Rod Cathey is a customer service representative for a software manufacturer in Florida. He is a long time DP fan, being turned on to rock singing after, as a teen, hearing Ian Gillan sing Child in Time. Rod has played in several bands in Florida (some with Dennis Bozeman, who contributed the music trakcs on this recording, playing guitar, keyboards, and a Yamaha RX 21 drum machine).
The song was written by Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord, and Paice, and recorded during the Machine Head sessions in December 1971 and hidden on the b-side of the Never Before single. The original track, released in March 1972, featured Ritchie Blackmore (guitar), Ian Gillan (vocals), Roger Glover (bass), Jon Lord (keyboards), and Ian Paice (drums). This song is one of the more powerful ballads that Deep Purple have written and recorded.
If you're leaving close the door. I'm not expecting people anymore. Hear me grieving, I'm lying on the floor. Whether I'm drunk or dead I really ain't too sure. I'm a blind man, I'm a blind man and my world is pale. When a blind man cries, Lord, you know there ain't no sadder tale. Had a friend once in a room, had a good time but it ended much too soon. In a cold month in that room we found a reason for the things we had to do. I'm a blind man, I'm a blind man, now my room is cold. When a blind man cries, Lord, you know he feels it from his soul.