Bein' Green

Written by	Joe Raposo
Date	1970
Publisher	Jonico Music, Inc. Green Fox Music Inc.

Sesame Street Kermit Sings Being Green

Kermit's first performance of "Bein' Green" on the first season of Sesame Street.

Template:Firstbox

for other uses, see Bein' Green (disambiguation)

"Bein' Green," originally titled "Green," is one of Kermit the Frog's best-known songs. It was written in 1970 by Joe Raposo for the first season of Sesame Street, and has since become an American standard.

Background

Kermit's performance of the song on The Muppet Show episode 219.

In the song, Kermit expresses his ambivalence about his color, noting that green "blends in with so many other ordinary things" and wishing that he were some other color instead. During the bridge, Kermit realizes that there are some powerful associations with the color -- "green can be big, like a mountain, or important, like a river, or tall like a tree." In the end, he decides that he's happy to be green -- "it's beautiful, and I think it's what I want to be."

The song was described in a Children's Television Workshop press release as "a frog's poignant realization of his own dignity and worth." The song has been viewed as a powerful message about race: music journalist Danyel Smith recalls in The Greatest TV Moments: Sesame Street Music A-Z that her mother said to imagine that instead of saying "green," they said "black."

Kermit would return to the song twice more on Sesame Street, including as a duet with Lena Horne, then performances on The Muppet Show in episodes 112 and 219, where the song was used to lift Kermit up from a depressed state.

The song appeared on The Sesame Street Book & Record and has been recorded numerous times since, both by Jim Henson and Steve Whitmire as Kermit, as well as by musicians like Ray Charles and Frank Sinatra, demonstrating the song's universal themes. "Bein' Green" is not just for frogs.

"It's not easy being green," a paraphrased lyric from the song, has become one of Kermit's catchphrases. In a twist on the line, when Kermit filmed a commercial for the Ford Escape Hybrid he remarked upon seeing the environmentally friendly vehicle, "I guess sometimes it is easy being green." Media outlets have also used this phrase to associate with the environmental movement.

Street Gang gives insight into the songwriting process:

“Raposo's best-regarded song has an air of intrigue around it. This much we know: it began when Jon Stone approached Raposo with a request. "We need a song for the frog", he said. As he had many times, with many songwriters and many songs, Stone walked Raposo through the curriculum goal for the composition and made lyric suggestions. Only Stone and Raposo were in the room when the contemplative song for Kermit was mapped out, but members of Stone's family have insisted that it was presumptuous of Raposo to claim that he alone wrote "Bein' Green". The sheet music has always indicated "Words and Music by Joe Raposo", and thus the enormous royalties generated by the song have always belonged to him. Jon Stone's failure to call Raposo on claiming full credit kindled one of the worst marital disagreements Jon and Beverly Stone ever had.”

Performances

Image	Year	Description
File:Beingreen1969.jpg	1970	Sesame Street (First: Episode 0087) By Kermit the Frog
	1970	The Sesame Street Book & Record By Kermit the Frog
	1971	Pure Goldie By Kermit the Frog and Goldie Hawn
	1971	Evening at Pops By Kermit the Frog
	1973	Julie on Sesame Street By Kermit the Frog and Julie Andrews
	1974	The Tonight Show By Kermit the Frog
	1974	What's My Line By Kermit the Frog
	1974	Sesame Street (EKA: Episode 0871) By Kermit the Frog and Lena Horne
	1974	¡Sesame Mucho! By José Feliciano
	1975	Cher By Kermit the Frog and Ray Charles
	1976	The Muppet Show episode 112 By Kermit the Frog
	1976	Sesame Street (EKA: Episode 3140) By Kermit the Frog
	1977	The Muppet Show episode 219 By Kermit the Frog
	1977	The Muppet Show album By Kermit the Frog
	1977	The Mike Douglas Show, October 31, 1977 By Dr. Teeth
	1979	Sesame Disco! (disco version) By Kermit the Frog
	1979	The Tonight Show By Kermit the Frog
	1984	The Muppet Show On Tour By Kermit the Frog
	1988	Royal Variety Performance By Kermit the Frog
	1988	Center for Puppetry Arts By Kermit the Frog
	1989	From the Heart... The First International Very Special Arts Festival By Kermit the Frog with "Kerm-2"
	1989	Sesame Street: 20 and Still Counting By Ray Charles with the monsters Released on Sing: Songs of Joe Raposo
	1990	Earth Day 1990 PSA By Kermit the Frog
	1990	Here Come the Muppets By Kermit the Frog, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, and Bean Bunny
	1990	Jim Henson's Memorial at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine By Big Bird
	1991	Bob's Favorite Street Songs By Bob McGrath
	1993	Ol' Brown Ears is Back By Rowlf the Dog
	1994	Kermit Unpigged By Don Henley and Kermit the Frog
	1996	The Rosie O'Donnell Show (September 6, 1996) By Kermit the Frog
	1997	Muppets Tonight episode 205 By Don Rickles
	1998	The Playground By Tony Bennett with commentary by Kermit the Frog
	2001	The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon By Kermit the Frog and Calvin Ray Johnson
	2001	The Muppet Show Live By Kermit the Frog
	2005	Sesame Street Episode 4105 By Oscar the Grouch (with altered Grouchy lyrics)
	2005	It's Not Easy Being Green audio book As a spoken word read by Whoopi Goldberg
	2006	Ford Escape Hybrid commercial By Kermit the Frog
	2006	Hollywood Bowl "Fireworks Finale" By Kermit the Frog
	2006	Martha (October 5, 2006) By Kermit the Frog
	2007	Sunday NFL Countdown By Kermit the Frog
	2009	Being Green By Elmo
	2009	Plaza Sésamo In Spanish by Abelardo Montoya as "Ser Verde" (YouTube)
	2012	Die Muppets promotion By Kermit the Frog and Marsimoto
	2012	Jim Henson's Musical World By Kermit the Frog
	2012	The Voice By Kermit the Frog and Cee Lo Green
	2014	The Tonight Show By Kermit the Frog and Jimmy Fallon

Covers

• Mike Campbell ― Easy Chair Jazz album, spoken word (1994)
• Ray Charles ― Renaissance album (1975)
• Dick Van Dyke and the Vantastix ― Put On A Happy Face album (2008)
• Andy Hallett (as Lorne on Angel) ― Angel episode, "The House Always Wins" (2002)
• Shirley Horn ― Light Out of Darkness (A Tribute To Ray Charles) album (1993)
• Rick Lyon (as Nicky from Avenue Q) ― Gypsy of the Year Competition, dedicated to Idina Menzel as The Wicked Witch of the West in Wicked (2004)
• Damian McGinty (as Rory Flanagan on Glee) ― Glee episode, "Pot O' Gold" (2011)
• Van Morrison ― Hard Nose the Highway album, studio version (1973)
• Van Morrison ― Bootleg album with The Caledonia Soul Orchestra, live version (1973)
• Thurl Ravenscroft ― Rubber Duckie and Other Songs from Sesame Street (1970)
• Frank Sinatra ― Sinatra & Company album (1970); rereleased on Frank Sinatra's Greatest Hits Volume 2 album (1972)
• Audra McDonald ― Build a Bridge (2006)
• Andrew Bird ― The Green Album (2011)

Instrumentals

• The Frog Prince ― Underscores the luncheon scene, following King Rupert the Second's story of meeting Taminella Grinderfall (1971).
• Sesame Street ― An brief instrumental version is part of the ending music sting to an early 1970's segment.
• The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years ― Plays at the beginning of the special, following a commercial break (1986)
• The Muppets at Walt Disney World ―Underscore during a helicopter shot over the Walt Disney World parks.
• Muppet*Vision 3D ― Theme park ambient music around the Muppet attraction.
• Boston Pops Orchestra ― Included on Wish Upon a Star: All-Time Children's Favorites
• Johnny Lytle ― Included on Easy Easy album (1997)
• Till Brönner ― Included on That Summer album (2005)
• Elmo's World ― A very brief appearance of the tune is quoted in the underscore for Kermit's appearance in Elmo's World: Frogs

Publications

• The Sesame Street Song Book features lyrics and sheet music for this song.

• Being Green was an illustrated book which used the song's lyrics, but featured a lizard-like green creature instead of Kermit,

• The Muppet Show Book features lyrics to this song, along with illustrations based on the version from episode 219.

• The Reader's Digest Children's Songbook included sheet music for the song, as "It's Not Easy Being Green".

• Favorite Songs from Jim Henson's Muppets

• The Sesame Street Songbook includes lyrics and sheet music.

• Sesame Street Unpaved included lyrics for this song, along with pictures from the original version.

• It's Not Easy Being Green and other things to consider is a book of Jim Henson and Muppet quotes released in 2005.

• Street Gang

Video releases

Sesame Street

• Original Version:

• Sesame Street: 25 Wonderful Years
• A&E Biography: Sesame Street (Clip of first verse only)
• Old School: Volume 1
• Sesame Street: 40 Years of Sunny Days

• 1976 version:

• I'm Glad I'm Me
• The Best of Kermit on Sesame Street

• Oscar the Grouch version:

• Best of Friends

The Muppet Show

• Episode 112 version:

• It's Not Easy Being Green

• Episode 219 version:

• The Muppet Revue (1985)
• It's The Muppets: More Muppets, Please!
• The Best of the Muppet Show Volume 4
• The Very Best of the Muppet Show: Volume 1

Online releases

Sesame Street

• Sesamestreet.org
  • Original Template:SSvideo
  • Remake Template:SSvideo
  • Lena Horne's version Template:SSvideo
  • Oscar's version Template:SSvideo
• Hulu
  • Original Template:Hulu
  • Lena Horne's version Template:Hulu
• SesameStreet's YouTube Channel
  • Original (YouTube)
  • Lena Horne's version (YouTube)
  • Oscar's version (YouTube)

Specials

Sesame Street

• Sing! Sesame Street Remembers Joe Raposo and His Music (clips of Kermit's original version with performances by Ray Charles and Joe Raposo)
• Sesame Street All-Star 25th Birthday: Stars and Street Forever! (very brief clip of original version only)
• Sesame Street Unpaved (documentary) (original version, first verse cut)
• The Greatest TV Moments: Sesame Street Music A-Z (1976 version)

Muppets

• The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years (clips of Muppet Show version and Kermit and Ray Charles singing)
• The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson (clips of the first Muppet Show version and Ray Charles' performance from 20 and Still Counting)
• The World of Jim Henson (Kermit and Ray Charles' version)
• I Love Muppets (clips)
• State of the Arts (clips)

References

The catchphrase "It's not easy being green" has been referenced many times, both by the Muppets and by others.

• In episode 406 of The Muppet Show, the Swedish Chef hums the song to himself as he spray-paints his chopped-liver Kermit green.
• In a 1976 appearance on The Mike Douglas Show, when Mike Douglas mentions that green is a good color, Kermit comments that it's not easy being green, leading to a brief discussion of the song.
• In the second volume of the Muppet Babies video storybook series, before reading If I Were Just Like Kermit, Kermit says that he hopes that Baby Fozzie knows what he is doing trying to be like Kermit "because it's not easy being green".
• One of the Muppet Sing-Along videos was titled It's Not Easy Being Green.
• In a Sesame Street segment where Kermit is auditioning wolves for the role of The Big Bad Wolf, after Kermit turns down a medium-sized wolf, that wolf thinks it is because he is green, saying that "it's not easy being green". Kermit then says that he's noticed that.
• In the Sesame Street song, "I'm Between", Tony, squashed between two monsters, sings this lyric: "It's easier by far being green than being between."
• A faux commercial for an album by Singing Food in episode 112 of The Jim Henson Hour features the song "It's Not Easy Being Greens."
• On The Electric Company, the Short Circus perform the song, "Why", a lyrical list of questions about the world. Included is: "Why ain't it easy being green?" (The song appears on the penultimate episode of The Best of the Electric Company Vol. 1 DVD set.)
• When Kermit guest starred on Deal or No Deal, he said that "it's not easy getting green".
• A promo for the 2005 DVD releases of The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper, The Muppet Christmas Carol, and Muppet Treasure Island ends with Miss Piggy, Fozzie, and Gonzo saying "Celebrating 50 years of being green".
• On the news program Canada AM in 2009, Oscar the Grouch is interviewed for Waste Reduction Week, and says "It's easy being green. You should try it!"
• In a 2006 appearance on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, while Kermit is going over the checklists, he says "It's not that easy choosing green."
• In a 2010 episode of Sesame Street, in the midst of a vegetable protest, an angry stalk of broccoli yells out "It ain't easy bein' green!"
• In the extended version of "Let's Talk About Me" from The Muppets, Tex Richman raps "Ooo, it's easy havin' this much green!"
• In the "Kermit's Party" short "Gonzo's Stunt Spectacular!," Kermit, covered with yellow finger paint from Gonzo's failed balancing act, remarks, "It's not that easy being clean."
• In Muppets Most Wanted, the villainous Kermit doppelgänger Constantine spoofs the line saying "it's not easy being mean."

Notes

• I Love Muppets lists the song as Kermit's favorite.