Wheeler is also a founding member of the female vocal group 'Brown Sugar' along with vocalist Kofi whose solo hit "Black is My Colour" is today considered in reggae circles a classic. In fact the two were re-united in October 2005 at the Metropolitan Black Police Association's annual gala at The Barbican in London.
After her success with Soul II Soul, Wheeler enbarked on a solo career, and released two albums: UK Blak (1990) and Beach of the War Goddess (1993). Her biggest solo success single is "Livin' In The Light" from her first solo album, which hit #53 on the Hot 100 and spent a week at #1 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart in 1989. It also reached the Top 20 in the UK Singles Chart.
Wheeler's only other solo Top 40 hit single was the title track from UK Blak. She also featured with Soul II Soul on the soundtrack to the Angela Bassett movie, How Stella Got Her Groove Back in 1998. More recently, Wheeler featured on Richard X's 2003 album, Richard X Presents His X-Factor Vol. 1
Livin' in the Light
Caron Wheeler Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Living in the light
Have to stay alive
Living in the light
Have to survive
Living in the light
(Stop the beat)
(Drop the beat)
Children of nature
From another culture
Had to survive
Living in the light
Stolen from the center
(Of the world)
Untimely departure
Somehow survived
Living in the light
Had to survive
Living in the light
Have to stay alive
Living in the light
Had to survive
Living in the light
Roots become subculture
Oh, the sound of
The street dub vendor
Knew you had to survive
Living in the light
Beautiful yet scattered
Through it all
Your spirit never shattered
Glad to stay alive
Living in the light (oh)
Had to survive (oh I, I, I)
Living in the light
Have to stay alive
Living in the light
(Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Had to survive
(Yes, in a light)
Living in the light
(So bright, had to guide you home)
Have to survive,
Living in the light
(Children of nature)
Have to stay alive
Living in the light
(Living in the light, yes)
Had to survive
(Had to survive)
Living in the light
There's ways we can sometimes
Turn our wrong to right
But some things
We can never change
Things can be so fine
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Living in the light
(Hold the beat)
(Stop the beat) oh
(Drop the beat)
To those who know
What I mean
And those who don't
I'll tell you
Follow good feeling through
And let the superficial
Pass you by, oh, yeah
Living in the light, oh
Yeah, yeah, oh
Had to survive
Living in the light
(Children of nature)
Have to stay alive
Living in the light
(Living in the light, yes)
Had to survive
(Had to survive)
Living in the light
(I, I, I) oh
Have to survive (oh I, I, I)
Living in the light (I, I)
Have to stay alive
Living in the light
(Living in the light, yes)
Had to survive
(Had to survive)
Living in the light
(Yeah) had to survive
Living in the light
(Ow) had to stay alive
Living in the light....
In this song, Caron Wheeler sings about the struggle to survive and stay alive while living in the light. The chorus repeats the phrase "had to survive, living in the light, have to stay alive, living in the light" to highlight the challenges that come with living a life that is open, honest, and true. She acknowledges that those who are children of nature from another culture may have a harder time surviving, being stolen from the center of the world and facing untimely departures. Despite this, they can still somehow survive by living in the light. The lyrics also describe how roots can become subculture and the sound of the street dub vendor can guide people home. The final message of the song is to follow a good feeling and let superficial things pass by to truly live in the light.
Line by Line Meaning
Had to survive
Life was tough, had no option but to persevere
Living in the light
Choosing to stay positive, optimistic and determined amidst tough times
Have to stay alive
Survival is important, giving up is not an option
(Hold the beat)
Pause the music for a moment
(Stop the beat)
Stop the music entirely for a while
(Drop the beat)
Lower the volume of the music
Children of nature
People who understand and respect the power of nature and its influence on them
From another culture
People who have a unique background and perspective
Stolen from the center
Taken away from an environment that they were familiar with
(Of the world)
The most important part of the world for them
Untimely departure
Left behind too soon, without adequate time to prepare
Somehow survived
Managed to hold on despite the odds against them
Roots become subculture
Their origins and beliefs have become a unique subculture
Oh, the sound of
An exclamation of joy at the sound of
The street dub vendor
The local music provider
Knew you had to survive
Understood that it was important to keep going
Beautiful yet scattered
Chaos and beauty coexist
Through it all
Despite challenges and struggles
Your spirit never shattered
Your optimism and determination never wavered
Glad to stay alive
Grateful for the chance to keep going
(oh)
Vocalization of emotion
There's ways we can sometimes
There are moments when we can
Turn our wrong to right
Fix our mistakes
But some things
There are certain things
We can never change
We cannot alter the past or some events that occur
Things can be so fine
Life can be great
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Reference to a website
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Reference to a website
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Reference to a website
To those who know
To the people who understand
What I mean
My intended message
And those who don't
And those who do not understand
I'll tell you
I will explain
Follow good feeling through
Trust your intuition and positive vibes
And let the superficial
And ignore objects or people that have shallow, meaningless importance
Pass you by, oh, yeah
Do not let those things affect you
(Yeah) had to survive
Yes, there were situations that I had to survive through
(Ow) had to stay alive
I had to persist and ensure survival
Contributed by Eliana M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Neisha Nine Starz
This song reminds me of my mom, that’s why I’m here. R.I.P. Mom 🙏🏽
mama1ove
Your mum had great taste. RIEP. 🙏✌
Kengie Holley
RIP. She had lovely taste
Sidney Atkins
She still here mommies girl
Anthony Njigua
May She RIP my best song ever
Rupert Pumpkin
Wow that’s deep and sweet of you too share
ots tv
one of the best singers to ever come out of the uk. what a voice and talent
Quincy Cooper
Agreed
Nikolas SoDiant
Oui.Sublime ♥︎
NawfsideHtown
This song is so inspiring.
Never give up.
Make it anyway you can.
The light is you
The light is God
The light is the time the sun is out.
Make each day count, every second every minute.
Survive.