I Shall Be Released: Grapefruit — “Lullaby” (unreleased version produced by John Lennon and Paul McCartney): Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — July 16, 2023

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

894) Grapefruit — “Lullaby” (unreleased version produced by John Lennon and Paul McCartney)

You can’t get more Beatlesque than this: the only song produced by both John Lennon and Paul McCartney, by a band named after Yoko Ono’s book! “In a single session, the two Beatles transformed ‘Lullaby’ into a perfect encapsulation of English psychedelic pop.” (Stefan Granados, liner notes of Grapefruit — Yesterday’s Sunshine: The Complete 1967-1968 London Sessions)

Stefan Granados tells us that:

“Lullaby” was the song that had captured John Lennon’s imagination in the summer of 1967 and had led to George Alexander being signed to Apple. Lennon was particularly keen to get this song captured on tape and this was to be the only recording to ever be jointly produced by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. . . . [B]ut it would never be issued. Not the Lennon and McCartney produced version at least.

liner notes of Grapefruit — Yesterday’s Sunshine: The Complete 1967-1968 London Sessions

As to Grapefruit’s debut album, Richie Unterberger says it “featured tuneful, upbeat mid-tempo late-’60s British rock with good harmonies, creative ornate arrangements, and a very slight and very sunny psychedelic tinge.” (Richie Unterberger, https://www.allmusic.com/album/around-grapefruit-mw0000740575)

Richie Unterberger tells us of Grapefruit:

Grapefruit were one of the better Beatlesque late-’60s British pop-rock bands. In 1968 they seemed on the way to stardom, with a couple of small hit British singles and, more importantly, some help from the Beatles themselves. Led by George Alexander, brother of the Easybeats’ George Young, the group were at the outset cheerful harmony pop/rockers . . . skilled at blending melodic pop with sophisticated arrangements that employed baroque/psychedelic touches of strings, orchestration, and several varieties of keyboards. A disappointing second album, however, helped sink them out of sight, and the Beatles couldn’t be of help as they were preoccupied with their own imminent dissolution.

George Alexander . . . [who] wrote most of the[ir] songs . . . was signed to Apple Music Publishing in 1967 by Terry Doran, who had been affiliated with Brian Epstein and the Beatles’ organization for some time. Doran also managed the band . . . . John Lennon named the[m] (after Yoko Ono’s book [Grapefruit]) and went to press receptions introducing the band to the media. Members of the Beatles pitched in ideas for Grapefruit arrangements and recording sessions, and Paul McCartney even directed a promotional video for their single, “Elevator.” . . .

Grapefruit just missed the Top 20 with their first single, “Dear Delilah,” with its lilting melody, uplifting harmonies, and creative use of orchestration and electronic phasing. A cover of the Four Seasons’ “C’mon Marianne” just missed the Top Thirty . . . [but] nothing else made the charts. . . .

[T]heir second album, 1969’s Deep Water, was [comprised of] routine late ’60s rock . . . . John Lennon did suggest in early 1969 that the band should record the then-unreleased . . . “Two of Us” (which they didn’t). Following some personnel changes, the group broke up around the end of the 1960s . . . .

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/grapefruit-mn0000988692/biography

Oh, and as to the fate of the Lennon/McCartney version of “Lullaby”, Stefan Granados writes:

Apple Publishing had been set up as a publishing business. But for Grapefruit, they would assume a larger role, effectively becoming a production company as well. Apple would pay for all of the Grapefruit recording sessions and then license the finished masters to a record label. With “Dear Delilah” in the can, Apple negotiated a deal with RCA to release Grapefruit’s records in England. For the United States, Grapefruit would be signed to a new label formed by [Terry] Melcher, Equinox Records. The Beatles were impressed with “Dear Delilah” and soon developed a genuine interest in the group. On 10th January 1968 – several weeks before “Dear Delilah” was even released – Grapefruit entered Advision Studios in the company of Paul McCartney and John Lennon, who would produce “Lullaby” as the follow up to “Dear Delilah”. . . . “Dear Delilah” was released in February 1968 and in the weeks that followed, managed to climb to number 21 in the English charts. It was a promising enough start for a new group and RCA wanted a follow up single as soon as possible. They requested new material from Apple, but with the Beatles now off in India, the Lennon and McCartney version of “Lullaby” was left on the shelf after Grapefruit presented RCA with the self-produced tracks, “Elevator” and “Yes”.

liner notes of Grapefruit — Yesterday’s Sunshine: The Complete 1967-1968 London Sessions

Here is the album version of “Lullaby”:

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