Song:Sad Eyes
Album:Top Hits of the 70s: Greatest Hits
Sad Eyes was a number one hit in 1979. The retro doo wop style seemed a little odd in the midst of the height of disco. It was Robert John's biggest hit but it might surprise folks that he first charted in the 50s. He was born Robert John Pedrick Jr. in 1946 in Brooklyn, NY. At age 12 he recorded as Bobby Pedrick and charted with his debut single White Bucks And Saddle Shoes. He bounced around in the 60s with his group Bobby & The Consloes and resurfaced in the late 60s on Epic as Robert John. Then producer George Tobin worked with him on a few singles on A & M and then in 1971 got him a deal with Atlantic. John's 1972 remake of The Tokens' The Lion Sleeps Tonight was a top ten pop hit. It was produced by Hank Medress of The Tokens. John actually wrote and recorded Sad Eyes for Ariola in 1978. But they decided not to release it and dropped him. The president of EMI Records heard it and contacted Tobin. They released Sad Eyes and it topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1979. John released two albums on EMI and another on Motown in 1983 and nothing much has been heard from him since. Capitol released a Classic Masters comp in 2002 but it seems to be out of print. And Curb's 1992 Greatest Hits comp is a half hour long and features a pointless 90s remix of The Lion Sleeps Tonight. So this 2007 Collectables various artists comp is the best way to get Sad Eyes. Here's the video for Sad Eyes by Robert John.
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