Helen O'Connell joined the Jimmy Dorsey band in 1939 and achieved her best selling records in the early forties with "Green Eyes", "Amapola", and "Tangerine". In each of these Latin-influenced numbers, Bob Eberly crooned the song which Helen then reprised in an up-tempo arrangement. Helen won the 1940 Metronome magazine poll for best female vocalist. She was one of the first "girls" on NBC's The Today Show, and at one point had her own television show.
Helen retired from show business upon her first marriage in 1943. Helen had four daughters and eight grandchildren. When the first marriage failed, she embarked on a solo career in 1951, achieving some chart success and becoming a regular television performer. Helen has married a total of four times.
She co-hosted the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants with Bob Barker from 1972 to 1980.
In her last marriage, she was married to arranger/conductor/composer Frank De Vol when she died in San Diego, California from a battle with hepatitis C resulting in primary liver cancer (hepatoma).
Green Eyes
Helen O'connell Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Those eyes that promise sweet night
Brings to my soul a longing
A thirst for love divine
In dreams I seem to hold you
To find you and enfold you
Our lips meet and our hearts, too
With a thrill so sublime
Those cool and limpid green eyes
A pool wherein my love lies
So deep that in my searching
For happiness I fear
That they will ever haunt me
All through my life they'll taunt me
But will they ever want me?
Green eyes
Make my dreams come true
Soft light
And eyes that promise sweet night
Brings to my soul a longing
A thirst for love divine
In dreams I seem to hold you
To find you and enfold you
Our lips meet and our hearts, too
With a thrill so sublime
Those cool and limpid green eyes
A pool where in my love lies
So deep that in my searching
For happiness I fear
That they will ever haunt me
All through my life they'll taunt me
But will they ever want me?
Green eyes
I love you
In Helen O'Connell's song "Green Eyes," the singer is expressing her longing for someone with captivating green eyes. The lyrics speak of the seductive quality of these eyes, promising a night of sweetness and divine love. The singer dreams of holding and enfolded her lover who is constantly haunting her thoughts. Despite her fears of not being wanted in return, the green eyes have made her dreams come true over and over again.
The "cool and limpid green eyes" symbolize the singer's desire and passion for her lover. The word "limpid," meaning clear and transparent, suggests that her love lies in plain sight, and she can't help but be captivated by their alluring gaze. The singer's inability to forget these eyes represents the depth of her feelings and the impression they have left on her.
The lyrics also convey a sense of vulnerability and insecurity. The singer is afraid that these green eyes will haunt and taunt her for the rest of her life. But despite this, she declares her love for them, willing to take the risk of being hurt in the hopes of being loved in return.
Line by Line Meaning
Those green eyes with their soft light
The soothing and gentle light in those green eyes
Those eyes that promise sweet night
The enticing look in those green eyes that promises a blissful night together
Brings to my soul a longing
A deep sense of desire and yearning for that person
A thirst for love divine
An intense desire for a love that is heavenly and pure
In dreams I seem to hold you
I dream of holding you in my arms
To find you and enfold you
To search and embrace you fully
Our lips meet and our hearts, too
When we kiss, our hearts are also connected
With a thrill so sublime
An exhilarating and delightful feeling that cannot be described in words
Those cool and limpid green eyes
The calm and clear green eyes
A pool wherein my love lies
A deep and vast space where my love resides
So deep that in my searching
My search for love is futile in comparison with the depth of my love for that person
For happiness I fear
I am afraid that I might never find true happiness without that person
That they will ever haunt me
Those green eyes will always be in my memory and will continue to affect me
All through my life they'll taunt me
Those green eyes will continue to tease and torment me throughout my life
But will they ever want me?
I am not sure if that person reciprocates my feelings
Green eyes
Those green eyes
Make my dreams come true
The thought of being with that person satisfies and fulfills my dreams
I love you
I am deeply in love with you
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Eddie Woods, Eddie Rivera, Adolfo Perez Utrera Fernandez, Nilo Menendez
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@sillygoose552
Your green eyes with their soft lights
Your eyes that promise sweet nights
Bring to my soul a longing
A thirst for love divine
In dreams I seem to hold you
To find you and enfold you
Our lips meet and our hearts, too
With a thrill so sublime
Those cool and limpid green eyes
A pool where in my love lies
So deep that in my searching
For happiness, I fear
That they will ever haunt me
All through my life they'll taunt me
But will they ever want me, green eyes?
Make my dreams come true
@carmendemetrio7685
Caitlin Mccune
The original :
☘️ Aquellos ojos verdes, de mirada serena
dejaron en mi alma eterna sed de amar
Anhelos de caricias, de besos y ternuras
de todas las dulzuras que sabían brindar.
........Aquellos ojos verdes, serenos como un lago,
en cuyas quietas aguas un día me miré
no saben la tristeza que en mi alma han dejado
aquellos ojos verdes..
que yo nunca olvidaré .
@sparkymularkey6970
My boyfriend's grandmother is 91 years old and she asked, "Does anyone remember that song? Green Eyes?" and she started humming. I looked up this music video and started playing it and asked, "Is this it?" Her eyes lit up and she said, "Yes! That's it!" She looked so happy to hear this song again. Thank you.
Update: That same grandmother of my boyfriend passed away a couple years ago. She had 92 full, long years. Rest easy, Grandma Evvy. I'll be singing Green Eyes for you. 💚
@margiehenson2440
WHAT. A. BEAUTFUF. TIME.......ITS. TRUE. THATS. WHEN. AMERICA. HAD. CLASS...REMEMBER IT WELL....!!!!!!!!!
@stephenfletcher7567
I was mentored by Nilo Menendez, composer of Green Eyes and a great friend of my father.
@rubyparchment5523
My Irish family has multiple eye colors — every shade of green, from yellowy cat eyes to turquoise.
@rubyparchment5523
@@stephenfletcher7567 You are one fortunate fellow!!
@patriciabailey1937
My uncle, Julian, used to sing this to his Sweetheart because she had green eyes. My cousin, his daughter, told me when I was quite young. Their story was sad. Both were in India, he serving with the Gurkhas. His wife was not interested in him, and in-fact she left and returned to England and he found Green Eyes! The two of them had a romance going, but when India was split and half became Pakistan and with the turmoil that this caused, the two young lovers also became separated and their romance ended. My uncle became I’ll and died in India and is there still in one of the old British cemeteries. As for Green Eyes, I hope she managed to find a good man and settle down, in whichever country she went to after leaving India. Or did she leave? My Mum would often quietly sing the song in later years - would she be thinking of her brother and the woman who found life elsewhere?
@Halo101st
This was my mother and father's "song" back in 1942. My mother met and talked with Helen O'Connell in the ladies room where Helen was singing and said she was an absolutely delightful lady. They were the same age and went shopping together the next day. Mom said Helen had a wonderfully wicked sense of humor.
@harryhagan5937
She was indeed! I played in several bands over the years that backed her up, and in 1990 I played in a band that did a cruise with her. Delightful. I wish I had been around when all that great music was in its prime, but if I had, I wouldn't be here now, alas.
@oldSilvertone
WOW that's Amazing. I bet Helen was a Joy. Great Story thank you Halo101st.
@7322449609
Good story; I've loved her forever.