Near its inception, Sleeping At Last's amateur debut album, Capture, was noticed by Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan, who helped expose the music to the major-label world. Soon after, the band signed to Interscope Records and released 2003's Ghosts , their first official full-length album. Two independently-released full-length records followed: 2006's Keep No Score and 2009's Storyboards . In between the writing and recording of albums, the band has established a reputation for a pitch-perfect live show, successfully headlining several U.S. tours and sharing the stage with such artists as Switchfoot, Yellowcard, Something Corporate, Billy Corgan's Zwan, Alanis Morrisette, Lifehouse, and Phantom Planet, just to name a few. The creative process has always been protected, as the band self-produced each record, working with respected mixers such as John Goodmanson and Alan Moulder.
After the departure of drummer Chad O'Neal in 2011, the remaining duo embarked on the ambitious Yearbook project, in which O'Neal and Perdue released three songs on the first of every month in individual EPs. After its completion, all EPs were compiled into an LP and published independently. However, upon the final release of the Yearbook series, Perdue stepped down from the duo, leaving Ryan O'Neal a solo artist under the group's pre-existing moniker.
On December 10, 2012, O'Neal announced his largest project to date: the Atlas series, a three-part project approaching the themes of the origins of the universe and human development. Similar to 2011's Yearbook compilation, each set of new songs would be released as individual EPs until each part's completion, at which time the compilation of songs would be released as an LP. Up to now, 2014's Atlas I and 2019's Atlas II remain as stellar examples of O'Neal's accomplishments as a solo independent artist. Production on Atlas III is in progress, and its first two songs, "Overture III" and "Awake" have been released as singles.
Besides the Atlas series, O'Neal has kept busy with other projects, including three albums of covers commissioned by ABC's "Grey's Anatomy", in which Sleeping At Last has appeared a whopping 77 times. Sleeping At Last also produced the scores for the documentaries Many Beautiful Things (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) and charity:water's The Spring (Original Score). Finally, O'Neal has released multiple singles surrounding significant astronomical events, published as a compilation in 2020 under the title of Astronomy, Vol. 1.
Sleeping At Last has long been a beacon shining brightly on behalf of independent artists. In the ever-changing climate of the music industry, the quest for a successful independent career seems evermore difficult to attain. From his new home in L.A., O'Neal pursues this challenge relentlessly through his commitment to musical integrity in his songwriting, and in this way nurtures a unique and personal relationship with his listeners. He has remained true to the things that brought him to music in the first place: his love of melody and the power of words. His music and lyrics emerge from a place that is honest, raw, and spiritual: Says Ryan, "Our faith is a big part of who we are, but we have always intended our music to be for anyone that cares to listen, no matter who they are or what they believe in. Everyone hears a song in a different light."
In keeping with this, Ryan's lyrics ask every important question that occurs. While he promises no fast, sure answers, he somehow always offers hope as the consistent, overarching theme.
As Long As You Love Me
Sleeping At Last Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm leavin' my life in your hands
People say I'm crazy and that I am blind
Risking it all in a glance
And how you got me blind is still a mystery
I can't get you out of my head
I don't care who you are
Where you're from
What you did
As long as you love me
Who you are
Where you're from
what you did
As long as you love me
Every little thing that you have said and done
Feels like it's deep within me
Doesn't really matter if you're on the run
It seems like we're meant to be
I don't care who you are
Where you're from
What you did
As long as you love me
Who you are
Where you're from
what you did
As long as you love me
I've tried to hide it so that no one knows
But I guess it shows
When you look into my eyes
What you did and where you're coming from
Well I don't care, as long as you love me
as long as you love me
I don't care who you are
Where you're from
What you did
As long as you love me
Who you are
Where you're from
what you did
As long as you love me
As long as you love me
As long as you love me
The song "As Long as You Love Me" by Sleeping At Last is a love ballad that talks about the power of love and the willingness to overlook past mistakes and accept someone for who they are. The lyrics start by acknowledging the singer’s history with loneliness, but then they put their trust and life into their partner's hands, despite everyone else's concerns.
The singer is fully aware of the risks of loving someone, especially if this person has been considered crazy or blind by others. However, the love between them is so strong that it blinds them, and they cannot stop thinking about it. The lyrics claim that it doesn't matter who this person is or where they come from, as long as they love the singer back.
The chorus repeats the idea that the past is unimportant, and it is the love that ultimately matters. Even if they are on the run or have a checkered past, it doesn't matter, as long as they love the singer. The song goes on to showcase that the love between them is so intense that every little thing that the partner has said or done is deeply ingrained in the singer's mind.
The lyrics also reveal the singer's struggle to hide their feelings but failing to do so as their love for the partner overpowers everything else. Overall, the song conveys a message of unconditional love and acceptance while emphasizing that the value of a person lies in the way they love.
Line by Line Meaning
Loneliness has always been a friend of mine
The feeling of being lonely is familiar and comfortable to me.
I'm leavin' my life in your hands
I trust you enough to entrust my entire life to you.
People say I'm crazy and that I am blind
Others perceive my love for you as irrational and misguided.
Risking it all in a glance
I am willing to take a huge risk and make a very important decision at a single momentary glance.
And how you got me blind is still a mystery
I don't understand how you are able to capture my attention so entirely and leave me unable to see anything else.
I can't get you out of my head
You are constantly on my mind and I cannot stop thinking about you.
As long as you're here with me
Being in your presence is all that matters to me.
I don't care who you are
Where you're from
What you did
Your identity and past actions do not matter to me as long as you love me.
Who you are
Where you're from
what you did
The same as above; repeated for emphasis.
Every little thing that you have said and done
Feels like it's deep within me
Every word and action of yours has affected me profoundly and become a part of who I am.
Doesn't really matter if you're on the run
It seems like we're meant to be
Even if you are in a difficult situation, I feel like we are truly meant to be together.
I've tried to hide it so that no one knows
But I guess it shows
When you look into my eyes
I have tried to hide my feelings from others, but I cannot hide them from you.
As long as you love me
Reiterating that nothing else but your love matters to me.
Contributed by Adeline S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.