Lead Me On (song)

: "This article is about the Amy Grant song. For the Amy Grant album of the same name, see Lead Me On (album). There is also an unrelated song of this name performed by Maxine Nightingale."

Infobox Single
Name = Lead Me On


Artist = Amy Grant
from Album = Lead Me On
Released = 1988
Format = 7" single, Cassette single, Promotional single, promo CD single
[ Recorded = ]
Genre = CCM, Adult Contemporary, Pop
Length = 5:35
Label = A&M Records
Writer = Amy Grant, Wayne Kirkpatrick, Michael W. Smith
Producer = Brown Bannister
[ Certification = ]
NoReviews = yes
Last single = Saved By Love
(1988)
This single = Lead Me On
(1988)
Next single = 1974 (We Were Young)
(1988)"Lead Me On" is a 1988 single by Christian music singer Amy Grant. It was released as the second single from the "Lead Me On" album.

The song

"Lead Me On" was written by Michael W. Smith. It is a fiery song, both in terms of lyrics and in music. The lyrics, according to Grant, deal abstractly with slavery and the Holocaust. The lyrics also talk about man's relation to these events and man's relation to man. The message of the song makes it very strong, unusual for Amy Grant, who was known as a pop/contemporary artist with meaningful, but light lyrics. The music only adds to the drama of the lyrics. It is mostly electric guitar, in stark contrast to the natural sounding-songs on the rest of the "Lead Me On" album.

Another seemingly important aspect of the song was when it was being recorded. Grant was recording on the night of September 24, 1987, when she went into labor. She went to the hospital and had her first child, Matthew Garrison Chapman, the next day. Bethany Dillon would later cover the song on her self-titled debut album in 2003.

Chart success

Unfortunately, the song might have been "too" strong for the general market. Like almost all the other singles from the album, it topped the Christian radio chart. However, the secular market was not as welcoming. "Lead Me On" spent only two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #96. In the United Kingdom, the single fared slightly better, peaking at #89. The poor mainstream commercial reception of the album would later cause Grant to abandon the serious side on her next album, 1991's "Heart In Motion", and instead go for a pop/contemporary sound that would make her a bona fide pop artist.

Charts

US

UK

Music sample