Real Eyes
Studio album by
Gil Scott-Heron
Released1980
GenreR&B, jazz
LabelArista[1]
ProducerGil Scott-Heron, Malcolm Cecil
Gil Scott-Heron chronology
1980
(1980)		 Real Eyes
(1980)		 Reflections
(1981)

Real Eyes is an album by the American poet and musician Gil Scott-Heron, released in 1980.[2][3] It was Scott-Heron's first album since 1970 to be made without input from his musical collaborator Brian Jackson.[4]

The album peaked at No. 159 on the Billboard 200.[5]

Production

Real Eyes was produced by Scott-Heron and Malcolm Cecil.[6] A photograph of Scott-Heron and his daughter Gia appears on the album cover; the album's closing track is dedicated to her.[7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
Robert ChristgauB+[9]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[1]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[10]

Robert Christgau wrote that "the switch from Brian Jackson's supportive groove to Carl Cornwell's elliptical horn charts adds intellectual and historical weight to the songs that merely say good things as well as those that put them pungently."[9] The Boston Globe thought that "Scott-Heron has shaken off the pop coating and built his arrangements carefully, usually around one dominant instrument."[11] Billboard opined that "Carl Cornwell's sax and flute work is top notch."[6]

AllMusic wrote: "Scott-Heron's love of jazz serves him well on 'A Legend in His Own Mind' and the smoky 'Combinations', but make no mistake: Real Eyes is an R&B album more than anything."[8] In a retrospective article, The Wire thought that "much of it sounds like outtakes from Stevie Wonder's albums of the period—even words seem to desert [Scott-Heron], falling away into disengaged rhetoric or weak personal concerns."[12]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."The Train from Washington"4:46
2."Not Needed"3:55
3."Waiting for the Axe to Fall"4:47
4."Combinations"3:37
5."A Legend in His Own Mind"3:40
6."You Could Be My Brother"6:21
7."The Klan"4:48
8."Your Daddy Loves You (For Gia Louise)"3:18

References

  1. 1 2 Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7. MUZE. p. 305.
  2. ↑ "Gil Scott-Heron Pioneering Poet | Exclaim!". exclaim.ca. Archived from the original on 2021-09-27. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  3. ↑ Snowden, Don (21 Jan 1981). "Gil Scott-Heron has Staying Power". Los Angeles Times.
  4. ↑ Maycock, James (30 May 2011). "Gil Scott-Heron". The Independent. Viewspaper. p. 8.
  5. ↑ "Gil Scott-Heron". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2021-09-27. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  6. 1 2 "Top Album Picks". Billboard. 92 (49): 45. Dec 6, 1980.
  7. ↑ Blackistone, Kevin B. (8 Oct 1981). "A VOICE FOR CHANGE". The Boston Globe. Calendar. p. 1.
  8. 1 2 "Real Eyes - Gil Scott-Heron | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". Archived from the original on 2021-09-27. Retrieved 2021-09-27 – via www.allmusic.com.
  9. 1 2 "Robert Christgau: CG: Gil Scott-Heron". www.robertchristgau.com. Archived from the original on 2021-09-27. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  10. ↑ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 622.
  11. ↑ Flanagan, Bill (12 Mar 1981). "REVIEWS/RECORDS; GIL SCOTT-HERON; REAL EYES; ARISTA". The Boston Globe. Calendar. p. 1.
  12. ↑ "Gil Scott-Heron: Pieces Of A Man - The Wire". The Wire Magazine - Adventures In Modern Music. Archived from the original on 2021-09-27. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
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