsson at his most whimsical, turning his voice into a cartoonish, playful instrument, and notes that many people have sung "you put the lime in the coconut and drink 'em both up" at summer camp without knowing anyone actually wrote it[14](https://pitchfork.com/features/underscore/8786-nilsson-newman-and-some-other-la-weirdos/).
## References
1. [Coconut – Harry Nilsson, Song Review by Matthew Greenwald, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/song/coconut-mt0011391647)
2. [Coconut, Harry Nilsson discography, Connolly & Co.](https://www.connollyco.com/discography/harry_nilsson/coconut7.html)
3. [A Guide to Harry Nilsson, Who You've Loved Forever Without Knowing It, Vice (Zach Schonfeld, 2019)](https://www.vice.com/en/article/guide-to-harry-nilsson/)
4. [The RCA Albums Collection, The Official Harry Nilsson Site](https://harrynilsson.com/music/the-rca-albums-collection/)
5. [Coconut – Harry Nilsson, Song Ratings, Album of the Year](https://www.albumoftheyear.org/song/114822-coconut/)
6. [COCONUT – NILSSON, Official Charts Company](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/nilsson-coconut/)
7. [Nilsson – Coconut, The Chart Time Machine](https://www.charttimemachine.com/?title_id=4547&view=title)
8. [COCONUT, The Originals © by Arnold Rypens](https://www.originals.be/en/originals/9236)
9. [How Harry Nilsson's 'Coconut' Became a Billboard Hit for 14 Weeks, AOL (Holly Riordan)](https://www.aol.com/articles/harry-nilssons-coconut-became-billboard-132320000.html)
10. [July 9 – Harry's Recipe Was A Hit, A Sound Day](https://soundday.wordpress.com/2026/07/09/july-9-harrys-recipe-was-a-hit/comment-page-1/)
11. [Song of the Day: Harry Nilsson, "Coconut", The Sound of One Hand Typing](https://thesoundofonehandtyping.com/2020/08/24/song-of-the-day-harry-nilsson-coconut/)
12. [charts.org.nz – Nilsson, Coconut](https://www.charts.nz/showitem.asp?cat=s&interpret=Nilsson&titel=Coconut)
13. [POP / Nilsson Schmilsson, and other disguises, The Independent (Chris Salewicz, 1994)](https://www.the-independent.com/incoming/pop-nilsson-schmilsson-and-other-disguises-there-was-far-more-to-harry-nilsson-who-died-last-week-than-without-you-chris-salewicz-looks-back-over-an-exemplary-record-1408130.html)
14. [L.A. Weirdos, Pitchfork (Mike Powell, 2012)](https://pitchfork.com/features/underscore/8786-nilsson-newman-and-some-other-la-weirdos/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musical works and recordings › Compositions and songs › Children's, novelty, parody, and traditional children's songs › Parody and comedy songs*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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