Open Your Eyes

Album: Love in the Future (2013)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song was the first non-original ever recorded by John Legend for one of his solo albums (his 2010 set of covers Wake Up was a collaborative project). The tune was originally sung by the '70s Blue-Eyed Soul artist, Bobby Caldwell, then later sampled by Common on his "The Light" cut. Producer Dave Tozer told SonicScoop: "Most people know the Common song more than the original, but this is covering the original Bobby Caldwell song, and the chorus has some of the flavor of the Common version. So this is the third time around, which encompasses some of the original and is also a nod to the Common version."
  • The expressive guitar solo was played by veteran producer Mike Dean, who worked with Love In The Future co-producer Kanye West on his Graduation, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and Yeezus albums. Tozer told SonicScoop: "That's one he did on an earlier version of the song, interestingly enough, and we actually recut it a couple of different times. In the end we went back to the early original version, because we felt like it has the magic. That was done in a session in Hawaii, one of the earlier sessions with Kanye."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Christmas Songs

Christmas SongsFact or Fiction

Rudolf, Bob Dylan and the Singing Dogs all show up in this Fact or Fiction for seasonal favorites.

Dean Pitchford

Dean PitchfordSongwriter Interviews

Dean wrote the screenplay and lyrics to all the songs in Footloose. His other hits include "Fame" and "All The Man That I Need."

Mike Rutherford (Genesis, Mike + The Mechanics)

Mike Rutherford (Genesis, Mike + The Mechanics)Songwriter Interviews

Mike Rutherford talks about the "Silent Running" storyline and "Land Of Confusion" in the age of Trump.

Director Nick Morris ("The Final Countdown")

Director Nick Morris ("The Final Countdown")Song Writing

Nick made some of the biggest videos on MTV, including "The Final Countdown," "Heaven" and "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)."

Steve Morse of Deep Purple

Steve Morse of Deep PurpleSongwriter Interviews

Deep Purple's guitarist since 1994, Steve talks about writing songs with the band and how he puts his own spin on "Smoke On The Water."

Movie Stars In Music Videos

Movie Stars In Music VideosSong Writing

Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie, Mila Kunis and John Malkovich are just a few of the film stars who have moonlighted in music videos.