It Ain't Easy Being Green
Though he's best known for his role on The Muppet Show (and his romantic involvement with swine), Kermit the Frog mesmerized young audiences on Sesame Street in 1970 with the tender tune "Bein' Green." The ditty, voiced by Jim Henson and written by Joe Raposo (the same man behind "C Is for Cookie"), won praise for its fun, graceful treatment of subjects like race, individuality and self-acceptance. "It's not that easy bein' green/ Having to spend each day the color of the leaves/ When I think it could be nicer bein' red or yellow or gold/ Or something much more colorful like that," Henson sang. Since then, the melancholy ballad has been performed by Frank Sinatra, Diana Ross, Ray Charles, Tony Bennett and fellow pea-colored Muppet Oscar the Grouch. And to think, the song grew out of a simple request by one of the show's producers: "We need a song for the frog."