Download a reimagined R&B classic for Valentine’s Day from Kate Faust

Photo by George Weiss III – www.georgeweissthethird.com Singer-songwriter Kate Faust recently went into the studio and recorded “Eyes 4 U,” a re-imagined version of the classic tune, “I Only Have Eyes for You,” by The Flamingos. The Chicago based Rock and Roll Hall of Famers were a doo-wop and R&B group and had big hit when the song was released in 1959, reaching number 11 on the Billboard Pop Music Charts and number three on the Billboard R&B charts.

“Eyes 4 U” is a collaboration between Faust and students and faculty from the University of the Artsrecord label, Four Pillars Music Group. It features Kate (who arranged the song) on vocals and synthesizers, Jonathan Colman on bass and guitar and Justin Leigh on drums. It was recorded and mixed by Jacob Folk at the UArts studio. The song features Faust’s ethereal vocals set to seductive beats and bass lines. Faust and her band maintain the timelessness of the song while giving it a modern electronica spin.

(Read more: Kate Faust previews new songs with live videos)

In an e-mail, Faust said about the song:

It was such a thrill to work on this song. As a lover of music and a songwriter, I was first entranced by the hypnotic slowness of the beat and then by delivery of the amazing lyrics. I had it in my mind that I would add an urgency and a heightened sense of desire by driving up the tempo and changing the chord structure slightly. I wanted it to groove in a more incensed kind of way. I was thinking of the vulnerability of that sentiment ‘my love must be some kind of blind love/ I can’t see anyone but you…’ There is a bliss in giving up control as fear falls away from us and we allow another person to fill up our world. I quite like that idea. I know Valentine’s day is a phoney holiday…but I’ll always welcome an excuse to love love!

Below, download “Eyes 4 U.”