Eye Know
An upbeat love song built on Steely Dan, Otis Redding and the Mad Lads, and a UK top 15 hit.
De La Soul, from 3 Feet High and Rising (1989)
- Written by
- Kelvin Mercer, David Jolicoeur, Vincent Mason, Paul Huston, Walter Becker, Donald Fagen
- Released
- 1989
- Length
- 4:12
- Album
- 3 Feet High and Rising
An upbeat love song that reached number 14 on the UK singles chart and was not released as a single in the United States. Its guitar and horns come from the Mad Lads' Make This Young Lady Mine, the whistle from Otis Redding's (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay, and guitar, keyboard, bass and vocal samples from Steely Dan's Peg. The drums are from Lee Dorsey's Get Out of My Life, Woman, with more from Sly and the Family Stone's Sing a Simple Song. Pitchfork's Jeff Chang observed that Posdnuos's production put Steely Dan into conversation with Otis Redding and the Mad Lads.
The B-side, The Mack Daddy on the Left, has a 12-year-old guest rapper, Trugoy's cousin Jeff, who turned up again as Philly Black on The Sauce on AOI: Bionix. The song served as background music for Match of the Day 2 from 2004 to 2008 and appears in the 2023 film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.
More songs by De La Soul
Me Myself and I, The Magic Number, Say No Go, Buddy, Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)
Sources
- Eye Know, Wikipedia
- 3 Feet High and Rising (Sunday Review), Pitchfork (2018-09-23)
- De La Soul on their belated streaming debut, The Guardian (2023-02-23)