| "Lights" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Japan picture sleeve | ||||
| Single byJourney | ||||
| from the albumInfinity | ||||
| B-side | "Opened the Door" | |||
| Released | June 16, 1978 (UK)[1] August 1978 (US)[2] | |||
| Recorded | 1977 | |||
| Genre | Soft rock[3] | |||
| Length | 3:09 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Songwriters | Steve Perry,Neal Schon | |||
| Producer | Roy Thomas Baker | |||
| Journey singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Lights" onYouTube | ||||
"Lights" is a song recorded by Americanrock bandJourney and written bySteve Perry andNeal Schon, released in 1978.
The song is about Journey's city of origin,San Francisco, although it was actually written in and originally intended to be aboutLos Angeles. It was one of Steve Perry's first Journey songs, and was recorded soon after joining the band. In an interview, Perry said, "I had the song written in Los Angeles almost completely except for the bridge and it was written about Los Angeles. It was 'when the lights go down in the city and the sun shines on L-A.' I didn't like the way it sounded at the time. And so I just had it sitting back in the corner. Then life changed my plans once again, and I was now facing joining Journey. I love San Francisco, the bay, and the whole thing. 'The bay' fit so nice, 'When the lights go down in the city and the sun shines on the bay.' It was one of those early-morning-going-across-the-bridge things, when the sun was coming up and the lights were going down. It was perfect."[4]
Released as a single in 1978, it was originally only a minor hit, reaching number 68 on theBillboard Hot 100 at the time.[5] It has, however, become more popular over the years and is now one of Journey's most popular and easily recognizable songs and is often played in Classic Hits/Oldies radio stations. It is frequently played atSan Francisco Giants baseball games (including versions led by Perry himself at Game 2 of the2010 World Series,[6] Games 1[7] and 2[8] of the2012 World Series, and Games 4 and 5 of the2014 World Series[9]) and the cross-bayOakland Athletics after-game fireworks starts. The song is now usually played atLevi's Stadium when theNFLSan Francisco 49ers win a home game. It is sometimes used inpromos for theGolden State Warriors. The song was also played right before the start of game 4 of the1989 World Series onABC Sports.
Journey released a live version of the song in 1993 for theTime³ box set. This recording reached #30 on the Adult Contemporary chart.[10]
The song was the last to be played during theTop 40 era ofKFRC, a legendary San Francisco radio station, before a format change tonostalgia/adult standards in 1986.[11]
Television stationKIII, theABC affiliate inCorpus Christi, Texas used this song during theirsign-offs in the late 1980s.
Cash Box praised the "searching guitar work" and "excellent lead and backing vocals."[12]Record World said that it "has an easy '50s rock beat and an outstanding lead vocal" and that "the sweet high harmony hook is compelling."[13]
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[14] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Studio albums | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack albums | |
| EPs | |
| Live albums | |
| Compilation albums | |
| Singles |
|
| Videos | |
| Documentaries | |
| Tours | |
| Video games | |
| Related articles | |
