Go To Sleep, Whatever You Are Lyrics — Apple Tree, The

Song Overview

Review and Highlights

Quick summary

1. What it is: A lullaby from The Apple Tree (1966) that turns a household mystery into tenderness.
2. Who sings it: Eve, performed on the original cast recording by Barbara Harris.
3. Where it appears: Part I, "The Diary of Adam and Eve," right after the argument-song "It's a Fish."
4. How it plays: Soft, steady, and strangely funny, with affection doing the heavy lifting.
5. Why it matters: It gives the Eden story a new scale: not temptation, not romance, but caretaking.

The Apple Tree (1966) - stage musical - diegetic. Eve cradles the strange new "creature" while Adam remains baffled. The placement matters because it cuts through the bickering and shows a different kind of power: calm, patient care when nobody has the right words yet.

The trick is how quickly it earns your trust. The title sounds like a shrug, almost a joke, but the melody is sincere and long-breathed. Peter Filichia once called attention to how the witty title cannot flatten the tune's beauty, and that is exactly the tension you hear: language is clumsy, feeling is precise.

Bock writes a line that rests easily in the voice, and Harnick keeps the lyric plain enough to feel like something you might say in the dark at 3 a.m. It is a lullaby from people who do not yet know what parenting is, which makes the sweetness feel earned rather than staged.

1. Key takeaway: The comedy is gentle, but the commitment is real.
2. Key takeaway: The number resets the Eden episode from argument into intimacy.
3. Key takeaway: The song works because it treats uncertainty as normal, not shameful.

Creation History

The Apple Tree opened on Broadway on October 18, 1966 at the Shubert Theatre, directed by Mike Nichols, with music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. In the licensed synopsis, the lullaby follows Adam's insistence that the new arrival is a fish, with Eve wrapping it in a blanket and singing as if care alone can solve the mystery. The cast recording preserves the track at about 1 minute 20 seconds, with Barbara Harris credited on the vocal line and Elliot Lawrence listed as conductor on major reissue tracklists.

Song Meaning and Annotations

Plot

In Part I, Adam and Eve move from discovery into friction, then into a changed world after the apple. Soon a strange new household member appears. Adam tries to classify it and fails loudly. Eve responds by holding the creature close and singing to it, making the first real family moment of the episode. Immediately after, time jumps and the story accelerates toward Cain and Abel, then toward old age and reflection.

Song Meaning

The meaning is acceptance with a warm hand on the forehead. Eve does not need a definition before she offers comfort. The lyric keeps saying "whatever," but the subtext is "you are mine," a shift from naming to belonging. In a story that often gets told as rule-breaking, this song quietly argues that love is also a form of competence: you do what needs doing even when you do not understand it.

Annotations

1. "Go to sleep, whatever you are, lay your head on my breast."

   The line is direct, almost plain, and that is why it lands. No theory, no debate, just contact. The lullaby starts with physical reassurance, not explanation.

2. "Close your eyes and open your paws, you need plenty of rest."

   One small detail that makes the creature feel real. "Paws" hints at the absurdity, but the tenderness does not blink. That balance is the whole song.

3. "Doesn't faze me if you grow up to be pony or poodle or sheep."

   The humor is in the range of guesses, but the emotional fact is steadier: the care is unconditional. In Eden terms, this is radical - love without a label.

Driving rhythm and emotional arc

The vocal line moves at a lullaby pace, with phrases that invite breath and softness rather than speed. That creates a deliberate contrast with the argumentative patter around it. The scene moves from "prove it" to "hold it," and the music does the turning.

Symbols and touchpoints

The mystery creature is the symbol of the post-apple world: unfamiliar, demanding, impossible to classify with yesterday's rules. Eve's response is also a symbol: care as a first language. It is a small moment, but it foreshadows how the diary story telescopes time - the family grows, breaks, and ends, leaving memories to do the final work.

Technical Information (Quick Facts)

1. Song: Go To Sleep, Whatever You Are
2. Artist: Barbara Harris
3. Featured: The Apple Tree Orchestra
4. Composer: Jerry Bock
5. Producer: Thomas Z. Shepard (cast recording)
6. Release Date: 1966 (original cast album; many digital services display January 1, 1966)
7. Genre: Musical theater, lullaby
8. Instruments: Orchestra, lead vocal
9. Label: Masterworks Broadway (major reissue listings)
10. Mood: Gentle, protective, lightly comic
11. Length: 1:20
12. Track #: 9 (common cast album sequencing)
13. Language: English
14. Album (if any): The Apple Tree (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
15. Music style: Scene lullaby with actor-forward phrasing
16. Poetic meter: Mixed stress, simple lullaby cadence

Frequently Asked Questions

Who sings the lullaby in the show?

Eve sings it, performed on the original cast recording by Barbara Harris.

What is the "whatever" referring to?

The parents cannot identify what the new creature is, so Eve chooses care over classification.

Where does it fall in the Eden sequence?

Right after "It's a Fish" and before the story jumps ahead to Cain and Abel.

Is it meant to be a comedy number?

It is gently comic in premise, but it is written and staged as a sincere lullaby.

How long is it on the cast album?

Most reissue tracklists list it at 1:20.

Why is it often singled out by theater writers?

Because the title joke does not cancel the melody's warmth, which makes the moment feel both human and theatrical.

Does the song get performed outside the show?

Yes. It appears on Broadway lullaby lists and recital programs as a short character piece with a clear scene.

What comes immediately after in the plot?

Adam and Eve realize the newborns are boys, and the diary section accelerates through family conflict and separation.

Awards and Chart Positions

There is no reliable evidence that this cast recording track had a standalone pop single chart run. The documented recognition sits with the show: The Apple Tree received major Tony attention in 1967, including a Best Musical nomination, with Barbara Harris winning Best Actress in a Musical.

Additional Info

This number is also a neat lesson in how Bock and Harnick handle tone. They let the title carry the joke, then they write the music as if the joke is none of their business. That separation is why the song can be funny and comforting at the same time.

In practical theater terms, it is a gift for a performer who can act quietly. The scene does not need a big vocal climax. It needs warmth, patience, and the courage to sing simply, as if the audience is not there.

Key Contributors

Sources

Sources: YouTube Topic upload, Masterworks Broadway album notes, Music Theatre International synopsis, Presto Music tracklist, Musicals 101 lyric PDF, Masterworks Broadway blog (Peter Filichia), BroadwayWorld lullabies list