Eyesight to the Blind

For Jesus' giving eyesight to the blind, see cures attributed to Jesus.
"Eyesight to the Blind"
Single by Sonny Boy Williamson II
B-side"Crazy 'Bout You, Baby"
Released1951 (1951)
Recorded
  • January 4, 1951 (version 1)[1]
  • March 12, 1951 (versions 2 & 3)[1]
GenreBlues
Length3:04
LabelTrumpet[1]
Songwriter(s)Sonny Boy Williamson II
Producer(s)Lillian McMurry
Sonny Boy Williamson II singles chronology
"Cool, Cool Blues"
(1951) 		"Eyesight to the Blind"
(1951) 		"Pontiac Blues"
(1951)

"Eyesight to the Blind" is a 12-bar blues song written and recorded in 1951 by Sonny Boy Williamson II (Aleck "Rice" Miller).[2] He also recorded the related songs "Born Blind", "Unseeing Eye", "Don't Lose Your Eye", and "Unseen Eye" during his career. The Larks, an American rhythm and blues 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 adapted Williamson's song for their rock opera Tommy.

In 2022, Williamson's recording was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in the 'Classics of Blues Recording – Singles' category.[3]

  1. ^ a b c "Sonny Boy's Lonesome Cabin". Sonnyboy.com. May 5, 1998. Archived from the original on November 26, 2013. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  2. ^ Giles Oakley (1997). The Devil's Music. Da Capo Press. p. 205. ISBN 978-0-306-80743-5.
  3. ^ "BLUES HALL OF FAME - About/Inductions". Blues.org. Retrieved 20 March 2022.