Double Vision (Foreigner song)

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"Double Vision"
Single by Foreigner
from the album Double Vision
B-side"Lonely Children"
Released8 September 1978 (US)[1]
July 1979 (UK)[2]
Recorded1978
GenreHard rock
Length3:29 (single)
3:40 (album)
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)Lou Gramm, Mick Jones
Producer(s)Ian McDonald, Keith Olsen, Mick Jones
Foreigner singles chronology
"Hot Blooded"
(1978) 		"Double Vision"
(1978) 		"Blue Morning, Blue Day"
(1979)
Music video
"Double Vision" on YouTube

"Double Vision" is a single by Foreigner from their second album of the same name. The song reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks in 1978, behind "MacArthur Park" by Donna Summer.[3] It became a gold record. The song was also a top 10 hit in Canada.

The song has been a staple of the band's setlist since its release. Over recent years, Lou Gramm and Foreigner (now fronted by Kelly Hansen) have both used the song as their show opener.

Background and writing[edit]

In an interview, vocalist Lou Gramm explained the origin behind the song: "'Double Vision' was a song that was written in about late 1977 just before the Double Vision album came out. ...A lot of people think it's about being intoxicated or being high. When we were recording that song before we had the title, the New York Rangers hockey team was playing the Philadelphia Flyers and one of the big Flyers guys bumped into the Rangers' all-star goalie [John Davidson] and knocked him down and they had to take him out of the game because he was experiencing double vision."[4][5][6] Gramm similarly stated:[7]

I was a season ticket holder for the New York Rangers and they were playing the Philadelphia Flyers in the Stanley Cup Finals. While we were recording, I had an eight-inch TV taped inside my vocal booth with the volume turned all the way down. While I was singing and recording, I’d keep my eye on the screen. Then, whenever we stopped, I’d turn the volume up a little bit. On one occasion, the play had stopped when Dave Schultz from the Flyers skated in front of John Davidson, the Ranger’s goalie, gave him an elbow and knocked him out cold. The trainers helped Davidson off the ice and the Rangers wound up putting in the second-string goalie. Every so often, the announcers would come on and say they were waiting for word on the condition of Davidson. Finally, the announcer said, “The trainers said they don’t think Davidson will be back tonight. He doesn’t have a concussion, but he is experiencing… double vision." That’s when I said — “That’s it!”

According to the New York Rangers website, the incident actually took place in April 1978 during a hockey game between the Rangers and the Buffalo Sabres. The game announcers repeatedly used the phrase "double vision" which then inspired Foreigner to use it as the song's title.[8] The single is certified RIAA gold, selling one million copies, prior to the reduction of gold certification standards that occurred in the late 1980s.

Rolling Stone critic Ken Tucker suggested that the title phrase seems to suggest that "all the pent-up frustration and rage felt by the narrator [due to his romantic agony] has found its pernicious outlet in a sort of ocular apoplexy."[9]

Reception[edit]

Billboard felt that "Double Vision" was a stronger single than the previous release "Hot Blooded" due to its "driving but less monotonous hard rock rhythm" and "more infectious melody."[10] Cash Box said it has "slashing guitars and a mean, ticking beat" that gives way "to an appealing, lighter chorus which is underlined by gently swirling keyboard work" and also praised the vocal performance.[11] Record World said that "The guitar work is formidable and Lou Gramm's vocals are always rock perfect."[12]

Tucker criticized the song's "self-pity" and said that "Gramm's histrionic head tones threaten to capsize his sinuses as he moans about the suffering he must bear at the hands of wretched women."[9] The Daily News Journal critic Gary Balser regarded "Double Vision" as the best song on the album, stating that it is "an example of Foreigner's individual sound with a keyboard interlude and a constant bass and guitar drive."[13] San Pedro News-Pilot critic Joseph Bensoua said it has "just the right hooks, phrasing and simple lyrics needed for controlled rock 'n' roll.[14] St. Joseph News-Press critic Conrad Bibens described "Double Vision" as "competent but a little too bombastic."[15] Tucker described the melody as "melodramatic," said of Gramm's vocal performance that his "histrionic head tones threaten to capsize his sinuses as he moans about the suffering he must bear at the hands of wretched women" and found lyrics such as "No disguise/For that double vision...My double vision is the best of me" to be "incomprehensible."[9]

Music critic Maury Dean stated that it "sparks double-whammy of...Jones's steamy guitar salvos and Lou Gramm's White Soul volcanic vocalics."[16] Detroit Free Press critic Kim McAuliffe described the melody as being "one of those ditties, like a television commercial jingle, that imprints itself on your brain whether you want it to or not."[17] Billboard reviewer Gary Graff rated "Double Vision" to be Foreigner's 10th greatest song.[6] Classic Rock History critic Brian Kachejian rated it as Foreigner's 5th best song, particularly praising the opening guitar riff.[18]

Chart history[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Foreigner singles".
  2. ^ The Great Rock Discography. 1995. p. 301. ISBN 9780862415419.
  3. ^ a b "Foreigner Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-06-08.
  4. ^ Parker, Melissa (May 14, 2009). "Foreigner vocalist Lou Gramm sets the record straight". Our Prattville. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  5. ^ Giles, Jeff (June 20, 2013). "How Foreigner Maintained Their Early Momentum on 'Double Vision'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 2020-06-27.
  6. ^ a b Graff, Gary (October 11, 2017). "Foreigner's 10 Best Songs: Critic's Picks". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-06-17.
  7. ^ Woods, James (July 16, 2018). "Interview: Lou Gramm discusses Foreigner reunion at Sturgis to celebrate 40th anniversary of 'Double Vision'". AXS. Retrieved 2020-06-27.
  8. ^ "‘JD’ Inspires a Rock Song" NY NHL Rangers website
  9. ^ a b c Tucker, Ken (September 7, 1978). "Double Vision". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  10. ^ "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard Magazine. September 23, 1978. p. 94. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
  11. ^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. September 23, 1978. p. 22. Retrieved 2022-01-01.
  12. ^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. September 23, 1978. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  13. ^ Balser, Gary (October 22, 1978). "Foreigner's second album a success". The Daily News Journal. p. 54. Retrieved 2020-06-26 – via newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Bensoua, Joseph (August 4, 1978). "Thin Lizzy is on top at last". San Pedro News-Pilot. p. E9. Retrieved 2020-06-26 – via newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Bibens, Conrad (July 8, 1978). "Foreigner's second not quite as good". St. Joseph News-Press. p. 12. Retrieved 2020-06-26 – via newspapers.com.
  16. ^ Dean, Maury (2003). Rock 'n' Roll Gold Rush. Algora. p. 350. ISBN 0875862071.
  17. ^ McAuliffe, Kim (August 26, 1979). "Recording big-buck rock in Foreigner territory". Detroit Free Press. p. 5C. Retrieved 2022-06-18 – via newspapers.com.
  18. ^ Kachejian, Brian (6 August 2022). "Top 10 Foreigner Songs". Classic Rock History. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
  19. ^ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  20. ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  21. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, November 18, 1978". Archived from the original on May 17, 2015. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  22. ^ "Top 200 Singles of '78 – Volume 30, No. 14, December 30 1978". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. 17 July 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  23. ^ "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 30, 1978". Archived from the original on September 29, 2018. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  24. ^ Top 100 Hits of 1979/Top 100 Songs of 1979 MusicOutfitters.com
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