Colors are important themes of many songs in every language. They provide imagery to the lyrics and are the subjects of many soulful metaphors and idioms. Since the beginning of time, colors have been used in several ways to convey emotions and express one’s innermost feelings.
Out of all the colors, blue is perhaps the most used color in such a context. Blue promotes feelings of trust, dependability, confidence, strength, and loyalty. Blue is also known to be the color of sadness, gloom and despair. The phrase “I feel blue” is used often to convey that a person is feeling low. This theme and many other interpretations of the color blue have been used in countless songs over the world in several languages.
Let us see some of the songs in which the color blue makes up the central theme.
1. Behind blue eyes by Limp Bizkit
This song is a personal favorite. Released in 2003, it is about the feelings of a villain. The lyrics try to convey the fact that even “bad men” have feelings. It tries to depict the sentiments of a villain inside his head, behind his blue eyes.
2. Blue eyes by Sir Elton John
Written by the renowned singer and songwriter Sir Elton John, this song does not use the color blue to convey feelings of sadness. This famous song talks about the singer’s love interest, and how her eyes are as blue as the deepest sea.
3. Under a blanket of blue by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong
This song is about two lovers sitting under the stars, “under a blanket of blue”. In this song, the color blue is used to create vivid imagery to describe the night sky under which the two lovers sit.
4. I guess that’s why they call it the blues by Sir Elton John
This is another song about the color blue by Sir Elton John. Unlike the previously mentioned song where he talks about his lover’s eyes, this song refers to the color blue as a metaphor for sadness or depression. The song is a love letter written to a woman who is away from the singer.
5. Blue jeans by Lana Del Rey –
Although this song mentions the color blue in its title, it is not mentioned too much throughout the song. Released in 2012 as part of the album “Born to die”, the song is about an ex-lover who, according to her, was a “bad boy”.
6. Tangled up in blue by Bob Dylan –
Released in 1975, this song seems to have been inspired by events in Bob Dylan’s life. In the song, Bob Dylan is reminiscing about a woman he once knew.
7. Blue Christmas by Elvis Presley –
Released in 1956, this song is about a Christmas spent without the singer’s lover. Elvis Presley sings about how depressing and sad his Christmas will be without his lover, thereby using the imagery of “blue” to describe his Christmas.
8. California blue by Roy Orbison –
Released in 1989, the song talks about a man who is reminiscing about his lover who is far away from where he is in California. Her absence, therefore, makes the place he lives in a blue, depressing place.
9. Goodbye blue sky by Pink Floyd –
This song was released in 1979. The song talks about a country’s transition from a state of war into normalcy. Here, the singer is remembering his childhood as he sets off to make a life of his own. The “blue sky” here symbolizes the innocence of the singer’s childhood and how he is bidding it goodbye.
10. Blue memories by Patty Loveless –
This song uses the color blue to symbolize sadness and nostalgia. The singer reminisces about a love once lost, and how all her memories of him are “painted blue” because of the sadness associated with it. The song was released in 1990.
11. Blue by Lee Ann Rimes –
Released in 1994, this song is one of the many songs listed here that uses the color blue imagery to convey a deep feeling of sadness and melancholy. In this song, the singer talks about her loneliness and how depressing her solitude is.
12. Blue suede shoes by Elvis Presley –
Released in the year 1956, this song talks about the singer’s riches. During the time this song was released, blue suede shoes were an item of luxury in the South, often worn for a stylish night out as a symbol of richness.
13. Blue by Beyonce –
Featuring Blue Ivy, this song was released in the year 2003. Blue Ivy is the daughter of Beyonce and Jay Z, and became the youngest winner of the BET award at the age of eight.
14. Blue Monday by Orgy –
Released in 1998, the song was written and performed by the rock band Orgy as a music video.
15. When the stars go blue by Tim Mcgraw –
This song is about the loneliness of the singer. The stars in this song symbolize the feeling of solitude. Released in the year 2006, it has also been covered by the renowned singer Ryan Adams.
16. Blue velvet by Lana Del Rey –
This song is actually a cover of the song by Bobby Vinton. Bobby Vinton’s version of the song is about the blue velvet attire of his lover. However, Lana Del Rey’s 2012 interpretation is about heartbreak and her mourning over a lost lover.
17. Blue eyes blind by ZZWard –
This rock song was released in 2012. Here, the color blue is used to describe the color of the singer’s lover and the chemistry that exists between them.
18. Blue Moon by The Marcels –
This song was released in the year 1961. This song is about a man wishing upon the blue moon for someone to love and care for. The songs ends on a positive note, with his prayers being answered.
19. Blue Collar Jane by The Strypes –
Here, the phrase “blue collar Jane” is used to describe a working-class woman who dresses down and drives her own car. The song describes this woman and uses these low-key attributes to add to her charm. This pop song was released in the year 2013.
20. Once in a blue moon by Earl Thomas Conley –
The idiom “once in a blue moon” in English refers to an occurrence that takes place very rarely. In this 1986 love ballad, the singer talks about his marriage’s troubled nature and how he manages to do something right only “once in a blue moon”.
21. Blue by Zayn Malik –
This song was released in the year 2016 as part of the album called “Mind of Mine”.
22. Bullet the blue sky by U2 –
This song was released in the year 1987 as part of the album “The Joshua Tree”. The song is based on a few political incidents, and it was largely inspired by Bono’s trip to Central America in the year 1985.
23. So blue by Akon –
This song is about a girl who always looks “so blue”. The singer wonders if the man she is with is making her happy, since she always looks so sad, even though she is so pretty.
24. Caribbean blue by Enya –
Released in the year 1991, the lyrics of this song are complex. The song essentially maps out human nature and questions the emotions that a man possesses.
25. Don’t it make my brown eyes blue by Crystal Gale –
Released in 1977, this song also uses the color blue to depict the singer’s sadness. In this song, the singer talks about how her lover has left her, which has made her eyes sad – her brown eyes have become “blue”.
26. Blue orchid by the White Stripes –
This song was released in the year 2005. It talks about how the innocence of a child is being painted “blue” by the abuse inflicted on them by society. “You took a white orchid and turned it blue” – here, the color white is used to symbolize the purity and innocence of the child.
The color blue is a worldwide favourite hue. It promotes feelings of tranquillity, strength and a sense of inner calm. Along with these emotions, it also depicts the feelings of sadness, loneliness and depression. It is used to describe the vastness of the sky and the sea. As we have also seen in the list above, blue is universally used to describe a loved one’s eyes’ color and depth. All these emotions that are so well described by the color blue make it an extremely suitable central theme of many songs worldwide, in several languages. There are countless songs out there that revolve around the color blue, out of which only a few are mentioned in the long list above.
