"What's Happened to Blue Eyes" is a song by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

artist

Jessi Colter Mirriam Johnson (born May 25, 1943), known professionally as Jessi Colter, is an American country singer who is best known for her collaborations with her second husband, country musician Waylon Jennings, and for her 1975 crossover hit " I'm Not ...

. It was released on August 4, 1975, as a single from her album ''

I'm Jessi Colter ''I'm Jessi Colter'' is the second studio album by American country music artist, Jessi Colter. The album was released on Capitol Records in January 1975 and was produced by Ken Mansfield. The release contained the single, "I'm Not Lisa," which ...

'', peaking as a Top 10 hit on the Billboard Country Chart and a minor hit on the pop chart.

Content

"What's Happened to Blue Eyes" was written entirely by Jessi Colter. The narrator discusses how she is looking for her male lover who goes by the name "blue eyes." She is curious if anyone has seen him, hoping he has not decided to end their relationship. The song was produced by Ken Mansfield and Colter's husband Waylon Jennings, both of whom produced Colter's previous single, "I'm Not Lisa" and the associated album. Since its release, the song has been covered by Jennings as duet with Colter for their 1981 collaboration, '' Leather and Lace.''

Chart performance

"What's Happened to Blue Eyes" was released as Colter's second single on Capitol Records and was issued August 4, 1975. The song made its chart debut on the country list shortly afterwards on August 23. The song became Colter's second major hit as a solo recording artist, reaching a peak of #5 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart, as well as becoming a minor hit on the

Pop chart A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, often in combination. These include re ...

, peaking at #57 around the same time. It would be released on her debut Capitol album, ''

.'' The song was the follow-up single to Colter's major

country pop Country pop (also known as urban cowboy or even urban country) is a fusion genre of country music and pop music that was developed by members of the country genre out of a desire to reach a larger, mainstream audience. Country pop music blends g ...

crossover hit, " I'm Not Lisa", which was released earlier in the year.

Critical reception

'' magazine reviewed the song favorably, saying that "when she writes, she turns out masterpieces, and then when she does the interpretation herself, it is superb. This is a case in point."''

'', August 16, 1975

Charts

Cover Versions

*In 1981, Colter's husband,

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

recorded the song on their 1981 duet album, '' Leather and Lace''.

References

{{Jessi Colter 1975 singles Jessi Colter songs Songs written by Jessi Colter 1974 songs Capitol Records singles