Bruce Dickinson

WinterIsComing · **Joined:** Fri Sep 17, 2004 11:23 am **Posts:** 1025

Anybody know the meaning of most of the lyrics especially on his last 2 or 3 albums?

And what do those weird images/illustrations on last 2 albums mean?

Radagast · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 9:15 am

Well most everything on Chemical Wedding was based on the poetry of William Blake, and most of the artwork was paintings by the same man.

This is a bit of an odd question, Winter. Most of the lyrics are just fantasy, religious or (on AoB) SciFi stories.

Scion · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 12:28 pm

I have interpreted some of his lyrics, maybe if you say specific songs i can write what I think they mean.

Yes many of them are based on William Blake and other stories, but there is still room for analyzation.

Radagast · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 12:36 pm

Yeah, of course, but there's no definite answer - personal interpretations are just that.

Scion · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 1:14 pm

Aye, thats true. You can't really answer the kind of question he asked, and say "this is what the songs mean". But even when there is no definitive answer you can still come to some conclutions if you say what you think they mean and you reason together with other people. But im not sure what kind of answer he was looking for with that question.

WinterIsComing · **Joined:** Fri Sep 17, 2004 11:23 am **Posts:** 1025

I am interested what Dickinson had in mind when he wrote the songs.

His lyrics I feel have some meaning to them, but I can't seem to grasp it. It would be great to find out what is the actual meaning behind each song.

for example Savatage has meaning of most of their songs on the website, without it I wouldn't have guessed what the following lyrics mean:

Quote:

3. Chance

He was standing all alone
Trying to find the words to say
When every prayer he ever prayed
Was gone
And the dreams he's never owned
Are still safely tucked away
Until tomorrow he just
Carries on

See the Devil in the streets at night
See him running in the pouring rain
See him grinning Beneath a twisted light
I'll be back again
See the people standing in a row
See them nodding like a field of grain
No one sees the sickle though
Coming Œcross the plain

And this he knows if nothing more
That waiting in the dark like destiny
Are those who kissed the dogs of war
And there is no tomorrow
No tomorrow
Take a chance
Take a chance

See the Devil he is so intense
See the Devil go and change his name
What's the going price of innocence
It can't be the same
Is it dark when the moon is down
Is it dark with a single flame
If there's glass falling all all around
I am not to blame
And this he knows if nothing more

That waiting in the dark like destiny
Are those who kissed the dogs of war
And there is no tomorrow
No tomorrow
Take a chance

Burn the night away

Pictures at an exhibition
Played as he stood his trance
Staring at his inhibitions
All the time believing
That it now came down to nothing but this chance

I fear you
Your silence
Your blindless
See what you want to see
In darkness
One kindness
One moment
Tell me what you believe

I believe in nothing
Never really had to
In regards to your life
Rumors that are not true
Who's defending evil
Surely never I
Who would be the witness
Should you chance to die

Father can you hear me
This is not how was meant to be
I am safe and so are you
As for the others destiny

I believe that situations
All depend on circumstance

Look away
Look away

Pictures at an exhibition
Played as he stood in his trance
Staring at his inhibitions
All the time believing
That it now came down to
Nothing but this chance

here is the explanation from their website http://savatage.com/bandinfo/albums/han ... eview.html :

Quote:

Speaking of standouts, they don't get much cooler than this. As nicely described in the FAQ (and detailed in the linear notes of the Japanese version), this song, the longest on the album, is about Chiume Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat to Lithuania during World War II. Like Schindler, but much less famous, Sugihara defied orders and wrote exit visas to free some 6,000 Jewish refugees who otherwise would have been killed or sent to other concentration camps. It is left to Savatage to tell the story of this remarkable man, or at least to make people aware of him. He risked his life and his career to do the right thing, by taking a "chance." Sugihara is to whom most "he"s refer; the song tells what is going through his mind, and in the multiple part harmonies near the end of the track, it also gives examples of what was or could have been going through the minds of some of the refugees.

So I think bands should let the listeners know what the songs are about if they are not gibberish and have a meaning it provides a more satisfying listening experience.

WinterIsComing · **Joined:** Fri Sep 17, 2004 11:23 am **Posts:** 1025

Scion wrote:

I have interpreted some of his lyrics, maybe if you say specific songs i can write what I think they mean.

Yes many of them are based on William Blake and other stories, but there is still room for analyzation.

could you give some examples?

Radagast · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 2:03 pm

Dark Side of Aquarius - the four horsemen he speaks of in the song are obviously meant to represebt social decay (oooh I'm so emo). when he says "Gotta push the wheel of Dharma" I can prettymuch guess he means we have to bring back the seven virtues that the wheel represents in its religion.

Omega is pretty simple - its a story about the end of the world when the sun dies.

Arc of Space - bunch of people gathered on a hill expecting an angel to descend (it doesn't, the fools).

I'd need to think about Chemical Wedding. I had some decent interpretations of the songs on there a few eyars ago.

Anonymous · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 7:41 pm

Radagast wrote:

Omega is pretty simple - its a story about the end of the world when the sun dies.

And holy shit how great a song it is! This one has it all, despite the fact that I find most of Bruce's solocatalogue very enjoyable, sheer & utter greatness. Especially I love the the lyrics and 'building' -part to the very last chorus:

"We believed in heaven, we believed in angels, with arms of purest white to hold us, to catch us when we fall.."

Scion · **Posted:** Tue Dec 20, 2005 8:34 pm

WinterIsComing:
I haven't seen Dickinson say much about what the songs mean, apart from a few small things in interviews. He said for example that Book of Thel was about sexuality, unfaithfulness, dishonesty or something like that.

An example, ok. This is not really a lyric analyzation in the true sense of the word but anyway. Trumphets of Jericho. The song breathes a feel of hoplessness. The name "Trumphets of Jericho" is a place described in the bible, I believe its about some people who are trying to make the walls to a city fall down by blowing their trumphets. The song I belive is about us people trying to do good but fail to really be as good as we would like. All our shortcomings destroy that good. No matter how hard we try we always fail, as if a silver string was pulling us back, back to the earthly. We can never reach Avalon, and never find that grail at the end of the rainbow. The line about the golden light that flashes overhead I think is the most interesting one. The golden light we search mocks us for our worthless attempts at reaching it. The meaning behind the song is maybe not so hard to decipher, the lyrics aren't very cryptic, and the message is pretty clear. The depth lies in the feeling it gives you. We are all hopelessly defective.

The lyrics on CW are very poetic in their nature, so its hard to describe what they really mean. Poerty is perhaps better understood with our feelings than with reasoning.

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