I see trees of green, Red roses too,
I see them bloom, for me and you,
And I think to myself, What a wonderful world.
I see skies of blue, And clouds of white,
The bright blessed day, The dark sacred night,
And I think to myself, What a wonderful world.
The colors of the rainbow, So pretty in the sky,
Are also on the faces, Of people going by,
I see friends shaking hands, saying, How do you do;
They're really saying, I love you.
I hear babies cry, I watch them grow,
They'll learn much more, Than I'll ever know,
And I think to myself, What a wonderful world,
Yes I think to myself, What a wonderful world.
Bob Thiele of ABC Records gave
Armstrong the song to consider. Armstrong loved it and recorded it with
an orchestra but as a vocal only - he didn't play the trumpet on the
recording. Larry Newman, then the head of ABC, hated the song and
didn't want to release it. He finally agreed to put it out but without
any publicity whatsoever. What would have been a glorious follow-up to
"Hello, Dolly!" was a complete failure. In England, the record hit the
top of the charts but in America, nothing. It wasn't until the song was
featured on the soundtrack of the film "Good Morning, Vietnam" that it
became a success in the states.
