Long As I Can See the Light

"Long As I Can See the Light" is a song by American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival, from the album Cosmo's Factory. Released as the flip side of the single "Lookin' Out My Back Door" in 1970, it reached number 57 on the Cash Box singles chart in the US, number 20 in the UK (in the UK, "Long As I Can See the Light" was on the A-side, and "Lookin' Out My Back Door" on the flip), and number one in Norway.

"Long As I Can See the Light"
Single by Creedence Clearwater Revival
from the album Cosmo's Factory
A-side	"Lookin' Out My Back Door"
Released	July 25, 1970 (1970-07-25)[1]
Genre	Rock[2] gospel[2] New Orleans soul[3]
Length	3:33
Label	Fantasy
Songwriter(s)	John Fogerty
Producer(s)	John Fogerty
Creedence Clearwater Revival singles chronology
"Up Around the Bend" (1970) "Long As I Can See the Light" (1970) "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" (1971)

Cash Box compared it to "Lookin' Out My Back Door", calling "Long as I Can See the Light" "a slower paced ballad from the blues school. More subtle, but a good bet to overtake the “Lookin’” side."^[4] Billboard called it a "funky blues number."^[5]

The two songs were also released as a double-sided single and peaked at number two in the US.^[6]

"Long As I Can See the Light" appears on most Creedence Clearwater Revival compilation albums, notably The Best of Creedence Clearwater Revival and Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits.^[7] It became a concert staple for singer John Fogerty as a solo artist.^[8]

Fogerty biographer Thomas M. Kitts describes the song as depicting a "world-weary figure", perhaps Jeremiah, who "undertakes an uncertain journey." The singer is confident as long as he "can see the light." Kitts points out that the word 'light' has two meanings in the song: a spiritual meaning, such as in "The Lord is my light" from Psalm 27, and "the secular light of love". He describes the music as having a "hymnal, church-like feel."^[9]

Fogerty expressed surprise at having come up with a candle as a metaphor for a beacon guiding the singer home. He stated that the song is "about the loner in me. Wanting to feel understood, needing those at home to shine a light so that I can make my way back."^[10]

"If you tour a lot, it's one of those songs that just makes you miss home so badly," remarked Slipknot front-man Corey Taylor. "A really sombre piece."^[11]

The drum beat was sampled by Moby for "The Sky Is Broken" on his 1999 album Play.^[12]

2013 remake

Fogerty recorded a new version of the song, with the rock band My Morning Jacket, for his 2013 album Wrote a Song for Everyone. The remake was recorded at Blackbird Studio in Nashville on May 2, 2012.

References

1. Hibbert, Tom; Dawson, Jenny (1990). "Rock '70". In Ashley Brown (ed.). The Marshall Cavendish Illustrated History of Popular Music. Vol. 12 (Reference ed.). Freeport, New York: Marshall Cavendish. pp. 1342, 1343. ISBN 1-85435-027-7.
2. Stanley, Bob (13 September 2013). "I Can't Sing, I Ain't Pretty and My Legs Are Thin: Hard Rock". Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop. Faber & Faber. p. 263. ISBN 978-0-571-28198-5.
3. Molanphy, Chris (February 28, 2019). "The Bad Moon on the Rise Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
4. "CashBox Record Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. August 1, 1970. p. 34. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
5. "Spotlight Singles" (PDF). Billboard. August 1, 1970. p. 66. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
6. Sexton, Paul (August 8, 2019). "Another Double-Sided Winner For Creedence Clearwater Revival". Udiscovermusic.com.
7. "Long as I Can See the Light - Creedence Clearwater Revival | Song Info". AllMusic.
8. "John Fogerty Tour Statistics". Setlist.fm.
9. Kitts, Thomas M. (2015). John Fogerty: An American Son. Routledge. ISBN 9781317961260.
10. Fogerty, John (2016). Fortunate Son: My Life, My Music. Back Bay Books. ISBN 9780316244589.
11. "iPod Roulette". Classic Rock. No. 129. March 2009. p. 20.
12. "Making Moby: Play". Classicpopmag.com. 18 August 2021.