So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
"Can you tell me where my country lies?"
Said the uni faun to his true love's eyes
"It lies with me!" cried the Queen of Maybe
For her merchandise, he traded in his prize
"Paper late!" cried a voice in the crowd
"Old man dies!" The note he left was signed 'Old Father Thames'
It seems he's drowned
Selling England by the pound
Citizens of hope & glory,
Time goes by, it's the time of your life
Easy now, sit you down
Chewing through your Wimpey dreams,
They eat without a sound
Digesting England by the pound
Young man says "you are what you eat" eat well
Old man says "you are what you wear" wear well
You know what you are, you don't give a damn
Bursting your belt that is your homemade sham
The Captain leads his dance right on through the night
Join the dance
Follow on! Till the Grail sun sets in the mould
Follow on! Till the gold is cold
Dancing out with the moonlit knight,
Knights of the Green Shield stamp and shout
There's a fat old lady outside the saloon
Laying out the credit cards she plays fortune
The deck is uneven right from the start
And all of their hands are playing apart
Captain leads his dance right on through the night
Join the dance
Follow on! A round table talking down we go
You're the show
Off we go with, you play the hobbyhorse,
I'll play the fool
We'll tease the bull
Ringing round & loud, loud & round
Follow on! With a twist of the world we go
Follow on! Till the gold is cold
Dancing out with the moonlit knight,
Knights of the Green Shield stamp and shout
Said the uni faun to his true love's eyes
"It lies with me!" cried the Queen of Maybe
For her merchandise, he traded in his prize
"Paper late!" cried a voice in the crowd
"Old man dies!" The note he left was signed 'Old Father Thames'
It seems he's drowned
Selling England by the pound
Citizens of hope & glory,
Time goes by, it's the time of your life
Easy now, sit you down
Chewing through your Wimpey dreams,
They eat without a sound
Digesting England by the pound
Young man says "you are what you eat" eat well
Old man says "you are what you wear" wear well
You know what you are, you don't give a damn
Bursting your belt that is your homemade sham
The Captain leads his dance right on through the night
Join the dance
Follow on! Till the Grail sun sets in the mould
Follow on! Till the gold is cold
Dancing out with the moonlit knight,
Knights of the Green Shield stamp and shout
There's a fat old lady outside the saloon
Laying out the credit cards she plays fortune
The deck is uneven right from the start
And all of their hands are playing apart
Captain leads his dance right on through the night
Join the dance
Follow on! A round table talking down we go
You're the show
Off we go with, you play the hobbyhorse,
I'll play the fool
We'll tease the bull
Ringing round & loud, loud & round
Follow on! With a twist of the world we go
Follow on! Till the gold is cold
Dancing out with the moonlit knight,
Knights of the Green Shield stamp and shout
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae, edited by sunwardflyer
Dancing with the Moonlit Knight Lyrics as written by Phil Collins Anthony George Banks
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Shortly after buying this album I learned about Green Shield stamps. Approx. 30 years later, it only occurred to me that Gabriel wanted an excuse to put "stamp" after "Green Shield", so he did so by making it a verb. That syntactical trickery is probably why it took 30 years.