"My Eyes Adored You" is a 1974 song written by Bob Crewe and Kenny Nolan.[3] It was originally recorded by The Four Seasons in early 1974. After the Motown label balked at the idea of releasing it, the recording was sold to lead singer Frankie Valli for $4000. After rejections by Capitol and Atlantic Records, Valli succeeded in getting the recording released on Private Stock Records, but the owner/founder of the label, Larry Uttal, wanted only Valli's name on the label. It is from the album Closeup. The single was released in the US in November 1974 and topped the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1975.[3] "My Eyes Adored You" also went to number 2 on the Easy Listening chart.[4]Billboard ranked it as the No. 5 song for 1975.
The single was Valli's first number 1 hit as a solo artist on the Billboard Hot 100, and remained there for one week, being knocked out of the top spot by another Crewe/Nolan-penned song, "Lady Marmalade" by Labelle.
Cash Box called it "a mellow ballad sung only the way Frankie's sweet vocal could sing it," saying "lush instrumentation heightens the record's overall effect which is one of a fine musical outing."[5]Record World said that "Charlie Calello charts bring Valli back up top 40 mountain."[6] Seasons guitarist Demetri Callas, who had replaced founding member Tommy DeVito in the early 1970s, considered it his favorite record of his work with the Seasons.[7]
The success of "My Eyes Adored You" triggered a revival of interest in recordings by The Four Seasons. The band was subsequently signed to Warner Bros. Records as Valli's follow-up single "Swearin' to God" was climbing to number 6 on the Hot 100.
Marty Mitchell's 1976 version reached number 87 on the country chart.
References
^The Four Seasons; Frankie Valli (1991), Greatest Hits, Volume 2, Internet Archive, Warner Special Products, retrieved January 30, 2023
^ abBreihan, Tom (July 5, 2019). "The Number Ones: Frankie Valli's "My Eyes Adored You"". Stereogum. Retrieved June 22, 2023. Like Neil Sedaka on "Laughter In The Rain," Valli figured out how to adapt his sound to the soft-rock album. "My Eyes Adored You"... finds ways to dig into nostalgia...It's a soul song, more or less...
