Making Love in the Green Grass
Driving down the 405, I hear Brown Eyed Girl twice on two different radio stations. Here’s the history behind the song if you don’t already know it… It’s 1967. The Supreme Court rules in favor of Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving (pictured). The historic decision strikes down all previous U.S. laws that made it illegal for different ethnic groups to marry each other. That same year, Van Morrison releases a song originally titled Brown Skinned Girl about a clandestine love that includes Morrison “hiding behind a rainbow’s wall” with a brown-skinned woman. The love affair in the song remains secret. The two part ways. Van sings that he sees the girl years later and thinks about their past: “Sometimes I’m overcome just thinking about it. Making love in the green grass, behind the stadium with you. My brown-skinned girl. You’re my … brown-skinned girl.” A wee bit too racy for the 1967 radio-listening crowd, the record label puts the heat on Morrison. He eventually re-records the song and it’s released with the title Brown *Eyed* Girl. In 1975, Morrison admitted that the original title was indeed Brown Skinned Girl, but for whatever reason (read: his probable reluctance to bite the hand that was feeding him — at the time, the song was arguably his biggest hit), he claimed that he “spaced out” and accidentally changed the title without noticing it. A mere oversight on his part. Um, yeeeah. Right.
October 15th, 2005 at 10:38 am
Now we just get the hairy eyeball from folks who wish we’d stick to our “own kind.” There are parts of the country I won’t venture into at all. Case in point, Jasper,TX.
October 15th, 2005 at 10:56 am
this girl says:
there is just *too* much yumminess all across the cultural rainbow to deny yourself … why would you? how COULD you?
_
October 15th, 2005 at 11:41 am
It probably wouldn’t of mattered if it happened in Van Morrison’s native Belfast in the 60’s it would of come down to whether she was Catholic or Protestant than skin colour.
Phil Lynott (Thin Lizzy frontman), Paul McGrath (80’s soccer player) and Samantha Mumba (popsinger) are Irish.
October 15th, 2005 at 12:01 pm
Great song. Didn’t know the lyrics had been fiddled with.
October 15th, 2005 at 7:41 pm
I never knew that…those for schooling a chick :-)
October 16th, 2005 at 5:51 am
raymond: The south sucks.
miss anon: I know. I need to learn more languages so that I can because a more global lovin’ woman. ;)
pete: It’s a crazy world indeed and it seems that people can find almost any reason to hate each other.
johnjenright: Yep. Fiddled with. Fooled with. And, all other sorts of tomfoolery-ed with. :)
berry: Just doing my part to spread random music trivia to the masses.
October 20th, 2005 at 1:19 am
yes, you are my inspiration for this particular purchase on iTunes!
October 16th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
I dunno if you’ve ever heard of Matt Nathanson before… if not GET ON IT!! but i’m sure you have.. he’s a cutie! His song “Still” has the lyric “Still can feel you kiss me love,love. Still can feel your brown skin shine, shine.” Now he may be talking about a tanned young lady OR (this is what i choose to believe) he is talkign about a beautiful black girl! yay! Either way he singing about brown-skin! yippee!
January 24th, 2010 at 3:32 am
Found your blog on Yahoo