Red ignites passion. Yellow is associated with more euphoric states. Green is often tied to nature and abundance, while orange can signify energy and vitality.
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All the colors within the spectrum have had a significant impact on songs throughout time, from Bobby Vinton’s 1963 hit “Blue Velvet,” The Beatles‘ cinematic trip, “Yellow Submarine,” the Elton John classic “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” AC/DC’s raucous “Back in Black,” New Order’s dire-yet-dance-y “Blue Monday,” and Prince’s epic “Purple Rain,” among so many more songs in color.
Here’s a look at just five songs that sharply reference a color (and shade) and the story behind each.
1. “Paint It, Black,” The Rolling Stones (1966)
Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards
Though technically a shade, not a color, black has been referenced throughout song history. On the U.S. version of The Rolling Stones‘ 1966 album, Aftermath, “Paint It Black remains a bit of a lyrical mystery.
Though there was never any clear meaning imparted to the song, the lyrics follow the story of a girl who presumably dies—I see a line of cars / And they’re all painted black / With flowers and my love / Both never to come back—along with the ensuing grief, depression, and blackened state following the loss.
“I’m still wondering what it’s about myself,” said Keith Richards of the song. “To me, it’s [a] half gypsy and half Jewish sort of melody, and it went through so many different convolutions before it ended up as the way we know it now. Mick [Jagger] asked me “What’s it about?” and I said “I don’t know. It’s just ‘Paint It, Black.'”
I see a red door
And I want it painted black
No colors anymore
I want them to turn black
I see the girls walk by
Dressed in their summer clothes
I have to turn my head
Until my darkness goes
I wanna see it painted
Painted black
Black as night
Black as coal
I wanna see the sun
Blotted out from the sky
Read the full story behind “Paint It, Black,” HERE.
2. “Purple Haze,” Jimi Hendrix (1967)
Written by Jimi Hendrix
A combination of blue and red, purple is the non-violet hue often associated with royalty, femininity, and spirituality—some of which filtered into Jimi Hendrix‘s 1967 classic “Purple Haze.”
Though the meaning of the song is still shrouded in some mystery, it’s often linked to a major psychedelic trip that Hendrix may have had, but its meaning lies in another subconscious state he experienced. Also originally released on the North American version of the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s debut Are You Experienced? “Purple Haze” came to Hendrix in a dream after he had read Philip José Farmer’s 1957 science fiction book Night of Light.
Written by Hendrix on December 26th, 1966, while he was backstage at the Upper Cut Club in London, the lyrics were inspired by the traumatic dream he had where he was walking under the sea and there was a purple haze surrounding him. His faith in Jesus saved him, and he originally wrote the lyric Purple Haze, Jesus saves, which was ultimately cut. The song also references a girl who put a spell on him.
Purple haze all in my brain
Lately things just don’t seem the same
Actin’ funny but I don’t know why
‘Scuse me while I kiss the sky
Purple Haze all around
Don’t know if I’m comin’ up or down
Am I happy or in misery?
What ever it is, that girl put a spell on me
Help me
Check out the Top 10 Songs by Jimi Hendrix, HERE.
3. “Blue,” LeAnn Rimes (1996)
Written by Bill Mack
At just 13, LeAnn Rimes burst into country music with “Blue,” from her 1996 debut album of the same name. The song won songwriter Bill Mack a Grammy for Best Country Song, along with a CMA and ACM for Song of the Year, while Rimes also won a Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. The album also hit No. 1 on the country and Christian charts and No. 3 on the Billboard 200.
“It’s amazing to be a part of the fabric of American music,” Rimes told American Songwriter in 2021. “To have a place within that tapestry is beautiful. The song feels like a second skin to me. If I open my mouth to sing it, it just feels like breathing. We’ve turned that song into a blues song or everything else. That’s what is beautiful about fantastic songs; they can be arranged and twisted into many different versions.”
Blue
Oh, so lonesome for you
Why can’t you be blue over me?
Blue
Oh, so lonesome for you
Tears fill my eyes ’til I can’t see
Three o’clock in the morning
Here am I
Sitting here so lonely
So lonesome I could cry
Read LeAnn Rimes’ 2022 interview with American Songwriter, HERE.
4. “Yellow,” Coldplay (2000)
Written by Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman, Will Champion
Often associated with happiness, the primary color of yellow was a ray of sunshine and hope to Coldplay. The band’s 2000 debut, Parachutes, was a phenomenal breakthrough for the British rockers with singles “Trouble” and “Yellow”—the latter the band’s first U.S. hit. “Yellow” follows one’s devotion to someone—not necessarily a romantic one—and wanting to do anything for them.
“I think, especially when we took the song to America, it was something that was very different to what was on the radio,” said Coldplay drummer Will Champion in 2020. “There was a lot of that nu metal, like Limp Bizkit. It was heavy, very masculine music. I think ‘Yellow’ represented something that was possibly underrepresented.”
Look at the stars
Look how they shine for you
And everything you do
Yeah, they were all yellow
I came along
I wrote a song for you
And all the things you do
And it was called Yellow
So then I took my turn
Oh, what a thing to have done
And it was all yellow
Check out 8 Songs You Didn’t Know Chris Martin Wrote for Other Artists, HERE.
5. “Red,” Taylor Swift (2012)
Written by Taylor Swift
Red often symbolizes fire, passion, and desire. Drawn to this fiery hue, Taylor Swift decided to call her fourth album Red.
Though her collection of songs was inspired more by heartache and grief, including the hit “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” and the title track, which peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, Swift had her reasons for going all Red on the album.
“I was writing this song and I was thinking about correlating the colors to the different feelings I went through,” said Swift. “You have the great part of red, like the red emotions that are daring and bold and passion and love and affection. And then you have on the other side of the spectrum, jealousy and anger and frustration and “You didn’t call me back, and I need space … I’m fine.'”
Losing him was blue, like I’d never known
Missing him was dark gray, all alone
Forgetting him was like trying to know
Somebody you never met
But loving him was red
Oh, red
Burning red
Remembering him comes in flashbacks and echoes
Tell myself it’s time now gotta let go
But moving on from him is impossible
When I still see it all in my head
In burning red
Burning, it was red
Read more about 8 Songs You Didn’t Know Taylor Swift Wrote for Other Artists HERE.
Photo: James Marcus Haney / Atlantic Records
