Song · Todd Rundgren
“I Saw The Light” by Todd Rundgren
From the album Something/Anything? (1972)
“I Saw The Light” by Todd Rundgren appears on 9 radio countdowns from 6 stations between 2001 and 2023. It was first released in 1972 on the album Something/Anything?. Its best result is #223 on the 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '70s. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #1,944 indie & aaa song of all time and #222 of the '70s.
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Todd Rundgren wanted a hit, and he said so: "I Saw the Light" leads off his 1972 album Something/Anything? because, as his liner notes explain, he was borrowing Motown's habit of putting the hit up front. He knocked it out in 20 minutes, a speed he credits to stimulants like Ritalin, and he has cheerfully admitted the rhymes are strictly greeting-card stuff.
Rundgren is the whole show here: he wrote it, arranged it, produced it, sings it and is credited on the instruments, a one-man band on Bearsville. It's power pop with a grin, sweet as a sugar rush, and proof that a song dashed off in a hurry doesn't have to sound slight.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Indie & Adult Alternative
Classic Rock
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 1110 | WFPK | WFPK 2001 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2000 |
| 2009 | 763 | WXPN | WXPN 885 Desert Island Songs (2009) | 885 |
| 2012 | 869 | WXPN | WXPN 885 Greatest Rock Songs (2012) | 885 |
| 2014 | 398 | Big 100 | BIG 1000 New Year's Countdown (2014) | 1000 |
| 2020 | 612 | WXPN | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2020 |
| 2021 | 551 | Q104.3 | Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) | 1043 |
| 2022 | 223 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '70s | 908 |
| 2022 | 1020 | WYEP | WYEP Countdown to Fall 2022 | 603 |
| 2023 | 871 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time | 909 |
Also listed as: I Saw the Light.
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