3. Light On

I didn’t like “Light On” very much the first time I heard it, and I was actually quite disappointed until I heard the acoustic bit at 2:50, and then I was happy again (I’m easy, what can I say?). It’s still not one of my favourite songs on the album, though I have since warmed up to it.

A lot of my hesitance when it comes to “Light On” has to do with the fact that it sounds to me like there is too much going on in the song, like it’s trying to be too many things at once. And while having layers in a song does keep it interesting in the long run, it’s difficult to take it all in on the first listen. The behavior of this song on the charts seems to mirror this feeling; “Light On” is definitely one of those songs that sounds overwhelming at first, but then gets better and more intriguing each time you listen to it.

“Light On” is probably the most rhythmically interesting song on the album. While the foundation of “Light On” is clearly in 4/4 time, the melodies that sit above it move much more quickly, and in odd ways. I love that each line in the verses was preceded by a triplet, and that the bass line goes one-two-and-three-and and ignores the fourth beat entirely. Also, the vocal part is full of pick-up notes and tied notes, so that most of the song is actually in the downbeats. For instance, in the line “Try to keep a light on,” the “on” is on the pick-up to beat two. And I love that the emphasis of this song is on beats one and three, which kind of give it a bit of the swagger that David talks about (that I didn’t get until now).

I do feel, however, that “Light On” is melodically weaker than some of the other songs on the album. One of the reasons why my favourite version of “Light On” is the WPLJ acoustic version is because David didn’t go up on “words can never MAKE me stay.” For all that I love David’s upper register, that glory note sounds gratuitous and takes away from “you don’t know how BAD it feels,” in which the glory note is justified and – by then – has sufficient build up to sound spectacular rather than simply unexpected. I also don’t like how repetitive the song is; the first and second verses are melodically almost identical, as are the choruses (compare that to the first and second verses of “Declaration”). I personally like my songs to go somewhere, and this song is just as bombastic at the beginning as it is in the middle and end. The part with just his voice and the piano is beautiful, and a nice break from the bridge, which is a bit shouty.

Lyrically, “Light On” doesn’t move me as much as other songs on DCTR do, probably because I’m too distracted by everything else about the song. The acoustic versions, which are more stripped down, reveal more of the longing in the lyrics. I do believe, though, that the message in the song is excellent, and if he plays this song for the Armed Forces, I doubt there would be a dry eye in the room.

Rating: 3.5/5 album, 4.5/5 acoustic
Comments: if David ever makes an acoustic album of his songs, this one had better be on it.