“The Green Leaves of Summer” is a song by Paul Francis Webster, with music by Dimitri Tiomkin, written for the 1960 film The Alamo. It was performed in the film’s score by the vocal group The Brothers Four. In 1961, the song was nominated for an Academy Award; its parent soundtrack, for the film The Alamo, was awarded a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score. In The Alamo, the song is heard on the last night before the Battle of the Alamo. Davy Crockett (John Wayne), when asked what he is thinking, responds “not thinking. Just remembering” as the song is heard. The men of the Alamo reminisce on their lives and reflect on their own mistakes, faith, and morality. The song itself has no lyrical connection to the Alamo, or to any other historical events, but is simply a nostalgic reminiscence of the narrator’s idyllic youth. The basic theme is reminiscent of the opening of Vivaldi’s La Follia.
Songs with Banjo from Harold Hagler
