Let Your Dim Light Shine

Let Your Dim Light Shine is the seventh studio album by American rock band Soul Asylum, released June 6, 1995, on Columbia Records. Critically, it suffered in comparison to its predecessor, Grave Dancers Union, the band's breakout release. It includes the hit "Misery", which was parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic as "Syndicated Inc." on his album Bad Hair Day.

Let Your Dim Light Shine
Studio album by
Soul Asylum
ReleasedJune 6, 1995
Recorded1994–1995
GenreAlternative rock
Length49:59
LabelColumbia
Producer
Soul Asylum chronology
Grave Dancers Union
(1992)		 Let Your Dim Light Shine
(1995)		 Candy from a Stranger
(1998)
Singles from Let Your Dim Light Shine
  1. "Misery"
    Released: 1995
  2. "Just Like Anyone"
    Released: 1995
  3. "Promises Broken"
    Released: 1996

This was the first Soul Asylum album with drummer Sterling Campbell, who had previously provided half of the drums on Grave Dancers Union.

The album's title comes from a lyric of the song "Promises Broken".

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chicago Tribune[2]
Christgau's Consumer GuideB+[3]
Entertainment WeeklyB[4]
Los Angeles Times[5]
Q[6]
Rolling Stone[7]
Spin7/10[8]

AllMusic gave a mostly critical summary of Let Your Dim Light Shine, with Stephen Thomas Erlewine commenting that the music "isn't quite as impressive" compared to previous efforts, and moreover that this element is easily overlooked because of the "self-importance" of the lyrics.[1]

Track listing

All songs written by David Pirner unless noted otherwise.

  1. "Misery" – 4:24
  2. "Shut Down" – 2:51
  3. "To My Own Devices" – 2:59
  4. "Hopes Up" – 3:45
  5. "Promises Broken" (Dan Murphy, Marc Perlman) – 3:14
  6. "Bittersweetheart" – 3:34
  7. "String of Pearls" – 4:56
  8. "Crawl" (Stephen Jordan, Pirner) – 4:00
  9. "Caged Rat" – 3:03
  10. "Eyes of a Child" – 3:35
  11. "Just Like Anyone" – 2:47
  12. "Tell Me When" (Pirner, David Samuels) – 3:42
  13. "Nothing to Write Home About" – 3:14
  14. "I Did My Best" – 3:46

For the Japanese release of Let Your Dim Light Shine, an additional track was added to the album. It was a cover of the Descendents song "Hope". Note that "Bittersweetheart" fades out at 3:17, but the guitar feedback remains, therefore "Bittersweetheart" quickly segues into "String of Pearls". The running time of both songs equals about 8 minutes and 30 seconds long.

Personnel

Soul Asylum

Additional musicians

Production

Charts

Singles
Chart performance for singles from Let Your Dim Light Shine
Year Single Chart Position
1995 "Misery" US Billboard Hot 100 20
US Mainstream Rock Tracks 2
US Modern Rock Tracks 1
"Just Like Anyone" US Mainstream Rock Tracks 11
US Modern Rock Tracks 19
1996 "Promises Broken" US Billboard Hot 100 63
US Mainstream Rock Tracks 29
US Adult Contemporary 29

Certifications
Certifications for Let Your Dim Light Shine
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[22] 2× Platinum 200,000^
United States (RIAA)[23] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Let Your Dim Light Shine Review". AllMusic. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  2. Kot, Greg (June 8, 1995). "Pirner's Folly". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  3. Christgau, Robert (October 15, 2000). "Soul Asylum: Let Your Dim Light Shine". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan Publishing. ISBN 9780312245603.
  4. Browne, David (June 9, 1995). "Let Your Dim Light Shine". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  5. Hochman, Steve (June 4, 1995). "Album Review: Soul Asylum Is Searching With Its 'Dim Light'". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  6. "Let Your Dim Light Shine Review". Q. July 1995. p. 124.
  7. Gardner, Elysa (February 2, 1998). "Soul Asylum: Let Your Dim Light Shine". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 2, 2007. Retrieved April 18, 2018.
  8. Arnold, Gina (July 1995). "Soul Asylum: Let Your Dim Light Shine". Spin. SPIN Media LLC. p. 71.
  9. "Australiancharts.com – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  10. "Austriancharts.at – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  11. "Ultratop.be – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  12. "Dutchcharts.nl – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  13. "Soul Asylum: Let Your Dim Light Shine" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  14. "Offiziellecharts.de – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  15. "Charts.nz – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  16. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  17. "Swedishcharts.com – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  18. "Swisscharts.com – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  19. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  20. "Soul Asylum Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  21. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1995". Billboard. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  22. "Canadian album certifications – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine". Music Canada. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  23. "American album certifications – Soul Asylum – Let Your Dim Light Shine". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 11, 2021.


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