Strawberries, blueberries, peaches, pineapple, cherries, and oranges would make a delicious fruit salad. They also happen to make up a list of great songs.
So many songs have a certain fruit in the title, whether the lyrics are about the actual fruit or not. Some references are to places, while others can be about people in relationships.
If you’re looking to create a fun playlist about songs, you’re just in time. We have compiled a tasty selection of 13 of the best songs about fruit. Read on!
1. “Peaches” By Justin Bieber
First up on our list is a song with a fruit in the title, one from Justin Bieber. Released in 2021 on his Justice album, “Peaches” debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, as did the album on the Billboard 200.
All throughout the lyrics, you’ll hear references to Bieber’s love interest. Considering that he’s married, it’s not difficult to conclude that the song is his ode to his supermodel wife, Hailey Baldwin.
“I got my peaches out in Georgia” refers to his early career as a singer in Georgia. The line “I get my weed in California” is probably about his life with Baldwin in Los Angeles. “I took my chick up to the North” refers to their home in Canada. Bieber sings to his wife that he’ll be “right here with you ’til end of time.”
2. “Strawberry Fields Forever” By The Beatles
From 1967’s Magical Mystery Tour, “Strawberry Fields Forever” is a trippy song by The Beatles’ John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The title came from Strawberry Field, a girl’s orphanage near where Lennon lived.
Lennon based the lyrics on his childhood memories of playing in the garden behind this orphanage. But it wasn’t a happy childhood. His father was always away due to work, while his mother fell in love with another man and had a daughter.
Lennon and McCartney would often write nostalgic songs about their upbringing in Liverpool. The lyrics are dreamy, where nothing is real, and there is nothing to worry about when growing up in the innocence of childhood.
3. “Strange Fruit” By Billie Holiday
There are some songs about fruit that are not quite as uplifting, and “Strange Fruit” is one of them. Recorded by Billie Holiday in 1939, the song was a protest against the lynchings of Black Americans in the Southern United States.
The imagery within the lyrics is quite graphic. The strange fruit refers to the hanging body of a black man lynched. The “bulging eyes and the twisted mouth” refers to what happens when one is hung.
Time Magazine named “Strange Fruit” the “Best Song of the Century” for its historical importance during the Civil Rights Movement.
4. “Orange In The Sun” By Blues Traveler
If you’re into a light song that sounds like a lullaby, give Blues Traveler‘s “Orange in the Sun” a try. Band member Chan Kinchla said that he wanted to write a song for his children, and this was what came of it.
What’s good about this song is its meaning’s universality. It’s a song comforting a child during a night when the lightning and storm are acting up. The singer promises to “hold you till it comes.”
He further comforts the listener, saying that “the man and the moon and the stars” are just playing. “The lightning back in their jars,” so it’s going to be calm and quiet soon.
5. “Rotten Apple” By Alice In Chains
The apple has since appeared in many great stories to mean the bad thing. Many think that it’s the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. It is also the fruit that the witch poisoned and gave to Snow White.
In Alice in Chain‘s “Rotten Apple,” the lyrics pertain to innocence lost. And when “innocence is over,” bad things start to happen. This makes the singer upset, noting that he loses his innocence “too young.”
In addition, the words “I’ve written my own part” could mean that he has chosen a fate that he doesn’t want. He has bitten the “rotten apple,” and now he’s doomed.
6. “Blueberry Hill” By Fats Domino
Another song about young love is the rock and roll classic from Fats Domino, “Blueberry Hill.” His version, recorded in 1956, is considered a rock and roll standard.
“Blueberry Hill” was originally published in 1940 and recorded by several artists. Domino made it an international hit, spending three weeks at #2 on the Billboard Top 40 chart.
The song is about a young man finding true love and enjoying their time on Blueberry Hill. Everything is going well at the beginning of the song. They express their vows to one another, but alas, things don’t work out. At the end of the song, we find out that she has left him.
7. “Apples And Oranges” By Pink Floyd
Not known for putting out love songs, “Apples and Oranges” was an early release from Pink Floyd. This was written by former lead vocalist Syd Barrett in 1967. Soon after, Barrett left the band, and David Gilmour replaced him.
Barrett wrote the song about a young woman he noticed walking about town and shopping at the supermarket. The band filmed a promotional video for the song in a supermarket, with bass guitarist Roger Waters lip-synching after Barrett had departed.
“Apples and Oranges” was the first Pink Floyd single not to make the UK charts. It was released shortly before the band’s US tour in the fall of 1967.
8. “Cherry Bomb” By John Mellencamp
Take a trip down memory lane with John Mellencamp‘s “Cherry Bomb.” It is a song that mentions a fruit to mean something else. In this case, it is the fictional name of a teen dance hall in the basement of a church where Mellencamp came of age.
The song lyrics beautifully express the angst and hormones of growing up. Like a cherry bomb, teen hormones explode. Mellencamp recalls that this was a time when holding hands and dancing were a big deal.
“Cherry Bomb” was the second single from 1987’s The Lonesome Jubilee. It reached #1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.
9. “Coconut” By Harry Nilsson
What is a coconut doing on a list of fruits? Actually, a coconut is a drupe, a fruit with a hard covering enclosing the seed.
Now that we cleared that up, Harry Nilsson’s single “Coconut” is a fun novelty song that appeared on his 1971 album, Nilsson Schmilsson. It spent 14 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100.
The lyrics are about a woman who mixes lime juice with coconut water and gets a bellyache. She calls the doctor in the middle of the night for some medication. Surprisingly, the doctor tells her to drink the same mixture to feel better and call him in the morning.
10. “Lemon Tree” By Fools Garden
When life throws you lemons, make a lemonade. But Fools Garden is not about to do that, as you can tell from their song “Lemon Tree.”
The lyrics tell a sad story after the girl leaves the singer. With her gone, he’s going through a tough time. He’s “sitting here in a boring room” and “wasting my time.” So he drives around to clear his head.
Two things serve as opposing metaphors here: blue sky and lemon tree. The blue sky is a metaphor for a bright day or happiness. Whereas lemon, which is sour and bitter, represents something that is the opposite of the blue sky. Unfortunately, all that he can see is a lemon tree.
11. “Kiwi” By Harry Styles
Some song titles are a mystery as to what they have to do with the theme of the lyrics. Such is the case with “Kiwi” from Harry Styles’ self-titled debut album.
The lyrics reference a girl who turns Styles’ head and makes him go crazy. This is proven by the lines, “She’s driving me crazy, but I’m into it” and “It’s gettin’ crazy, I think I’m losin’ it.”
However, the music video for the song was filmed at Wimbledon Chase Primary School. It shows a group of schoolchildren having a food fight and throwing cupcakes at one another. Some are left wondering about the connection between the title, the lyrics, and the music video.
12. “Banana Pancakes” By Jack Johnson
Here’s another song with a fruit in the lyrics. In his 2005 album In Between Dreams, Jack Johnson cooks up a batch of “Banana Pancakes.”
His laid-back, uplifting style of music fits perfectly with the song’s theme. The singer’s lyrics describe bed weather so “there ain’t no need to go outside.” But the best thing to do is stay in bed, close the curtains and sleep in.
They can also pretend like it’s the weekend when they’re not busy with work or family life. They can just snuggle down and perhaps make some banana pancakes.
The album was a commercial success. It reached #1 in Australia and the UK while hitting #2 on the US Billboard 200.
13. “Pen Pineapple-Apple Pen” By Pikotaro
Ending our list is a parody, but sometimes a parody can be so strange it becomes a catchy global sensation. Such is the case with “PPAP”, the acronym for “Pen Pineapple-Apple Pen.”
Japanese comedian Daimaou Kosaka, aka Pikotaro, was the mind behind this song. He was at his kitchen table with a pen while looking at an open can of pineapple. Initially, the song was a mere 45 seconds in length.
Eventually, Pikotaro released a more extended version, clocking in at 2 minutes and 33 seconds. The song reached #1 on the Japan Hot 100 and currently has over 425 million views on YouTube.
Summing Up Our List Of Fruit Songs
Who says that fruit cannot be inspirational? Our list above is proof that songwriters can pen a song about anything. And they end up being top hits or viral.
You have plenty of songs to choose from above. But trust us when we say that more songs about fruits will appear in the future.
In the meantime, we hope you had fun reading our selection of fruit songs. On that note, we suggest that you make your own fruit salad playlist. It sounds fun, doesn’t it?
