"Green Eyes" is a song by Coldplay from their second studio album, A Rush of Blood to the Head. It is the seventh track on the album.
Background and recording[]
"Green Eyes" was inspired by Chris Martin's previous love interest at the time it was written. In an interview, he explained the song was “about an American friend of mine who looked after me when I was being a bit of an idiot. I met this friend in New Mexico; I was out there to see a Dave Matthews concert and I'm glad I went to that concert and I'm glad I met her.”[1]
When Chris started dating actress Gwyneth Paltrow, the band decided no longer to perform the song live as it “offended” her. Instead, it was replaced by "Moses" in subsequent live sets. Later, Chris discussed this decision by saying: “It's not about the right person. It's like an old pair of trousers, it doesn't fit."[2]
The Oracle confirmed the song was written about Chris's American friend as well as about guitarist Jonny Buckland. When asked why the band dropped the song off the live concerts and whether it was indeed written about Gwyneth or not, The Oracle said: “It has been played sporadically but I guess Chris got sick of being asked and rested it for a while, but since it was written before they met... you can see that it isn't.”[3]
In 2021, during the American variety talk show The Kelly Clarkson Show, Chris revealed "Green Eyes" came from his father Anthony Martin introducing him to Hank Williams and Johnny Cash music, mentioning that he “was looking for a song that my dad might like.”[4]
Regarding the recording process, Jonny said he has fond memories from the song “just because we've been recording for so long, you tend to start caring about how easy it was to record and that was a first take thing, so it's got a special place in my heart for that!”[5]
Composition[]
"Green Eyes" was described by Rolling Stone and PopMatters as a “folkie shuffle”,[6][7] while NME called it “a perfect, precise love song”.[8]
Lyrics[]
[Verse 1]
Honey, you are a rock
Upon which I stand
And I come here to talk
I hope you understand
That green eyes
Yeah, the spotlight
Shines upon you
And how could anybody deny you
[Chorus]
I came here with a load
And it feels so much lighter
Now I've met you
And, honey, you should know
That I could never go on without you
Green eyes
[Verse 2]
Honey, you are the sea upon which I float
And I came here to talk
I think you should know
That green eyes
You're the one that I wanted to find
And anyone who tried to deny you
Must be out of their minds
[Chorus]
Because I came here with a load
And it feels so much lighter since I've met you
And, honey, you should know that I could never go on without you
Green eyes
Green eyes
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh
[Outro]
Honey, you are a rock
Upon which I stand
Official audio[]
Green Eyes
References[]
- ↑ https://books.google.com.br/books?id=luC5Ipj0vr4C&pg=PA103&lpg=PA103&dq=green+eyes+coldplay+new+mexico&source=bl&ots=tr_vJcsXhK&sig=ACfU3U2oJonKK7IDNgPfDWyPKy0CX6XueQ&hl=pt-BR&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiM0N-AxuXtAhWsErkGHeDbAcwQ6AEwFXoECAYQAg#v=onepage&q=green%20eyes%20coldplay%20new%20mexico&f=false
- ↑ https://www.contactmusic.com/coldplay/news/coldplay-ditch-song-because-it-offends-gwyneth
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20081221095151/http://www.coldplay.com/oracledetail.php?id=419&page=0
- ↑ https://youtu.be/PQxxrfDH890?t=16
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20060808184823/http://www.coldplay.com/content/ezine/documents/ezine4.pdf
- ↑ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/a-rush-of-blood-to-the-head-248215/
- ↑ https://www.popmatters.com/coldplay-rush-2495863188.html
- ↑ https://www.nme.com/features/every-coldplay-song-ranked-in-order-of-greatness-2704676