Blue prairie

“Blue prairie, blue are the skies
Blue are the sighs of a night wind fallin’
Blue prairie, blue are the hills
Blue are the trills of a nightbird callin’.”

—Bob Nolan and Tim Spencer, Blue Prairie, 1934.

Blue Shadows On The Trail

“Blue shadows on the trail
Blue moon shinin’ through the trees.”

—Eliot Daniel and Johnny Lange, Blue Shadows on the Trail, 1948.

a lavender coffin

“All I want is a lavender coffin
White gardenias all around
Swing band playing the funeral march
As they roll me into the holy ground.”

—Shirley Albert, Lavender Coffin, 1949.

blue turning grey over you

“I run my hands through silv’ry strands
’Cause I’m blue turning grey over you.”

—Andy Razaf & Fats Waller, Blue Turning Grey Over You, 1929.

Blue Suede Shoes

“You can do anything but lay off of my blue suede shoes.”

—Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes, 1955.

Solid blue

“CHURCHY: A blue note gotta be blew but solid!

BEETLE: Oh sure! Solid blue is my own favorite shade.”

—Walt Kelly, from The Incompleat Pogo, 1954.

red, white an’ blue blooded

“OWL: Is you singin’ in Patagonian or Monogohelian’

CHURCHY: In English! In one hunnerd percent American red, white an’ blue blooded English!”

—Walt Kelly, from I Go Pogo, 1952.

get a Greyhound bus

“You may bury my body
Down by the highway side
So my old evil spirit
Can get a Greyhound bus, and ride.”

—Robert Johnson, Me and the Devil Blues.

these things must not lead us astray

“The eye is attracted by beautiful objects, by gold and silver and all such things. . . . But our ambition to obtain all these things must not lead us astray from you, O Lord, nor must we depart from what your law allows.”

—Saint Augustine (354-430), Confessions; translated from the Latin by R.S. Pine-Coffin, 1961.

The very air was blued!

“POGO: Gosh a mickel! Dickel-pickle! Gee willy-wobbles! Dog my cats! And rowrbazzle!

OWL: My, you is quite cussable.

CHURCHY: The very air was blued!

POGO: I blewed as hard as I could.”

—Walt Kelly, from Pogo, 1951.