About Her Eyes – a tender gaze, an enduring sentiment.
Embarking upon the story of About Her Eyes, recorded by the inimitable Jerry Jeff Walker, is like turning the pages of a weathered journal filled with the kind of memories that make your heart pause. The song appears on his 1969 album Five Years Gone (released on the Atco label). It does not appear to have entered the major Billboard charts as a single in its own right — it is one of those quieter gems that didn’t chase commercial success but instead whispered its truths to those willing to listen.
From the outset, the key facts place us firmly in a reflective space: Walker, born in 1942 and active as a singer‑songwriter deeply woven into the folk and outlaw country world, lends his voice to a composition by another (written by Keith Sykes) rather than one of his own. This collaboration is itself meaningful: a younger songwriter offering up a quiet, intimate reflection of human affection, and Walker interpreting it with a sincerity born of a life lived on backroads, troubadour‑style.
Behind the Song: The Story
The sequence of events feels almost serendipitous. Keith Sykes, an emerging songwriter at the time, brought “About Her Eyes” to Jerry Jeff’s attention. According to the liner‑notes for Five Years Gone, Sykes had written the song and Walker chose to include it on the album — in doing so, he welcomed a voice younger than his own into his songbook. The decision to record the track exhibits Walker’s willingness to share space, to let someone else’s lyrical voice ride the same road.
Though the song was not released as a high‑profile single with chart ambitions, its inclusion on Five Years Gone — an album overshadowed somewhat by Walker’s earlier successes but still meaningful to his core audience — means the song found its place among fans who cherished authenticity over flash.
On The Meaning
Listening now, you’ll hear how the lyrics focus on quiet observation rather than grandiose declarations. “About her eyes, now they’re misty shinin’ / About her hair, it’s long and clean…” begins the song. The narrator’s gaze is drawn to the little things — the softness of a face, the gleam of a gaze, the way a person carries purpose and fatigue together. It’s about noticing the human underneath the exterior: the inner, subtle signals of love, care, weariness, strength.
For older listeners, this kind of lyric often resonates as the sound of time passed but not forgotten — the kind of love that accumulates gentleness rather than shimmer, the kind that sees persistence rather than perfection. Walker’s voice adds a weather‑ed tenderness: you can imagine him strumming on a porch somewhere, casting his gaze backwards and forwards, and finding something worth singing about.
Significance and Legacy
“About Her Eyes” stands as a reminder that not every impactful song comes wrapped in commercial metrics. Its place in Walker’s catalogue is humble and heartfelt — it lives in the quiet corners of the album rather than the loud marquee. Because it did not chart significantly, it didn’t dominate airwaves or define Walker’s public persona. But for those who discovered it, the song became part of a deeper connection: the connection to the man who wandered through folk clubs, small‑town bars, and dusty highway intersections with his guitar in hand and stories in his heart.
Why It Matters for Us Today
For someone who lived through the era of folk troubadours and the outlaw country wave, this song is a kind of time capsule. It invites you to slow down, to lean in, to remember how music once arrived not with a billboard or a video but with a chord, a phrase, a meaning that took root. It’s a piece you might revisit late at night, alone with a cup of something warm, and feel the echo of decades weaving through you.
When we hear “About Her Eyes,” we’re invited to stand in the hush between growth and memory — to remember someone’s gaze, someone’s way of being soft and strong at once; to recall that sometimes the smallest observations are those that last longest. For a listener who has seen many seasons of life, the lyric “now they’re misty shinin’” reads like the gentle acceptance of life’s passage and the recognition of love that remains even when the scenery around has shifted.
In short: “About Her Eyes” may not have climbed the charts, but it ascended into the territory of enduring meaning. It stands as a quiet jewel in Jerry Jeff Walker’s journey and for any soul willing to listen, it offers the comfort of a memory, the warmth of a familiar porch‑light, and the resonance of a voice that knows the road.
Oldies Songs