Song Palette

A list of songs, each with a different color in the title:

1. “Azure”-Duke Ellington–Ellington probably did write this piece to evoke the color.  “Mood Indigo” would also be a fine Duke choice.
2. “Purple Rain”-Prince–A great song from a great album of the same name, which led to a really so-so movie of the same name.
3. “Kiko and the Lavender Moon”–Los Lobos–A great song from a great album of the same name.  No movie.
4. “Orange Crate Art”-Van Dyke Parks–Written by Parks for his hibernating pal Brian Wilson to sing, this song’s use of the word “orange” refers to the fruit, not the color.  But it’s such a great harmony song…
5. “When the Red, Red Robin…”–Harry Woods wrote this song, and, of the many versions that have been recorded, Louis Armstrong’s is still the best.
6. “White Room”–Cream’s hit made great use of the infamous wah-wah pedal.
7. “Paint It, Black”–The Rolling Stones hit made great use of the infamous sitar.
8. “Light Blue”-Thelonious Monk–I could’ve chosen the much more popular “Blue Monk,” but this minor Monk tune seems to have been written to capture the mood of the color.
9. “Yellow”–Coldplay’s big first hit is a really beautiful song.
10. “Bein’ Green”–Joe Raposo–This song about being different was written for Kermit the Frog to sing.  But a lot of great singers have done fine turns with it, including Audra McDonald.

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