The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
We are not the sons of God
We are not his chosen people now
We have crossed the path he trod
We will feel the pain of his beginning
Shadow fingers rise above
Iron fingers stab the desert sky
Oh, behold the power of man
On its tower, ready for the fall
Knocking heads together well
Raze a city, build a living Hell
Join the race to suicide
Listen for the tolling of the bell
Out of the the universe
A strange love is born
Unholy union
Trinity reformed
Yellow sun, its evil twin
In the black the winds deliver him
We will sleep to souls within
Atom seed to nuclear dust is riven
Out of the the universe
A strange love is born
Unholy union
Trinity reformed
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Burying our morals and burying our dead
Burying our head in the sand
E equals MC squared, you can't relate
How we made God with our hands
Whatever would Robert have said to his God
'Bout how he made war with the Sun?
E equals MC squared, you can't relate
How we made God with our hands
All nations are rising
Through acid bells of love and hate
Chain letters of Satan
Uncertainty led us all to this
All nations are rising
Through acid veils of love and hate
Cold fusion of fury
Divide and conquer while ye may
Others preach and others fall and pray
In the bunkers where we'll die
We're the executioners, they lie
Bombers launched with no recall
Minute warning of the missile fall
Take a look at your last day
Guessing you won't have the time to cry
Out of the the universe
A strange love is born
Unholy union
Trinity reformed
Out of the darkness
Out of the darkness
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Holy Father, we have sinned
We are not his chosen people now
We have crossed the path he trod
We will feel the pain of his beginning
Shadow fingers rise above
Iron fingers stab the desert sky
Oh, behold the power of man
On its tower, ready for the fall
Knocking heads together well
Raze a city, build a living Hell
Join the race to suicide
Listen for the tolling of the bell
Out of the the universe
A strange love is born
Unholy union
Trinity reformed
Yellow sun, its evil twin
In the black the winds deliver him
We will sleep to souls within
Atom seed to nuclear dust is riven
Out of the the universe
A strange love is born
Unholy union
Trinity reformed
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousand suns
Burying our morals and burying our dead
Burying our head in the sand
E equals MC squared, you can't relate
How we made God with our hands
Whatever would Robert have said to his God
'Bout how he made war with the Sun?
E equals MC squared, you can't relate
How we made God with our hands
All nations are rising
Through acid bells of love and hate
Chain letters of Satan
Uncertainty led us all to this
All nations are rising
Through acid veils of love and hate
Cold fusion of fury
Divide and conquer while ye may
Others preach and others fall and pray
In the bunkers where we'll die
We're the executioners, they lie
Bombers launched with no recall
Minute warning of the missile fall
Take a look at your last day
Guessing you won't have the time to cry
Out of the the universe
A strange love is born
Unholy union
Trinity reformed
Out of the darkness
Out of the darkness
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Out of the darkness, brighter than a thousands suns
Holy Father, we have sinned
Lyrics submitted by loc4485, edited by panayiotist
Brighter Than a Thousand Suns Lyrics as written by Bruce Dickinson Adrian Frederick Smith
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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The above version of the lyrics contain errors as I have the sleeve insert right now in front of me. The song is about the progression and possible future of atomic weapons.
"Iron fingers stab the sky...on it's tower, ready to fall" describes hundreds of early atomic weapons tests in which bombs were suspended on steel towers for above ground desert testing.
E=MC^2 relates to direct energy-to-mass conversion formula made famous by Einstein obviously. However the lyrics mention a Robert instead. Robert Oppenheimer led the Manhattan Project.
The part that segways into the future is the "cold fusion and fury" line. We have fission and fusion nuclear capabilities, but cold fusion is a debatable (even dubious) principle which has no scientific validity as of today.
The last verse deals with "bombers launch with no recall" and the rest of that verse is pretty obvious what will happen in this grim prediction of the future.
This section gives me the shivers
Bombers launched with no recall Minute warning of the missile fall Take a look at your last day Guessing you won’t have the time to cry
Ironed Maidens: There is no Robert in the Bible. The name originated in proto-Germanic.
"Robert" is most likely Julius Robert Oppenheimer, who headed the team who designed the first nuclear test and was greatly troubled by what he was doing.
The title of the song comes from a line from the Bhagavad Gita that Oppenheimer said he recalled as he watched the Trinity explosion: "If the radiance of a thousand suns were to burst at once into the sky, that would be like the splendour of the mighty one". He also quoted "Now I have become Death, the destroyer of worlds".
Seems the concept of "playing god" with nuclear weapons is based on Oppenheimer's ideas.
The "iron fingers" are not missiles, they are the steel pylons they built in the desert, both to hold the warhead (simulating an above-ground explosion), and to support the cameras and other instruments used.
I think it's "raze [destroy] a city" not "raise a city", but if it is "raise" then I think it refers to the large-scaled mockups of cities that were built for later tests to see what the Bomb did to buildings. Some of these even had human-shaped dummies inside - really creepy.
Also, might "We will feel the pain of his beginning" be about the vengeful old-testament God?
The line "We are not his chosen people now" is also a reference to Oppenheimer since he was Jewish.
great song about the atomic bomb, great album aswell. 10/10
"Holy father we have sinned"
Very much about how we will destroy ourselves with our own creations, with our own science, with our own synthetic gods.
Bruce Dickinson said that this song likens the nuclear bomb to man trying to play God. There are actually a lot of double meanings in the lyrics of this song, such as "Trinity reformed". In Christianity, "Trinity" is a collective term refering to God, Jesus and the Holy Ghost, and it was also the name of the site where the first full scale nuclear weapons test was ever held in 1945. Genius, as always...
These lyrics are all wrong. I really wish people wouldn't post lyrics unless they have the lyrics sheet from a copy of the album.
"Oh behold the power of the Earth Are your children ready for the fall" is "Oh behold the power of man On its tower, ready for the fall"
"Locking hands together well Raze a city, build a living hell" is "Knocking hands together well Raise a city, build a living hell"
"Out of the universe a strange light is born" is "Out of the universe a strange love is born"
"Yellow sun it's evil twin In the black the winds deliver him We will sleep to souls within At a siege a nuclear gust is riven" is "Yellow sun its evil twin In the black the wings deliver him We will split our souls within Atom seed to nuclear dust is riven"
"Burying our morals and burying our dead Burying our head in the sand E equals MC squared, you can't relate How we made God with our hands" is "Bury your morals and bury your dead Bury your head in the sand E=mc squared you can relate How we made God With our hands"
"Whatever would Robert have said to his God About he made war with the sun E equals MC squared, you can't relate How we made God with our hands" is "Whatever would Robert have said to his God About how we made war with the sun E=mc squared you can relate How we made God With our hands"
"All nations are rising Through acid bells of love and hate Chain medals of Satan Uncertainty led us all to this All nations are raising Through acid bells of love and hate Confusion and fury" is "All nations are rising, Through acid veils of love and hate Chain letters of Satan Uncertainty leads us all to this All nations are rising, Through acid veils of love and hate Cold fusion and fury"
"This body carried 'em down in vain I was preaching of a small prey In the bunkers, where we'll die We're the executioners that lie" is "Divide and conquer while ye may Others preach and others fall and pray In the bunkers where we'll die There the executioners they lie"
"Bombers launched with no recall Minute warning of the missile fall Take a look at your last day Guessing you won’t have the time to cry" is "Bombers launch with no recall Minutes warning of the missile fall Take a look at your last sky Guessing you won't have time to cry"
How many mistakes can you make in one song's lyrics? Did you even listen to the song, let alone look at a copy of the album's booklet?
Bruce says it's about the Manhattan Experiment, and how mankind has become God, being able to destroy the entire world! Maiden is better than ever!!
How dark the world has become and "God"'s divine punishment for it. I have a much better idea in my head to explain this, just can't quite articulate it.
i think that sponge is right; but what about the unholy trinity line- its to long ago for me to recall whether if that could be a referance to the reaction within nuclear fission. three atoms forcibly combined