"I'd Rather Go Blind" is a Blues

Blues

Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...

 song written by Ellington Jordan and co-credited to Billy Foster. It was first recorded by Etta James

Etta James

Etta James is an American blues, soul, rhythm and blues , rock and roll, gospel and jazz singer. In the 1950s and 1960s, she had her biggest success as a blues and R&B singer...

 in 1968, and has subsequently become regarded as a blues

Blues

Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...

 and soul

Soul music

Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...

 classic.

Original version by Etta James

Etta James wrote in her autobiography Rage To Survive that she heard the song outlined by her friend Ellington "Fugi" Jordan when she visited him in prison. She then wrote the rest of the song with Jordan, but for tax reasons gave her songwriting credit to her partner at the time, Billy Foster.

Etta James recorded the song at the FAME Studios

FAME Studios

FAME Studios are located at 603 East Avalon in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. They have been an integral part of American popular music from the late 1950s to the present...

 in Muscle Shoals, Alabama

Muscle Shoals, Alabama

Muscle Shoals is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States. As of 2007, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population of the city to be 12,846. The city is included in The Shoals MSA. It is famous for its contributions to American popular music.-Geography:Muscle Shoals is located...

. It was included on the album Tell Mama

Tell Mama

Tell Mama is the seventh studio album by American Blues artist, Etta James. The album was released August 21, 1968 on Cadet Records and was produced by Rick Hall. Tell Mama was James's first album since 1963 to enter the Billboard 200 albums chart and contained her first Top 10 and 20 hits since 1964...

and as the B-side of the single of the same name which made number 10 on the Billboard R&B charts and number 23 on the pop charts. Some critics have regarded "I'd Rather Go Blind" as of such emotional and poetic quality that it makes that release one of the great double-sided singles of the period. Critic Dave Marsh

Dave Marsh

Dave Marsh is an American music critic, author, editor and radio talk show host. He was a formative editor of Creem magazine, has written for various publications such as Newsday, The Village Voice, and Rolling Stone, and has published numerous books about music and musicians, mostly focused on...

 put the song in his book The Heart of Rock and Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.

Other versions

It has since been recorded by a wide variety of artists, including Clarence Carter

Clarence Carter

Clarence Carter is a blind American soul singer and musician.-Life and career:Born in Montgomery, Alabama on 14 January 1936, Carter attended the Alabama School for the Blind in Talladega, Alabama, and Alabama State College in Montgomery, graduating in August 1960 with a Bachelor of Science degree...

, blind from birth, on his 1969 album The Dynamic Clarence Carter. Other recordings include those by Little Milton

Little Milton

James Milton Campbell, Jr. , better known as Little Milton, was an American electric blues, rhythm and blues, and soul singer and guitarist, best known for his hit records "Grits Ain't Groceries" and "We're Gonna Make It."-Biography:Milton was born James Milton Campbell, Jr., in the Mississippi...

, Chicken Shack

Chicken Shack

Chicken Shack are a British blues band, founded in the mid-1960s by Stan Webb , Andy Silvester , and Alan Morley , who were later joined by Christine Perfect in 1968.-Career:...

, Koko Taylor

Koko Taylor

Koko Taylor sometimes spelled KoKo Taylor was an American Chicago blues musician, popularly known as the "Queen of the Blues." She was known primarily for her rough, powerful vocals and traditional blues stylings....

, Man Man

Man Man

Man Man is an experimental band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Man Man is known for their exuberant live performances. When performing, the members of the band sometimes coordinate their outfits, often seen in white outfits and, more commonly, war paint....

, Rod Stewart

Rod Stewart

Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....

, B.B. King, Paul Weller, Ruby Turner

Ruby Turner

Ruby Turner is a British R&B and soul singer, songwriter and actress. In 1967, she relocated with her family to Handsworth, Birmingham, England when she was nine years old...

, Marcia Ball

Marcia Ball

Marcia Ball is an American blues singer and pianist, born in Orange, Texas but who grew up in Vinton, Louisiana. She was described in USA Today as "a sensation, saucy singer and superb pianist.....

, Sydney Youngblood

Sydney Youngblood

Sydney Youngblood is an American born German singer, who had several successful dance/funk hits during the late 1980s and early 1990s.-Career:...

 and Beyoncé Knowles

Beyoncé Knowles

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles , often known simply as Beyoncé, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child...

 for the Cadillac Records

Cadillac Records

Cadillac Records is a 2008 musical biopic written and directed by Darnell Martin. The film explores the musical era from the early 1940s to the late 1960s, chronicling the life of the influential Chicago-based record-company executive Leonard Chess, and the musicians who recorded for Chess...

 Soundtrack.

The song reached number 14 on the UK pop charts in 1969 in a version by British blues band Chicken Shack, featuring Christine Perfect, later to become Christine McVie

Christine McVie

Christine McVie is an English rock singer, keyboardist, and songwriter. Her primary fame came as a member of the British/American rock band Fleetwood Mac, though she has also released three solo albums...

 of Fleetwood Mac

Fleetwood Mac

Fleetwood Mac are a British–American rock band formed in 1967 in London.The only original member present in the band is its eponymous drummer, Mick Fleetwood...

.

Rod Stewart covered the song on his 1972 album Never a Dull Moment. Etta James refers to Stewart's version favorably in her autobiography, Rage to Survive.

A version of the song was the follow-up single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 to UK singer Sydney Youngblood's third single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 release, "Ain't No Sunshine

Ain't No Sunshine

"Ain't No Sunshine" is a song by Bill Withers from his 1971 album Just as I Am, produced by Booker T. Jones. The record featured musicians Donald "Duck" Dunn on bass guitar and Al Jackson, Jr. on drums, as well as Withers on lead vocals and guitar. The song was released as a single in September...

", which was popular in the UK. Although "Ain't No Sunshine" peaked in the UK Top 20, "I'd Rather Go Blind" missed the Top 40, peaking at number 44 on the UK pop charts. However, it appeared on Now That's What I Call Music! 17. It appeared on the CD before the actual single was released.

On the British version of The X Factor

The X Factor (UK)

The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. Created by Simon Cowell, it began in September 2004 and is contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. It is the originator of the international X Factor franchise. The seven series of the show to date...

, the song has been covered by Ashley McKenzie (Series 3), and Katie Waissel (Series 7).

A version of this song has been performed by Paolo Nutini

Paolo Nutini

Paolo Giovanni Nutini is a Scottish singer, songwriter and musician from Paisley. His father is of Italian descent, from Barga, Tuscany, although both his parents are Scottish, his family having been in Scotland for three generations....

 Australian musician Toby, and American folk singer Holly Miranda

Holly Miranda

Holly Miranda is an American singer-songwriter and musician. Besides being trained in piano, Holly is a self-taught guitar and trumpet player. In 2001, she recorded "High Above The City", a 20-track solo album available only at shows. In the fall of 2003, Holly met and teamed up with Alex Lipsen,...

.