When Garnett was 11, her family moved to Canada, and she made her public singing debut in 1960, while at the same time pursuing an acting career making guest appearances on television shows such as 77 Sunset Strip. In the fall of 1964, Garnett scored a Top 10 pop hit with her original composition "We'll Sing in the Sunshine" (also #1 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary singles chart for seven weeks and a Top 50 country hit), and recorded her debut album, My Kind of Folk Songs, for RCA Victor. Riding the success of "We'll Sing in the Sunshine," which won a Grammy for Best Folk Recording, Garnett continued to record through the rest of the 1960s with her backing band the Gentle Reign. However, her follow-up to "We'll Sing In The Sunshine," "Lovin' Place," was her only other single to chart in America.
Although Garnett retired from the music business by the 1980s, she has also continued appearing in feature films (such as 2002's My Big Fat Greek Wedding) and on television shows, usually in supporting roles. In subsequent years, she also branched out into journalism, writing essays, columns, and book reviews for various newspapers and magazines. She also wrote and performed two one-person theater pieces, Gale Garnett & Company and Life After Latex.
Garnett published her first novel, Visible Amazement, in 1999. She followed up with Transient Dancing in 2003.
Prism Song
Gale Garnett Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Red and Yellow, Blue and Green
Prettiest thing I'd ever seen
You know it's Red and Yellow, Blue and Green
Lord this world treat a little child mean.
Goin' a home from school today
I met a nice man on my way
Prettiest thing I ever seen.
You know it's
(refrain)
Daddy left my mama but I won't cry
Hold my prism to my eye
Hold it there, night and day
Hold it 'til the hurt goes away
Because it's
(refrain)
Heard yesterday my daddy was dead
Cried until my little heart bled
That was bad, but then today
Policemen come and take my mama away.
But I got
(refrain)
Police got a padlock on our door
I can't go home anymore
I'd go back, but if I do
The man that got my mama gonna get me too
So I keep
Red and Yellow, Blue and Green
Prettiest thing I ever seen
You know it's Red and Yellow, Blue and Green
Lord this world treat a little child...
Red and Yellow, Red and Yellow,
Pretty Thing, Pretty...
Pretty...
The song "Prism Song" by Gale Garnett tells the story of a little girl who receives a prism from a kind stranger on her way from school. The prism becomes her source of comfort and escape from the harsh reality of her life. The refrain "Red and Yellow, Blue and Green" describes the colors that are visible through the prism, which in the eyes of the little girl, are the prettiest things she has ever seen. She uses the prism to distract herself from the pain of her parents' separation, her father's death, and her mother's imprisonment. The prism is the one constant thing in her life that brings her joy amidst the turmoil.
The prism can be interpreted as a metaphor for hope, positivity, and beauty in the midst of darkness. The little girl clings to the prism, as although she can't control her circumstances, she can control her perception of them. By focusing on the colors and beauty she sees through the prism, she is able to cope with the pain and sadness she experiences.
Overall, the lyrics of "Prism Song" poignantly convey the resilience of a child who finds comfort in something small but powerful. The prism serves as a symbol of hope in the midst of despair.
Line by Line Meaning
Red and Yellow, Blue and Green
The colors of the prism that the singer received, which are breathtaking
Prettiest thing I'd ever seen
The prism is the subject of admiration for the singer
You know it's Red and Yellow, Blue and Green
Repetition of the colors and the beauty of the prism, a reflection of the singer's wonder
Lord this world treat a little child mean.
A comment on the difficulties experienced by young people in the face of challenges today
Goin' a home from school today
The artist is coming home from school
I met a nice man on my way
The singer meets a stranger who gives her a shiny and clean prism
He gave me a prism, shiny and clean
A description of the object given by the stranger
Daddy left my mama but I won't cry
A line reflecting the resilience of the artist in the face of her father's absence
Hold my prism to my eye
A line describing the artist holding the prism to her eye to look at the world differently
Hold it there, night and day
She holds on to the prism with the intent of finding comfort in it
Hold it 'til the hurt goes away
The singer holds on to the prism until the pain of her situation fades away
Heard yesterday my daddy was dead
The artist has just learned that her father has died
Cried until my little heart bled
Her heartache in response to the news of her father's death
That was bad, but then today
To compound her troubles, she faces a new trouble the next day
Policemen come and take my mama away.
The singer's mother is taken away by the police
Police got a padlock on our door
The artist's home is locked up by the police
I can't go home anymore
The artist can no longer go back to her home
I'd go back, but if I do
She cannot return home because of the threat the man who took her mother has over her
The man that got my mama gonna get me too
The singer fears that she will be taken away by the same person who took her mother
So I keep
The artist keeps the prism with her as a comfort
Red and Yellow, Blue and Green
Repetition of the colors and the beauty of the prism, a reflection of the artist's wonder
Pretty Thing, Pretty...
A repetition of the word 'pretty,' likely evoking the importance of beauty and positivity in the artist's situation
Lyrics © LUPERCALIA MUSIC
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Joe Brando
thank you again for another rare Gale Garnett treat!!! This is probably her 2nd most remembered song, as the B-side of her big hit. I recall many actually remembering this one even more fondly than the song it was supposed to be backing up!
Rhonda Godwin
I'm one of them! Absolutely this is my favorite Gale Garnett songs.
John Giles
I remember this lovely catchy song as a young man, loved Gales strong voice.
Laura Wren
My dad loved this song so much he used it as a lullaby for me....I never heard it on the radio, so it took me forever to find it! I am such a fan of Gale Garrett, gad to buy all of her stuff!
LordViskey
11 years old when i first heard this on the flip side of “we’ll sing in the sunshine” on 45RPM.
loved listening to the chorus repeat - but this time, 50+ years later, i suddenly understood the rest of its content - like i never heard the lyrics the dozens of times i played the record.
Holly King
A pretty radical song for its time. Great story song.
Rhonda Godwin
Wrong, sorry. It's just your perception. I was there. Those were radical times. Much more so than today.
Robert Indresano
When I started college, this song was a big favorite in the dining area. I love hearing it again!
Black Wolfe
❤️ this song. Thanks.👍
Badoocee
Great song!! Catchy! I've never heard it until now.