Celebrate the Heart of Country, Americana, and Roots Music!

Drop Us A Line, Y'all

Y'all interested in advertising, partnering up, contributing stories, joining our team, or just got a question? Well, don't be shy, drop us a line!

Follow Us

“Every Light in the House” Illuminates Trace Adkins’ Soaring Career

by
  • Arden is a Senior Country Music Journalist for Country Thang Daily, specializing in classic hits and contemporary chart-toppers.
  • Prior to joining Country Thang Daily, Arden wrote for Billboard and People magazine, covering country music legends and emerging artists.
  • Arden holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of Tennessee, with a minor in Music Studies.
If you have been a fan of Trace Adkins since the beginning, there’s probably one song that instantly comes to mind, and that’s his hit single, “Every Light in the House.”  The song was released in 1996 off Adkins’ debut album, Dreamin’ Out Loud, and later peaked at No. 3 on the chart of Hot Country Singles & Tracks, giving Adkins the first Top 5 single of his career. Billboard magazine’s Deborah Evans Price said that “Adkins’ deep, powerful voice does justice to the yearning in this lyric about a man who has left the lights on waiting for his lover to return.” Music critic Rick Cohoon of Allmusic also gave the song a favorable review. He called the song a “creative approach to the age-old ‘goodbye, I miss you’ song.”  Cohoon also commended Adkins’ voice for “communicating pain so well” despite the singer’s stature.

Trace Adkins Played The Broken-Hearted Man In “Every Light In The House”

Written by Kent Robbins, “Every Light in the House” tells the tale of a broken-hearted man who left every light on in his house just in case the woman he loves decides to return home.  “Every light in the house is on. The backyard’s bright as the crack of dawn. The front walk looks like runway lights. It’s kinda like noon in the dead of night. Every light in the house is on. Just in case you ever do get tired of being gone. Every light in the house is on,” he said. He decided only to start turning them off one by one when he begins getting over her, which he never did until the very end. “Every Light in the House” also survived the intense ’90s cheesiness of its music video and remained to be a favorite to this day, proving what a solid country song truly it is. The short clip for this song comes in black-and-white and starts with Adkins sitting at the porch of his house with his dog after the love of his life left home. He heart-wrenchingly said, “It’s just me and you now, boy,” as the music begins. Adkins then got off the porch. Together with some workers, they all started working on a power generator. The music video went on, and you’ll see Adkins’ character working endlessly around his yard and at his job as he tried to keep himself busy while the woman who left him behind did the same, except that she was in the big city pursuing her modeling career. Luckily, at the very end of the video, the woman ran back into Adkin’s arms, and the bright lights disappeared into the night. In this case, the sad story got a happy ending. You can watch it below.

Latest Stories

The late Dolly Parton on stage in sequins and blonde hair, singing into a microphone. CMA will honor her with a live special on October 21.

The CMA Will Honor Dolly Parton With a Two-Hour Live Special on October 21

Dolly Parton wrote the most famous goodbye song in American music. Now, country music is using it to say goodbye to her. The Country Music Association announced it will honor ...

Reba McEntire appears at the Emmys in Dolly Parton’s butterfly ring and rhinestone earrings as her gown matches Dolly’s first look.

Reba Wore Dolly Parton’s Rhinestone Earrings and Butterfly Ring During Her Emmys Tribute

The first time Reba McEntire ever saw Dolly Parton in person, Dolly was covered in rhinestone butterflies. McEntire has told the story more than once. She was backing up against ...

Sally Field appears emotional during her Emmys tribute speech calling Dolly Parton an angel on earth.

Sally Field Called Dolly Parton an Angel on Earth in Her Emmys Tribute Speech

Sally Field worked with Dolly Parton on one movie in 1989. She spent the next thirty-seven years loving her anyway. Field introduced the Dolly Parton tribute at the 78th Primetime ...

Reba McEntire looks emotional as she sings Appalachian Memories for Dolly Parton at the Emmys.

Reba McEntire Sang “Appalachian Memories” for Dolly at the Emmys and Got Emotional at the End

Forty-three years ago, Dolly Parton stood on the Emmy stage and sang a song she wrote about her daddy and the mountains that raised her. On Monday night, her friend ...

A massive Dolly Parton mural covers a honky-tonk wall in Fort Worth after an artist painted her because his daughter was hurting.

A Massive Dolly Parton Mural Went Up on a Fort Worth Honky-Tonk and People Keep Pulling Over

His daughter took the news hard, so he went and found a wall. Juan Velazquez saw how Dolly Parton’s death hit his daughter and decided he wanted to honor her. ...

Jennifer Nettles sings emotionally as she honors the 9/11 victims with Vince Gill’s Go Rest High on That Mountain.

Jennifer Nettles Honored the 9/11 Victims With Vince Gill’s Go Rest High on That Mountain

Vince Gill wrote that song for his own dead. On Friday, Jennifer Nettles sang it for nearly three thousand of them. Nettles performed “Go Rest High on That Mountain” at ...

Garth Brooks is shown with a circular photo of Dolly Parton after declaring September 25 Dolly Day and giving bar sales to the Imagination Library.

Garth Brooks Declared September 25 ‘Dolly Day’ and Is Giving the Full Day’s Bar Sales to the Imagination Library

Two days after Dolly Parton died, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood picked a date and made a promise. On Thursday, August 27, the couple announced that their Nashville bar, Friends ...

Lainey Wilson stands in a black suit with a choir behind her as she honors the 9/11 victims with Amazing Grace at the 25th anniversary.

Lainey Wilson Honored the 9/11 Victims With “Amazing Grace” in a Black Suit and a Choir Behind Her

She left the bell-bottoms and the cowboy hat at home and walked out in a black suit with a choir behind her, singing a hymn that has carried this country ...

Budweiser Clydesdales bow toward the New York skyline in the 9/11 tribute ad that aired once during the 2002 Super Bowl.

Budweiser’s 9/11 Tribute Aired Once During the 2002 Super Bowl and People Still Remember It

Sixty seconds, no words, and a horse named Ringo doing the only thing the country needed to see. On Sunday, February 3, 2002, during Super Bowl XXXVI, Anheuser-Busch ran a ...

Dolly Parton appears with American Airlines Flight 925 after her passing, as the airline honors the country legend with the 9 to 5 number.

American Airlines Is Renumbering a Nashville Flight to 925 in Honor of Dolly Parton

You could fly it a hundred times and never notice. That is probably the point. Starting March 28, 2027, one of American Airlines’ daily flights from Dallas-Fort Worth to Nashville ...

Leave a Comment

For security, use of Google's reCAPTCHA service is required which is subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.