The California Raisins Sunglasses

Illustration of a a raisin with arms and legs wearing orange sunglasses and orange and white tennis shoes with blue and black text on a white background

The California Raisins were a fictional claymation blues group commissioned by the California Raisin Advisory Board for a 1986 Sun Maid commercial.  The Raisins sang, “I Heard it Through the Grapevine,” a song originally recorded by Marvin Gaye in 1968. The commercial was very successful and more commercials were made, including one with singer Ray Charles and one with a characterization of Michael Jackson.  The Raisins made four albums, with the song, “ I Heard it Through the Grapevine,” making the Billboard Top 100.

The popularity of the California Raisins resulted in a television special called Meet the Raisins, which aired on Nov 4, 1988. This special gave us the names and personalities of these raisins. There was Stretch on bass, Red on guitar and piano, and A.C. Beebop on drums. The special was nominated for an Emmy.