"I Saw the Light" is a song written and performed by American musician

Todd Rundgren Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, multimedia artist, sound engineer and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the band Ut ...

that was released as the opening track from his 1972 album ''

Something/Anything? ''Something/Anything?'' is the third album by American musician Todd Rundgren, released in February 1972. It was his first double album, and was recorded in late 1971 in Los Angeles, New York City and Bearsville Studios, Woodstock. Three quarte ...

''. In the album's liner notes, Rundgren states that he intended the song to be the hit of the album, and copied the

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

tradition of putting hit songs at the beginning of albums. Rundgren wrote the track in 20 minutes, a feat he attributes to his reliance on stimulants such as

Ritalin Methylphenidate, sold under the brand names Ritalin and Concerta among others, is the most widely prescribed central nervous system (CNS) stimulant medication used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and, to a lesser extent ...

. "It caused me to crank out songs at an incredible pace. You can see why, too, the rhymes are just moon/June/spoon kind of stuff."

Appearances

"I Saw The Light" features in the first episode of the '' Sex and the City'' spinoff '' And Just Like That...'', and the films '' My Girl'', ''

Kingpin Kingpin or king pin may refer to: Vehicular part * Kingpin (automotive part), the pivot in the steering mechanism ** The central bolt of a skateboard, axle assembly ("truck"), around which the rest of the mechanism can flex, allowing the rider ...

'', ''

American Hustle ''American Hustle'' is a 2013 American historical black comedy crime film directed by David O. Russell. It was written by Eric Warren Singer and Russell, inspired by the FBI Abscam operation of the late 1970s and early 1980s. It stars Christia ...

'', ''

A Very Murray Christmas ''A Very Murray Christmas'' is a 2015 American Christmas musical comedy film directed by Sofia Coppola and co-written by Bill Murray, Mitch Glazer, and Coppola. The film features an ensemble cast including Bill Murray, George Clooney, Paul ...

'', and ''

Licorice Pizza ''Licorice Pizza'' is a 2021 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. It stars Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman in their film debuts, alongside an ensemble supporting cast including Sean Penn, Tom Waits, Bradley Coo ...

'', when the main character, Gary sees Alana with his former co-star Lance. The song is also heard in season 3, episode 11 of '' Six Feet Under'' and season 4, episode 11 of '' Ozark''.

Personnel

– all instruments and vocals

Charts

Weekly charts Year-end charts

Cover versions

* 1972 – The New Seekers, '' Circles'' * 1985 – Yukihiro Takahashi, ''Once a Fool'' * 1984 – Herman Brood, ''

The Brood ''The Brood'' is a 1979 Canadian psychological body horror film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring Oliver Reed, Samantha Eggar, and Art Hindle. Its plot follows a man and his mentally ill ex-wife, who has been sequestered by a ...

'' (as "Eyes") * 1987 –

Mood Six Mood Six were a neo-psychedelic band formed in London's West End in 1982. Emerging from the remnants of punk bands (Security Risk), mod revival groups like The Merton Parkas and The V.I.P.s, their original lineup included Phil Ward, Tony Conway, ...

, "I Saw the Light" (A video for the song made the rounds on MTV's "120 Minutes") * 1989 –

Workshy Workshy is an English band formed in London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in ...

, ''The Golden Mile''. * 1997 – Terry Hall, ''

Laugh Laughter is a Pleasure, pleasant physical reaction and emotion consisting usually of rhythmical, often audible contractions of the Thoracic diaphragm, diaphragm and other parts of the respiratory system. It is a response to certain external or ...

'' (released as a single) * 1997 –

Lori Carson Lori Carson (born March 2, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter whose albums include ''Shelter'' (DGC-Geffen, 1990), ''Where it Goes'' (Restless Records, 1995), '' Everything I Touch Runs Wild'' (Restless Records, 1997) and ''Another Year'' (B ...

, ''Everything I Touch Runs Wild''. * 1998 – Hal Ketchum, ''I Saw the Light''. It reached No. 36 on the US country charts, and No. 50 on the Canadian country charts. * 2012 – Yo La Tengo, ''Super Hits of the Seventies'' (also released on deluxe versions of their ''

Fade Fade or Fading may refer to: Science and technology * Fading, a loss of signal strength at a radio receiver * Color fade, the alteration of color by light * Fade (audio engineering), a gradual change in sound volume * Brake fade, in vehicle brakin ...

'') * 2013 – ''Tabea'', ''Memories'' * 2015 –

Jason Schwartzman Jason Francesco Schwartzman (born June 26, 1980) is an American actor and musician. Schwartzman made his film debut in Wes Anderson's 1998 film '' Rushmore'', and has gone on to appear in six other Anderson films: ''The Darjeeling Limited'' (20 ...

, Rashida Jones,

Maya Rudolph Maya Rudolph (born July 27, 1972) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. In 2000, she became a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''), and later played supporting roles in the films '' 50 First Dates'' ...

, David Johansen and Bill Murray, ''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:I Saw The Light (Todd Rundgren Song) Todd Rundgren songs 1972 singles 1998 singles Songs written by Todd Rundgren Song recordings produced by Todd Rundgren Bearsville Records singles Curb Records singles Hal Ketchum songs