The Green Door
| "The Green Door" | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Single by Jim Lowe | |
| B-side | "(The Story of) the Little Man in Chinatown" |
| Released | 1956 |
| Genre | Rock and roll, pop |
| Label | Dot Records |
| Writer(s) | Bob Davie, Marvin Moore |
| "Green Door" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Shakin' Stevens | |
| from the album Shaky | |
| B-side | "Don't Turn Your Back" |
| Released | July 17, 1981 |
| Label | Epic |
| Writer(s) | Bob Davie, Marvin Moore |
| Producer(s) | Stuart Colman |
"The Green Door" (or "Green Door") is a 1956 popular song with music composed by Bob "Hutch" Davie and lyrics written by Marvin Moore. The song was first recorded by Jim Lowe, whose version reached number one on the US pop chart. The lyrics describe the allure of a mysterious private club with a green door, behind which "a happy crowd" play piano, smoke and "laugh a lot", and inside which the singer is not allowed.
The hit version of the song in the United States was recorded by Jim Lowe, backed by the orchestra of songwriter Davie, with Davie also playing piano, and by the vocal group the High Fives. The track was arranged by Davie, who added thumbtacks to the hammers of his piano and sped up the tape to give a honky-tonk sound. Released by Dot Records, the single reached #1 on the Billboard charts for one week on November 17, 1956, replacing "Love Me Tender" by Elvis Presley.
In the United Kingdom, Lowe's version reached #8 on the charts, but a version by Frankie Vaughan was even more popular, reaching #2. Another UK recording, by Glen Mason, reached #24 on the UK chart. The most popular British version was by rock and roll revivalist Shakin' Stevens which spent four weeks at number one in August 1981.
Gene McDaniels released a version of it as a single in 1960, but it failed to chart. In 1964, Bill Haley and his Comets recorded a version for a single release on Decca Records during an unsuccessful attempt to make a comeback with the label that had made them famous with "Rock Around the Clock" (this version was produced by Milt Gabler); Haley and the Comets also recorded an instrumental version in 1962 for the Mexican Orfeon Records label. Country humorist Mayf Nutter re-charted the song in 1973. Crystal Gayle recorded the song in 1977, and it has since become a fan favorite at her concerts. Psychobilly band the Cramps covered the song on their 1981 album, Psychedelic Jungle. The Spanish pop-punk group Los Nikis made a Spanish version in 1986.
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Wikipedia