I'd Rather Go Blind

Etta James traveled to Rick Hall's FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to record the defining tracks of her career. "I'd Rather Go Blind" was an agonizing ballad about watching a lover walk away. The song originated with Ellington "Fugi" Jordan, who shared the idea with James while he was incarcerated; she helped finish it, and Billy Foster received a writing credit for business reasons. Backed by the Muscle Shoals rhythm section, James delivered a raw, emotionally devastating vocal performance, her voice breaking with genuine pain. Originally the B-side to "Tell Mama," the track endured as one of the most profound statements in Southern soul.