# Blue Money

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For the films, see [Blue Money (1972 film)](/source/Blue_Money_(1972_film)), [Blue Money (1985 film)](/source/Blue_Money_(1985_film)).

"**Blue Money**" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter [Van Morrison](/source/Van_Morrison). It was the second of two [Top Forty](/source/Top_Forty) hits from his 1970 album, *[His Band and the Street Choir](/source/His_Band_and_the_Street_Choir)* (the other being "[Domino](/source/Domino_(Van_Morrison_song))"), reaching No. 23 on the US chart. The US single featured "[Sweet Thing](/source/Sweet_Thing_(Van_Morrison_song))", from the album *[Astral Weeks](/source/Astral_Weeks)*, as the [B-side](/source/B-side). It was released as a single in the UK in June 1971 with a different B-side, "Call Me Up in Dreamland". The song became Morrison's third best selling single of the 1970s, remaining on the charts for three months.[2]

The lyrics have the singer promising his girl that they will paint the town together with *her* "blue money".[3] Critic [Maury Dean](/source/Maury_Dean) states that the theme picks up from [Lefty Frizzell](/source/Lefty_Frizzell)'s 1950 No. 1 song "[If You've Got the Money I've Got the Time](/source/If_You've_Got_the_Money_I've_Got_the_Time)".[3] In a 1972 [Rolling Stone](/source/Rolling_Stone) interview with John Grissim Jr., Morrison commented about the popularity of "Blue Money" in cities like [Boston](/source/Boston) and New York City: "Out here I get asked to play 'Blue Money' all the time. All the kids love it, the kids in the street. It's their favorite number."[4]

## Critical response

[Robert Christgau](/source/Robert_Christgau), writing in the *[Village Voice](/source/Village_Voice)* in 1971, described "Blue Money" and "Domino" as "superb examples of Morrison's loose, allusive white r&b."[1] *[Record World](/source/Record_World)* called it a "nifty cut" and praised Morrison's "scat singing."[5] *[Cash Box](/source/Cash_Box)* said "Van Morrison heads further into the blues base that marked his early hit material, but which now serves as a change of recent pace."[6] *[Billboard](/source/Billboard_(magazine))* called it "a solid rocker that should keep [Morrison] active on the charts."[7]

Writer M. Mark described it as "a pun-filled song about time and cash."[8] Biographer [Brian Hinton](/source/Brian_Hinton) compared the song's sound to [Georgie Fame](/source/Georgie_Fame) and the Blue Flames: "boozy horns and a nonsensical chorus."[9] Dean praises the song's "snarly, snappity sounds" and Morrison's "[jazzy](/source/Jazz) [baritone](/source/Baritone)."[3]

## Covers

[Cristina](/source/Cristina_(singer)) covered "Blue Money" on her 1984 album, *[Sleep It Off](/source/Sleep_It_Off)* and [The Flying Pickets](/source/The_Flying_Pickets) included an [a cappella](/source/A_cappella) version as the title track on their 1990 album, *Blue Money*. The song was also featured throughout the 1985 British television film Blue Money, starring [Tim Curry](/source/Tim_Curry)[10]

## Personnel

- [Van Morrison](/source/Van_Morrison) – guitar, vocal
- Alan Hand – piano
- Keith Johnson – trumpet
- John Klingberg – bass
- [John Platania](/source/John_Platania) – guitar
- Jack Schroer – [baritone saxophone](/source/Baritone_saxophone)
- Dahaud Shaar (David Shaw) – drums

**The Street Choir:**

- Larry Goldsmith
- Janet Planet
- Andrew Robinson
- Ellen Schroer
- Dahaud Shaar
- [Martha Velez](/source/Martha_Velez)

## Charts

Chart (1971)[11] Peak Position U.S. Pop Singles 23

## Notes

1. Christgau, Robert (1 March 1971). ["Consumer Guide"](http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cg16.php). Retrieved 4 October 2009.

1. Dewitt. The Mystic's Music. p.87

1. Dean, M. (2003). *Rock 'n' Roll Gold Rush*. Algora. p. 329. ISBN 0875862071.

1. Grissim Jr., John (2 June 1972). ["Van Morrison: The Rolling Stone Interview"](https://web.archive.org/web/20071211150105/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/vanmorrison/articles/story/5939314/van_morrison). *[Rolling Stone](/source/Rolling_Stone)*. Archived from [the original](https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/vanmorrison/articles/story/5939314/van_morrison) on 11 December 2007. Retrieved 28 September 2009.

1. ["Picks of the Week"](https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record-World/70s/71/RR-1971-01-30.pdf). *Single Product*. January 30, 1971. p. 12. Retrieved 2023-04-22.

1. ["CashBox Singles Reviews"](https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1971/Cash-Box-1971-01-30.pdf). *Cash Box*. January 30, 1971. p. 26. Retrieved 2023-04-22.

1. ["Spotlight Singles"](https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/70s/1971/Billboard%201971-01-30.pdf). *Billboard*. January 30, 1971. p. 60. Retrieved 2023-04-22.

1. *Stranded: Rock and Roll for a Desert Island*, [Greil Marcus](/source/Greil_Marcus), ed., p.10 (1979)

1. Hinton, *Celtic Crossroads*, p.123

1. ["Blue Money (TV Movie 1985) - IMDb"](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083666/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_208). *[IMDb](/source/IMDb)*. 23 April 1985.

1. [ Allmusic: Van Morrison billboard singles]

## References

- [Hinton, Brian](/source/Brian_Hinton), *Celtic Crossroads: The Art of Van Morrison*, Sanctuary (1997). ISBN 1-86074-169-X
- DeWitt, Howard A., *Van Morrison: The Mystic's Music*, Horizon Books (1983). ISBN 0-938840-02-9

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Blue Money](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Money) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Money?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.