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Robert John, Crooner Behind Number One Hit ‘Sad Eyes,’ Dead at 79

Robert John, the singer-songwriter who scored a Number One hit in 1979 with his song, 'Sad Eyes,' has died at the age of 79.

John recorded a few more songs for labels like Big Top and Verve, but after further success failed to materialize, he stepped away from music and spent the mid-Sixties working as a production manager for trade magazines (via The Billboard Book of Number One Hits). John and Gately secured publishing deals, and the pair went on to write songs for artists including Lou Rawls, Blood, Sweat & Tears, and Bobby Vinton. Along with topping the Hot 100, “Sad Eyes” earned John a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male (though he lost the prize to Billy Joel’s “52nd Street”).

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