"Looking Through Patient Eyes" is a song by American hip hop and R&B group

P.M. Dawn P.M. Dawn was an American hip hop and R&B act that formed in 1988 by the brothers Attrell Cordes (known by his stage name Prince Be, sometimes credited as Prince Be the Nocturnal) and Jarrett Cordes (known as DJ Minutemix) in Jersey City, New J ...

. It was released on March 1, 1993, as the second single from their second studio album, '' The Bliss Album...? (Vibrations of Love and Anger and the Ponderance of Life and Existence)'' (1993). The song, written by P.M. Dawn's

Attrell Cordes Attrell Stephen Cordes, Jr. (May 15, 1970 – June 17, 2016), also known by the stage name Prince Be, was an American rapper, musician, singer and record producer. Cordes was the lead vocalist of the hip hop group P.M. Dawn, which he formed in ...

, features backing vocals by

Cathy Dennis Catherine Roseanne Dennis (born 25 March 1969)Gregory, Andy (2002) ''International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'', Europa; , p. 133 is a British singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She was the vocalist for D Mob, which had the su ...

and samples "

Father Figure A father figure is usually an older man, normally one with power, authority, or strength, with whom one can identify on a deeply psychological level and who generates emotions generally felt towards one's father. Despite the literal term "father ...

" by

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the most significant cultural icons of the MTV generation and is one of the best-selling musici ...

. The line "Joni help me, I think I'm falling" is a reference to Canadian singer

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...

's song " Help Me"; she is also referenced in the group's previous single "

Set Adrift on Memory Bliss "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" is a song by American hip-hop group P.M. Dawn, released in August 1991 as the second single from their debut album, '' Of the Heart, of the Soul and of the Cross: The Utopian Experience'' (1991). It is built around ...

". Upon its release, "Looking Through Patient Eyes" became P.M. Dawn's third and final top-ten hit on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at number six for two nonconsecutive weeks. On Canada's ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Top Singles chart, the song reached number one on the issue dated May 29, 1993, becoming the group's only number-one single in Canada. The song also found success in Australia and several European countries, reaching the top 10 in Denmark, Iceland, and Portugal and charting within the top 20 in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.

Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' wrote, "

Rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

duo is positioned to sail up the charts with a silky pop/hip-hop ditty that derives inspiration from samples of

's "

". A warmly sung chorus cushions the deep-voiced and romantic rhymes that have made the act famous. A fitting way to usher in ''The Bliss Album''." Alan Jones from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' described it as "a gently mournful rap", underscored by the instrumental from Michael's song. He also stated that "the sawing violins and some attractive female vocal support all help create a sweet and stylish single." A reviewer from ''

People Magazine ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC (company), IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People ...

'' noted that Prince Be "hooks up his celestial pony" to Michael's song. James Hamilton from the '' RM'' Dance Update called it a "lushly swirled pop swayer".

Charles Aaron Charles Aaron is an American music journalist and editor, formerly for '' Spin'' magazine, where he worked for 23 years. Personal Charles Aaron was born in Rockingham, North Carolina, and raised in Asheboro, North Carolina and Rome, Georgia. He ...

from ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' wrote, "'

I'd Die Without You "I'd Die Without You" is a song by American R&B duo P.M. Dawn. The song first appeared on the soundtrack of the 1992 film ''Boomerang'' and was one of several songs to chart from the album. The song later appeared on P.M. Dawn's own '' The Bliss ...

' was a sop to the mainstream, i.e. it kind of made sense, but this is the "real" shit—George Michael bite and Prince Be's comforting gibberish."

Music video

The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for the song was shot in a church, and features various Christian images interspersed throughout it.

Track listings

* US 7-inch single :A. "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (radio edit) – 4:06 :B. "The Ways of the Wind" (radio edit) – 3:55 * US 12-inch single :A1. "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (extended mix) – 6:15 :B1. "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (radio mix) – 4:06 :B2. "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (instrumental) – 4:18 * US CD single # "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (radio mix) – 4:06 # "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (extended mix) – 6:15 # "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (instrumental) – 4:18 # "Plastic" (radio mix) – 3:50 * US and Canadian cassette single # "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (radio mix) – 4:06 # "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (album version) – 4:25 * UK 7-inch and cassette single :A. "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (radio mix) :B. "Plastic" (radio mix) * UK 12-inch single :A1. "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (extended mix) :A2. "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (radio mix) :B1. "Plastic" (12-inch mix) :B2. "Plastic" (Funk U Tomorrow mix) * UK and Australian CD single # "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (radio mix) # "Looking Through Patient Eyes" (extended mix) # "Plastic" (extended mix) # "Plastic" (radio mix)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 1993 singles 1993 songs P.M. Dawn songs RPM Top Singles number-one singles Songs written by Attrell Cordes Songs written by George Michael