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.
All Through the Night
Sleeping at Last Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All through the night, this precious time, when time is new.
All, all through the night today, knowing that we feel the same,
Without saying, the same without saying
We have no past, we won't reach back,
Keep with me forward all through the night
And once we start a meter clicks,
Until it ends, there is no end.
All through the night a stray cat is crying, stray cat sings back.
All through the night, they have forgotten what body they lack.
Under those white street lamps, there is a little chance they may see you,
A chance they may see you.
We have no past, we won't reach back
Keep with me forward all through the night,
And once we start, the meter clicks,
It goes running all through the night.
Until it ends, there is no end,
Keep with me forward all through the night and once we start,
The meter clicks, and goes running all through the night.
Until it ends, there is no end, keep with me forward all through the night.
Keep with me all through the night.
The lyrics of Sleeping at Last's All Through the Night is about the precious moments shared between two individuals who feel the same way towards each other. Their connection is so strong that they don't need words to communicate. They are both fully present in the moment, and they want this time to last forever. They have no past to look back on, and as they move forward, they are experiencing something new and exciting. Their connection sets off a "meter" that starts to click and goes running "all through the night." The singer realizes that there is no end to this moment, and they can keep going forward together.
Amidst this special moment between the two people, there is a stray cat crying out. The cat's sorrowful cries are met with a response from another stray cat that sings back. The imagery of the stray cats creates a contrast to the moment shared between the two people. The stray cats have forgotten the bodies that they lack, while the two individuals are so present in their bodies and fully connected with each other. The chance of the stray cats seeing the singer creates a sense of vulnerability as they understand that there is a possibility for outside forces to interrupt their moment. The singer ends the song by requesting their partner to keep with them all through the night, until the end, signifying the desire for this moment to last.
Line by Line Meaning
All through the night, I'll be awake and I'll be with you.
I'll stay up all night to be there for you and with you.
All through the night, this precious time, when time is new.
The night is a special time when everything feels fresh and new.
All, all through the night today, knowing that we feel the same,
We're spending the whole night together, feeling the same way and understanding each other without even having to say it.
Without saying, the same without saying
We understand each other without having to speak.
We have no past, we won't reach back,
We're leaving the past behind and not dwelling on it.
Keep with me forward all through the night
Let's stay together and keep moving forward throughout the night.
And once we start a meter clicks,
Once we begin, time starts ticking away like a meter.
And it goes running all through the night.
Time will continue to pass quickly throughout the entire night.
Until it ends, there is no end.
The night seems endless until it's over.
All through the night a stray cat is crying, stray cat sings back.
Even a stray cat is up at night, making its voice heard and singing along with us.
All through the night, they have forgotten what body they lack.
The stray cat and other creatures forget their physical limitations and just enjoy the freedom of the nighttime.
Under those white street lamps, there is a little chance they may see you,
Even in the darkness, there's a possibility they might catch a glimpse of you under the street lamps.
A chance they may see you.
There's always a chance for something unexpected to happen.
Keep with me all through the night.
Stay with me throughout the whole night, and let's make the most of every moment together.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Ryan O'Neal
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Nico du Toit
All through the night
I'll be awake and I'll be with you
All through the night
This precious time when time is new
All, all through the night today
Knowing that we feel the same without saying
The same without saying
We have no past we won't reach back
Keep with me forward all through the night
And once we start the meter clicks
And it goes running all through the night
Until it ends there is no end
All through the night
Stray cat is crying so stray cat sings back
All through the night
They have forgotten what by day they lack
Oh, under those white street lamps
There is a little chance they may see
A chance they may see
We have no past we won't reach back
Keep with me forward all through the night
And once we start the meter clicks
It goes running all through the night
Until it ends there is no end
Keep with me
Forward all through the night
And once we start, the meter clicks
And goes running all through the night
Until it ends there is no end
Keep with me forward all through the night
Keep with me all through the night
samantha johansson
the guy who chose the songs in TVD is a god
Reina Hunt
Facttts
Hoes Madz
Every single song in the show was perfect 😢
Multi Fandom Fan
FACTSSSSSSSSSSS
anice abraham
Ikr . I literally found this song through tvd . All the songs are amazing
Myrah
"And in that moment... I loved him.. I mean I didn't want to, it terrified me but... for that moment.. I loved him."
The Vampire Diaries 6x02 Elena and Damon #delena 😭❤
Maira Ashley
Teenage Mess now you made me cry😭❤️
shaharv945
Chills
LOCAL DREAMER
Myrah V just finished that episode!!!
Bug
Myrah V.
I just watched that scene form the Vampire Diaries. So emotional. 😭 it’s my favorite show, but it pulls my heart strings.