"EYES" IN 1967 MUSIC: "MY EYES HAVE SEEN YOU" AND OTHER EXAMPLES

The word “Eyes” has always been used in the lyrics of songs of all kinds. As a very expressive part of the body, they have always lent themselves to conveying images and feelings in a direct and immediate way.

Often their function in the verses of a song is to indicate the state of mind of one person towards another or a situation he or she is experiencing. It is not uncommon for the eyes to serve as a poetic representation of the person himself.

Such is the case with "My Eyes Have Seen You", track number eight on The Doors' second album, Strange Days, released in September 1967.

As emphasized in the title, the eyes are a verbal device to mean "I" or “Me”. In fact, the phrase that gives the song its name is interpreted by the listener as "I saw you"; therefore, the eyes are given the task of making an otherwise very simple phrase more evocative and intriguing.

The author of this tune is Jim Morrison, who used to turn his poems into music with the help of the other three members of The Doors.

As in this case, he always managed to effectively conjure up captivating and mysterious images in the minds of the listeners.

His poetry, which found its greatest expression in the lyrics of The Doors' songs, flourished with rhetorical figures and metaphors.

In "My Eyes Have Seen You" the metaphor of the eyes reveals the powerful, passionate charge inherent in the gaze directed towards a girl, the one who is the aim of his physical desire.

Morrison was not the only artist one to use the metaphor of the eyes in song lyrics; talking about 1967, we’d like to mention two other examples.

The first is "I'll Be Your Mirror" by the Velvet Underground, which appeared on their first LP, "The Velvet Underground and Nico" (released in March '67). In the lyrics of this beautiful song we find the line "Let me be your eyes”.

Without delving into the overall meaning of the lyrics, we can see that in this case the eyes are used as a metaphor for offering help to someone who is in a difficult situation.

"I'll Be Your Mirror" is sung by the sensual, deep and solemn voice of Nico, which is particularly evocative here, as well as enhanced by the arrangement and lyrics conceived by Lou Reed.

This composition is a fascinating Folk-Rock tune written by Lou Reed himself to give Nico space within the "Velvet Underground And Nico" LP. It is a song that can be considered a jewel of the American underground music scene of 1967 and a very beautiful song to this day.

The second tune in which eyes are used to indicate the person speaking is Frankie Valli's "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" (released as a single in April '67). A member of the Four Seasons, Valli had recently launched a solo career while still singing with the group he was in.

With this song we are in the realm of Pop. Right after the first listening it is clear how the arrangement and vocals are in line with the purely commercial purpose of the record (still very popular after 54 years).

Like Morrison, Valli uses the eyes as a rhetorical figure to refer to a person. Thus, "I can't stop looking at you" in the title becomes "I can't take my eyes off you" to achieve a more immediate and powerful effect on the listener.

So, in the examples just made eyes are used as a metaphor and a tool to speak to the audience in a more direct, seductive, and poetic way.

Jim Morrison, among other artists, used this metaphor in his own compositions, using the word “Eyes” as a technique to move beyond the material sphere and into that of emotions and feelings.

For The Doors’ frontman this poetic practice began as early as 1965, that is the year he composed "My Eyes Have Seen You”.

From then on, this technique would help him to enrich his unforgettable lyrics with evocative, penetrating and wonderfully fascinating images.