"These Eyes" | ||||
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Single by The Guess Who | ||||
from the album Wheatfield Soul | ||||
B-side | "Lightfoot" | |||
Released | December 1968 (Canada) March 1969 (US) |
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Format | 7" 45 RPM | |||
Recorded | September 1968 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:45 | |||
Label | Nimbus 9 (Canada) RCA Victor (US) |
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Writer(s) | Randy Bachman, Burton Cummings | |||
Producer(s) | Jack Richardson | |||
The Guess Who singles chronology | ||||
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"These Eyes" is a song by the Canadian rock band The Guess Who. The song was co-written by the group's lead guitarist Randy Bachman and lead singer Burton Cummings and originally included on the band's 1969 album Wheatfield Soul. It was first released as a single (backed by "Lightfoot"), in their native Canada, where its chart success (#7), along with the influence of CKLW-AM Windsor's radio station music director Rosalie Trombley, helped land them a U.S. distribution deal with RCA Records. It was then released in the U.S. In March 1969, and became a breakthrough success for the group, as it would be their first single to reach the top ten on the Billboard Pop Singles chart, peaking at number six, and would eventually be certified gold by the RIAA for sales of over one million copies. While it was actually the 18th single released by the band, it was the first from the quartet of Cummings, Bachman, Jim Kale, and Garry Peterson as produced by Jack Richardson.
Bachman had the original piano chords with an original title of "These Arms". Cummings changed the title to "These Eyes" and added the middle eight.
The song is noted for its repeated long section which starts in C Major, then goes up a whole tone to D Major, then up a whole tone again in E Major, and in the Coda, finally, to F Sharp Major, before the fade, with the words: "These Eyes/ Are Crying./ These eyes have seen a lot of love but they're never gonna see another love like I had with you".
Among the many cover versions released over the years, Junior Walker & the All-Stars' version reached number three on the R&B Singles Chart and number 16 on the Billboard Pop Singles in October 1969.