Independent
Release Date: November 16th 2023
Reviewed by: Joshua Andre
Foy Vance– Guiding Light (Anniversary Edition) [feat. Ed Sheeran, Elton John & Keith Urban] – Single (Amazon mp3/iTunes)
Track Listing:
- Guiding Light (Anniversary Edition) [feat. Ed Sheeran, Elton John & Keith Urban]
Foy Vance is a traditional Irish singer songwriter who has been steadily in his craft for a long time. He’s incredibly popular and famous in Irish circles- and for me personally, I haven’t heard much… no scratch that, I haven’t heard any of his songs, and I don’t have an inkling to. He’s just not in my genre, and that’s ok. But in 2021, Irish pop singer Ronan Keating released his album Songs From Home and in it covered Foy’s classic quasi-worship hit “Guiding Light”. And thus, I found myself worshipping with Ronan, and realising that sometimes songs are bigger than the artists themselves. You don’t have to be a fan of, or even know, the artist singing a song that resonates with you, and that certainly is the case with “Guiding Light” and Foy Vance.
Last year in November, Foy re-recorded “Guiding Light” as an anniversary edition, this time sung with Ed Sheeran, Elton John and Keith Urban. With Foy singing with 3 legends in music… well, why not ‘review’ this song for what it is? I originally thought that “Guiding Light” was a song by Mumford And Sons, and though Ronan would have created a brilliant cover of that song, this melody written by Foy and Ed Sheeran… well, it’s one of the most vulnerable, honest and powerful songs that I’ve ever heard… period. As Foy, Ed, Elton and Keith beautifully sing together in perfect harmony, and direct their attention to… God? Their spouses? The one ‘person’ who gets them? Someone higher and bigger than themselves? As they direct their attention to whomever they’re singing to (and in my mind, they’re undoubtedly singing to God!); we are invited to join in in their worship, as we give God the honour, glory, power and praise simply because He is who He says He is. As the four vocalists create an almost worshipful experience, with the melody speaking about someone nameless (maybe God?) being the persona’s guiding light; and as Foy and his friends eloquently and emotionally cry out that ‘…well the air is cold, and yonder lies my sleeping soul, by the branches, broke like bones, this weakened tree no longer holds, well, the night is still, and I have not yet lost my will, oh, and I will keep on moving ’till, until I find my way home, when I need to get home, you’re my guiding light, you’re my guiding light…’, we are ushered into a beautiful moment of surrender and submission into Someone greater than ourselves.
There’s no doubt about it. “Guiding Light” is a flawless masterpiece. The fact that it was redone with 3 more exquisite voices who are music royalty, is all the more remarkable, and gives this song an extra layer of depth and credibility. And now, as we listen to and marvel over this epic masterpiece, and as we conclude that we can (or don’t have to) explore Foy’s discography based on the awesomeness and epic-ness of this one song; let us worship Jesus and bask in the wonder that He is who He says He is, and that He is Lord and Saviour over all of our lives!
Score: 5/5
RIYL: We Are Messengers, Needtobreathe, Old Dominion, Boyzone, Westlife, The Corrs