American Freedom / The Great Summit is a 1961 jazz album by jazz giants Duk… Read Full Bio ↴American Freedom / The Great Summit is a 1961 jazz album by jazz giants Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong. They lead a small band playing classic compositions by Ellington such as 'Mood Indigo' and 'Black And Tan Fantasy'

By 1961 jazz was falling out of favour with the general public but this shows two of the most important people in early jazz still able to produce amazing music year after they have fallen out of the spotlight.

I'm Beginning To See The Light
Duke Ellington & Louis Armstrong Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I never cared much for moonlit skies
I never wink back at fireflies
But now that the stars are in your eyes
I'm beginning to see the light

I never went in for afterglow
Or candlelight on the mistletoe
But now when you turn the lamp down low

I'm beginning to see the light

Used to ramble through the park
Shadow boxing in the dark
Then you came and caused a spark
That's a four-alarm fire, now

I never made love by lantern shine
I never saw rainbows in my wine
But now that your lips are burning mine
I'm beginning to see the light

I never cared much for moonlit skies
I never wink back at fireflies
But now that the stars are in your eyes
I'm beginning to see the light

I never went in for afterglow
Or candlelight on the mistletoe
But now when you turn the lamp down low
I'm beginning to see the light

Used to ramble through the park
Shadow boxing in the dark
Then you came and caused a spark
That's a four-alarm fire, now

I never made love by lantern shine
I never saw rainbows in my wine
But now that your lips are burning mine
I'm beginning to see the light

Now that the stars are in your eyes
I'm beginning to see the light
Now when you turn the lamp down low
I'm beginning to see the light

Used to ramble through the park
Shadow boxing in the dark
Then you came and caused a spark
That's a four-alarm fire, now

Now that your lips are burning mine
I'm beginning to see the light
I'm beginning to see the light
I'm beginning to see the light

Now that your lips are burning mine
I'm beginning to see the light

Overall Meaning

The song "I'm Beginning To See The Light" talks about how the singer's perspective on life has changed due to falling in love. The first verse talks about how the singer never cared much for moonlit skies or fireflies, but now that they see the stars in their lover's eyes, they are beginning to see the light. The second verse mentions how the singer never cared for afterglow or candlelight, but now when their lover turns the lamp down low, they are beginning to see the light. The third verse refers to how the singer used to ramble through the park but now that their lover came and caused a spark, their love is a four-alarm fire. Finally, the last verse talks about how the singer has never made love by lantern shine or seen rainbows in their wine, but now that their lover's lips are burning theirs, they are beginning to see the light.

Overall, the song is a celebration of love and how it can change one's perspective on life. The metaphor of seeing the light is used to convey how falling in love can open up new possibilities and experiences that one may have never considered before.

Line by Line Meaning

I never cared much for moonlit skies
Moonlit skies never interested me much

I never wink back at fireflies
I never bothered to reciprocate the light of fireflies with a wink

But now that the stars are in your eyes
But now that I see the beauty of the stars reflected in your eyes

I'm beginning to see the light
I'm starting to understand the depth of my feelings for you

I never went in for afterglow
I was never into the romantic ambiance of afterglow

Or candlelight on the mistletoe
Nor the cliche of candlelight on mistletoe

But now when you turn the lamp down low
But now when you create an intimate environment by dimming the lights

I'm beginning to see the light
I'm starting to realize how special you are to me

Used to ramble through the park
I used to wander aimlessly through the park

Shadow boxing in the dark
Fighting my imaginary battles in the dark

Then you came and caused a spark
But then you showed up and ignited a new passion within me

That's a four-alarm fire, now
Which is now a raging four-alarm fire within me

I never made love by lantern shine
I never found the romance in making love by the light of a lantern

I never saw rainbows in my wine
I never saw the beauty in my wine like I do now

But now that your lips are burning mine
But now that we are passionately kissing

I'm beginning to see the light
I am starting to realize how much I care about you

Now that the stars are in your eyes
Now that I see the beauty of the universe reflected in your eyes

Now when you turn the lamp down low
Now when you create that intimate and special atmosphere by dimming the lights around us

Now that your lips are burning mine
Now that we are passionately kissing

I'm beginning to see the light
I am starting to see and understand my true feelings for you

I'm beginning to see the light
My realization of my feelings for you is growing stronger

I'm beginning to see the light
I am starting to understand the depths of love for you.

Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DUKE ELLINGTON, DON GEORGE, JOHNNIE HODGES, HARRY JAMES

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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