Green Grow the Lilacs

Green Grow the Lilacs is a folk song of Irish origin that was popular in the United States during the mid-19th century.

The song title is the source of a folk etymology for the word gringo that states that the Mexicans misheard U.S. troops singing "green grow" during the Mexican–American War.^[1]

The song appears in the 1931 stage play of the same name by Lynn Riggs, which is the basis of the 1943 musical Oklahoma!

Recordings

1941 Tony Kraber – included in the 78rpm album The Old Chisholm Trail – Songs Of The American Southwest.^[2]
1957 Gordon MacRae – included in his album Cowboy's Lament.^[3]
1959 Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney – included in the album How the West Was Won.
1959 Harry Belafonte Recorded in 1958 and released in 1959 on the RCA LP "Love Is a Gentle Thing" LSP1927
1963 Chad Mitchell Trio
1965 Johnny Cash
1966 Tex Ritter
1969 Soupy Sales - released as the B-side for his single "Muck-Arty Park" ^[4]
1976 The Blue Sky Boys (Bill And Earl Bolick)