In an attempt to distance himself from Whitesnake's hard rock sound, Into the Light features a more stripped down and bluesier style.

The album was self-produced by Coverdale, with additional production by Doug Bossi, Michael McIntyre, Bjorn Thorsrud and John X. Volaitis.

Several music critics commended Coverdale's more subdued performance and bluesier approach, while others lamented the album's softer sound.

[2] After a farewell tour, Coverdale disbanded Whitesnake, so that he could resume his career as a solo artist exploring other forms of music.

[3] In an interview with Classic Rock magazine in 2000, Coverdale stated: "The whole premise of my new record, Into The Light, is about coming out of what I felt was a dark period.

[7] The album was self-produced by Coverdale, with Michael McIntyre, Doug Bossi, Bjorn Thorsrud and John X. Volaitis being credited as associate producers.

[8] The album features an assortment of session musicians backing Coverdale, including his former Whitesnake bandmates Denny Carmassi (drums) and Tony Franklin (bass).

Other musicians featured on the album include guitarists Earl Slick and Reeves Gabrels, keyboardist Mike Finnigan, vocalist Linda Rowberry, and harmonica player Jimmy Z. Bjorn Thorsrud and Danny Saber also provide additional instrumentation.

[8] Guitarist Adrian Vandenberg, Coverdale's longtime Whitesnake bandmate, was invited to play on Into the Light, but declined.

The song dates back to the 1980s and a demo recording can be heard on the 35th anniversary edition of Whitesnake's 1984 album Slide It In.

According to Coverdale, after hearing the original version, singer Chris Isaak suggested doing it in the style of Roy Orbison.

[20] The promotional single "Slave" was released on 6 November 2000 in the US and reached number 33 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.

[30] John Kereiff of the Red Deer Advocate called the album one of the year's best, praising the performances of both Coverdale and his backing band.

[33] Liam Sheils, writing for Kerrang!, described Into the Light as an improvement over Whitesnake's previous album Restless Heart.

[31] This was echoed by the staff of Rock Hard, who described the album as a more relaxed effort than Restless Heart, while still acting as a successful cross section of previous Whitesnake material.

[29] Soundi's Antti Mattila commented positively on Coverdale's vocal performance and the album's bluesier style.

[36][35] Neil Jeffries, writing for Classic Rock, ranked Into the Light eighth in Coverdale's overall studio discography.

[37] Mick Wall, in a separate piece for Classic Rock, described the album as a "remarkable, unfairly overlooked peak of [Coverdale's] career".