"Green Eyes" is a popular song, originally written in Spanish under the title "Aquellos Ojos Verdes" ("Those Green Eyes") by Adolfo Utrera and Nilo Menéndez. The English translation was made by Eddie Rivera and Eddie Woods in 1929.
The English version of the song was a hit for the Jimmy Dorsey orchestra. The recording was made on March 19, 1941 with vocals by Helen O'Connell and Bob Eberly and released by Decca Records as catalog number 3698. The flip side was "Maria Elena." The record first reached the Billboard charts on May 9, 1941 and lasted 21 weeks on the chart, peaking at #1. Since "Maria Elena" was also a #1 hit, this was a major double-sided hit recording.
Gloria Jean sang the Spanish lyrics to "Aquellos Ojos Verdes" in the 1943 film, When Johnny Comes Marching Home.
Ben Affleck also sang the Spanish version, in the 2006 film, Hollywoodland, in pivotal scenes just prior to the fatal shooting of his character, George Reeves.
R&B group, the Ravens, had regional success with a 1955 revival.
Allan Sherman recorded a version titled "Green Stamps", a parody of S&H Green Stamps. During the recording session (according to the liner notes on the album), Sherman had a talk with the college types who hadn't heard of "Green Eyes." He said it was, like the Bossa Nova, once a red-hot tune by Helen O'Connell. He asked, "Any of you remember red-hot Helen O'Connell?" (About half did.)
Those green eyes
with their serene gaze,
they left in my soul
eternal thirst to love.
yearning for caresses,
for kisses and tenderness.
for all the sweetness
that they knew how to offer.
Those green eyes,
serene like a lake,
in whose calm waters
one day i saw myself
They do not know the sadness
that in my soul they have left
Those green eyes,
that I never will kiss.
They do not know the sadness
that in my soul they have left
Those green eyes,
that I never will forget.
Those green eyes,
that I never will forget.
Those green eyes,
serene like a lake,
in whose calm waters
one day i saw myself
They do not know the sadness
that in my soul they have left
those green eyes
that I never will kiss
