"Eyesight to the Blind" is a

12-bar blues The 12-bar blues (or blues changes) is one of the most prominent chord progressions in popular music. The blues progression has a distinctive form in lyrics, phrase, chord structure, and duration. In its basic form, it is predominantly based on ...

song written and recorded in 1951 by

Sonny Boy Williamson II Alex or Aleck Miller (originally Ford, possibly December 5, 1912 – May 24, 1965), known later in his career as Sonny Boy Williamson, was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter. He was an early and influential blues harp st ...

(Aleck "Rice" Miller). He also recorded the related songs "Born Blind", "Unseeing Eye", "Don't Lose Your Eye", and "Unseen Eye" during his career.

The Larks The Larks were an American vocal group, active in the early 1950s. They were not the same group as the Los Angeles-based Larks (originally The Meadowlarks) featuring Don Julian, nor the Philadelphia-based group The Four Larks. Original members * ...

, an American

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

group, recorded the song, which reached number five on the R&B charts in 1951. Several musicians subsequently recorded it in a variety of styles.

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

adapted Williamson's song for their

rock opera A rock opera is a collection of rock music songs with lyrics that relate to a common story. Rock operas are typically released as concept albums and are not scripted for acting, which distinguishes them from operas, although several have been ad ...

''Tommy''. In 2022, Williamson's recording was inducted into the

Blues Hall of Fame The Blues Hall of Fame is a music museum located at 421 S. Main Street in Memphis, Tennessee. Initially, the "Blues Hall of Fame" was not a physical building, but a listing of people who have significantly contributed to blues music. Started in 1 ...

in the 'Classics of Blues Recording – Singles' category.

Sonny Boy Williamson versions

The song was recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson in 1951 as his first single release on

Trumpet Records Trumpet Records was an American record company founded by Lillian McMurry in Jackson, Mississippi in 1951. Although it existed for only four years, it was influential. History The goal of Trumpet Records was to record musicians from the Mississip ...

. Three versions of the song were released as

78 rpm A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog signal, analog sound Recording medium, storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove ...

singles. The first version featured Sonny Boy Williamson II on vocals and harmonica,

Willie Love Willie Love Jr. (November 4, 1906 – August 19, 1953) was an American Delta blues pianist. He is best known for his association with and accompaniment of Sonny Boy Williamson II. Biography Love was born in Duncan, Mississippi. In 1942, he ...

on piano,

Joe Willie Wilkins Joe Willie Wilkins (January 7, 1921 or 1923O'Neal, Jim (1979). "Joe Willie Wilkins – 1923–1979". ''Living Blues'' 42 (January–February 1979), pp. 8–9. – March 28, 1979)Huggins, Cilla (1979). "Joe Willie Wilkins". '' Blues Unlimited'' ...

on guitar,

Elmore James Elmore James ( Brooks; January 27, 1918 – May 24, 1963) was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and bandleader. Noted for his use of loud amplification and his stirring voice, James was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fam ...

on guitar, and Joe Dyson on drums; the second and third versions had Sonny Boy Williamson II, Willie Love, Henry Reed on double bass, and Joe Dyson. In 1957, Sonny Boy Williamson re-recorded the song for

Checker Records Checker Records is an inactive record label that was started in 1952 as a subsidiary of Chess Records in Chicago, Illinois. The label was founded by the Chess brothers, Leonard and Phil, who ran the label until they sold it to General Recorded ...

with the title "Born Blind". Accompanying him were

Otis Spann Otis Spann (March 21, 1924 or 1930April 24, 1970) was an American blues musician, whom many consider to be the leading postwar Chicago blues pianist. Early life Sources differ over Spann's early years. Some state that he was born in Jackson, Miss ...

on piano, Robert Lockwood and

Luther Tucker Luther Tucker (January 20, 1936 – June 18, 1993) was an American blues guitarist. While soft-spoken and shy, Tucker made his presence known through his unique and clearly recognizable guitar style. Tucker helped to define the music known as ...

on guitars,

Willie Dixon William James Dixon (July 1, 1915January 29, 1992) was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was proficient in playing both the upright bass and the guitar, and sang with a distinctive voice, but he ...

on bass, and

Fred Below Frederick Below, Jr. (September 6, 1926 – August 13, 1988) was an American blues drummer, best known for his work with Little Walter and Chess Records in the 1950s. According to Tony Russell, Below was a creator of much of the rhythmic stru ...

on drums.

Renditions by other artists

The most successful early version was that by

the Larks The Larks were an American vocal group, active in the early 1950s. They were not the same group as the Los Angeles-based Larks (originally The Meadowlarks) featuring Don Julian, nor the Philadelphia-based group The Four Larks. Original members * ...

, originally a vocal group which had developed out of gospel group, the

Selah Jubilee Singers The Selah Jubilee Singers were an American gospel vocal quartet, who appeared in public as a gospel group but who also had a successful recording career as a secular group in the 1930s & 1940s. History Around 1927, Thermon Ruth (1914–2002) fou ...

. The group's recording of "Eyesight to the Blind", with vocals and guitar by Allen Bunn, who later worked solo as

Tarheel Slim Allen Rathel Bunn (September 24, 1923 – August 21, 1977), who was sometimes credited as Alden Bunn and who performed as Tarheel Slim, was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter whose work spanned gospel, blues, doowop, R&B, pop, a ...

, reached number five on the

Billboard R&B charts The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

in July 1951.

Mose Allison Mose John Allison Jr. (November 11, 1927 – November 15, 2016) was an American jazz and blues pianist, singer, and songwriter. He became notable for playing a unique mix of blues and modern jazz, both singing and playing piano. After moving to N ...

recorded the song for his 1959 album '' Autumn Song''. Unlike Williamson's original, he performs it as a "swinging, up-tempo jump number". As a popular piece, it is included on several of his anthologies, such as '' Allison Wonderland Anthology'' (1994).

adapted the song for the 1969

album ''Tommy''.

Roger Daltrey Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is a co-founder and the lead singer of the Rock music, rock band The Who. Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include "My Generation", "Pinball Wizard", "Won't Ge ...

sings Williamson's song set to new accompaniment composed by

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Townsh ...

. It appears as the last track on the first side of the album; the original

Track Records Track Record (a.k.a. Track Records) was founded in 1966 in London by Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp, then managers of the rock group The Who. It was one of the first British-owned independent record labels in the United Kingdom. The most succe ...

album cover uses the title "The Hawker", while on the record label it is listed as "Eyesight to the Blind". "Eyesight to the Blind (The Hawker)" or "The Hawker (Eyesight to the Blind)" is often found on later releases. The album credits for the song read "Sonny Boy Williamson". For the 1972 ''Tommy'' orchestral performance,

Richie Havens Richard Pierce Havens (January 21, 1941 – April 22, 2013) was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music encompassed elements of folk, soul (both of which he frequently covered), and rhythm and blues. He had a rhythmic guitar style ...

sang the vocals on the song, backed by the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

. In the 1975 film version of ''Tommy'',

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

and

Arthur Brown Arthur Brown may refer to: Entertainment * Arthur William Brown (1881–1966), Canadian commercial artist * H. Arthur Brown (1906–1992), American orchestral conductor * Arthur Brown (musician) (born 1942), English rock singer * Arthur Brown, ak ...

perform the piece. Several live performances by the Who are in release. Other artists who recorded the song include: *

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...

''The Jungle'' (1967), also one '' Live in Japan'' (1971, released 1999) *

Buddy Rich Bernard "Buddy" Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer, songwriter, conductor, and bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential drummers of all time. Rich was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York ...

Big Band Machine ''Big Band Machine'' is a jazz album recorded by Buddy Rich and his big band, released on the Groove Merchant Record label in 1975. Track listing LP side A: #"Three Day Sucker" (Lofgreen) – 6:50 #"Tommy Medley" ( Townshend) – 12:26 ##"Eyes ...

'' (1975) *

'' Crossroads 2: Live in the Seventies'' (recorded 1975, released 1996) *

Mike Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American guitarist and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his ...

'' I'm with You Always'' (1977, released 2008) *Jack-Knife'' I Wish You Would'' (1979) *

Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of Steven Tyler (lead vocals), Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry (guitar), Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton (bass), Joey Kramer (drums) and Brad Whi ...

Honkin' On Bobo ''Honkin' on Bobo'' is the fourteenth studio album by American rock band Aerosmith, released on March 30, 2004, by Columbia Records. The album includes 11 covers of blues and blues rock songs from the 1950s and 1960s, with one new song, "The Gr ...

'' (2004) *

Gary Moore Robert William Gary Moore (4 April 19526 February 2011) was a Northern Irish musician. Over the course of his career he played in various groups and performed a range of music including blues, blues rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and jazz ...

Close as You Get ''Close as You Get'' is sixteenth solo album by Northern Irish blues guitarist and singer Gary Moore. The album reunited Moore with his former Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their music reflect ...

'' (2007) *

The Smithereens The Smithereens are an American rock band from Carteret, New Jersey, United States. The group formed in 1980 with members Pat DiNizio (vocals & guitar), Jim Babjak (guitar & vocals), Mike Mesaros (bass guitar & vocals), and Dennis Diken (drums & ...

'' The Smithereens Play Tommy'' (2009) *

David Bromberg David Bromberg (born September 19, 1945) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. David Bromberg biographyat Billboard.com An eclectic artist, Bromberg plays bluegrass, blues, folk, jazz, country and western, and rock a ...

The Blues, the Whole Blues, and Nothing But the Blues ''The Blues, the Whole Blues, and Nothing But the Blues'' is an album by the David Bromberg Band. It was released by Red House Records on October 14, 2016. The album contains thirteen blues songs – eleven covers and two originals – performe ...

'' (2016)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eyesight to the Blind 1951 singles Sonny Boy Williamson II songs Blues songs Aerosmith songs Eric Clapton songs 1951 songs The Who songs