 According to Green Plastic Radiohead, "Banana Co." originated on the Pop is Dead single as an acoustic track from a radio session Thom Yorke did in 1993; then a studio version made it onto the benefit compilation Criminal Justice: Axe the Act. This new recording, with electric guitars, was also used as the B-side on the second part of the Street Spirit release. However, the most commonly available form of the song is the original acoustic version, found on the Itch EP.
Select magazine's October 1999 issue, which was partially devoted to tracing the origin of Radiohead's often enigmatic songs, cites One Hundred Years of Solitude as a possible inspiration for Thom Yorke. Of course, reading through the lyrics below yields no real answer, and if there is any connection it is a loose one -- though Thom Yorke is indeed a literate rocker, and a Pynchon fan as well.
Oh, Banana Co.
We really love you, and we need you
And oh, Banana Co.
We'd really love to believe you
But everything's underground
We gotta dig it up somehow
Yeah, yeah
Oh, she said "No go"
She said she'd like to, she's seen you
And oh, Banana Co.
She knows if you die then we all do
And everything's underground
We've gotta dig it up somehow
Yeah, yeah
Everything's burning down
We gotta put it out somehow
Yeah, yeah
The only readily available copy of "Banana Co." is found on the Itch EP, and that is the original acoustic version. There are two releases of the EP, one in 1995 and a reprint in 1998. The latter cover is pictured above.
Itch [IMPORT]
Radiohead / Audio CD / Released 1995
Our Price: $24.49
Itch [IMPORT]
Radiohead / Audio CD / Released 1998
Our Price: $30.97
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