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The Alchemist Lyrics
Stranger than the comet as it streaks across the sky
Stranger than the truth I know before my open eyes
I have dealt in mysteries and trickery, of light to entertain
Looked into the abyss, called it by its name
I have plundered time itself, put the world inside it
I'm the mysteries, day and night, divide it
A plague of wonders, on your knees beside me
Know the secrets, you shall not deride us
My dreams of empire from my frozen queen
Will come to pass
Know me, the Magus I am Dr. Dee
And this is my house
I am the master of the tides
I shame the mirror in my sight
What random music of the spheres
Across the years
Know this
I will return to this land
Rebuild where the ruins did stand
Chain up the demons set free
Strange alchemy
Gather round the aimless and the feckless and the lame
Hear the master summon up the spirits by their names
I curse you Edward Kelly your betrayal for eternity is damned
Know you speak with demons, you cannot command
Even as I looked into the glass then I was blinded
Burning by the Mortlake shore my house my books inside it
You have taken up my wife and lain beside her
Now the black rain on my house, the timbers burning
My dreams of empire from my frozen queen
Will come to pass
Know me, the Magus I am Dr. Dee
And this was my house
I was the keeper of the books
I had the knowledge of the scrolls
But now through ignorance and fear
I cast a shadow through the years
Know this
I will return to this land
Rebuild where the ruins did stand
Chain up the demons set free
Strange alchemy
Know this
I will return to this land
Rebuild where the ruins did stand
Chain up the demons set free
Strange alchemy
Know this
I will return to this land
Rebuild where the ruins did stand
Restore the knowledge memory
Strange alchemy
Stranger than the truth I know before my open eyes
I have dealt in mysteries and trickery, of light to entertain
Looked into the abyss, called it by its name
I'm the mysteries, day and night, divide it
A plague of wonders, on your knees beside me
Know the secrets, you shall not deride us
Will come to pass
Know me, the Magus I am Dr. Dee
And this is my house
I shame the mirror in my sight
What random music of the spheres
Across the years
I will return to this land
Rebuild where the ruins did stand
Chain up the demons set free
Strange alchemy
Hear the master summon up the spirits by their names
I curse you Edward Kelly your betrayal for eternity is damned
Know you speak with demons, you cannot command
Burning by the Mortlake shore my house my books inside it
You have taken up my wife and lain beside her
Now the black rain on my house, the timbers burning
Will come to pass
Know me, the Magus I am Dr. Dee
And this was my house
I had the knowledge of the scrolls
But now through ignorance and fear
I cast a shadow through the years
I will return to this land
Rebuild where the ruins did stand
Chain up the demons set free
Strange alchemy
I will return to this land
Rebuild where the ruins did stand
Chain up the demons set free
Strange alchemy
I will return to this land
Rebuild where the ruins did stand
Restore the knowledge memory
Strange alchemy
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This song is about the english mathematician and, well, alchemist John Dee:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dee
Reading this page from Wikipedia really explains all the lyrics, I guess. Much of them are anyway not grounded in reality, they talk in metaphores about many mystical things and amazing accomplishments (I have dealt in mysteries, looked into the abyss, I shame the mirror in my sight etc etc).
However, the more specific parts of the lyrics refer to historical events; for example, Dee's companion, Edward Kelley, told him that an angel appeared and told him that the two should share their respective wives (hence all the anger against Kelley in the lyrics, and the reference to sleeping with his wife), and Dee had his house with a wonderful library by Mortlake, that one day burned down.
Well, that's essentially it, lyrics about the life and works of John Dee with a lot of "magical" imaginery thrown in.
Excellent song, one of my faves of the new album, very nostagic, good old maiden riffs as this song has elements of aces high , and man on the edge, a absolute necessity on any album.
TimeWeaver is spot on but one thing does confuse me
"My dreams of empire for my frozen queen"
I know dee was the first to advocate a brittish empire which did happen but frozen queen? Queen Elizabeth I went by many names but I don't get that one.
John Dee acted as consultant to Queen Elizabeth I of England. It is very likely that the song lyrics refer to her as "frozen" because Queen Elizabeth never married, and is sometimes referred to as "The Virgin Queen." There is much speculation surrounding why she never married; perhaps it was because she was afraid of losing her power, but there is also speculation that she may have been sexually abused by Thomas Seymour, which, in turn, may have made her wary of sexual relations. This is just speculation. There is a lot of debate on the...
John Dee acted as consultant to Queen Elizabeth I of England. It is very likely that the song lyrics refer to her as "frozen" because Queen Elizabeth never married, and is sometimes referred to as "The Virgin Queen." There is much speculation surrounding why she never married; perhaps it was because she was afraid of losing her power, but there is also speculation that she may have been sexually abused by Thomas Seymour, which, in turn, may have made her wary of sexual relations. This is just speculation. There is a lot of debate on the matter. That part of the history of the English monarchy is particularly fascinating. Although I loath to cite Wikipedia as a source, here is a quick link to some information on Queen Elizabeth I: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_I_of_England#Marriage_question There is also a book by Helen Hackett that discusses the Queen and the "cult of the virgin" that flourished around her. Here's Hackett's web page if anyone is interested: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/english/about/staff/hh.htm More about John Dee here: http://www.johndee.org/
@EdSmith Late to the party I know, but I was just reading a great biography on Dr. Dee (The Queen's Conjurer), and the "frozen Queen" line in particular jumped out at me. The book detail at length that while Dr. Dee was advising and frequently visiting (or visited by) Queen Elizabeth I, he was also involved in (teaching astronomical navigation calculation techniques) both England's expansive search for the Northwestern Passage and personally convincing the Queen that it was a worthy endeavor and that England would rule the north. The areas they were exploring were all basically iceburgs and scantily frozen...
@EdSmith Late to the party I know, but I was just reading a great biography on Dr. Dee (The Queen's Conjurer), and the "frozen Queen" line in particular jumped out at me. The book detail at length that while Dr. Dee was advising and frequently visiting (or visited by) Queen Elizabeth I, he was also involved in (teaching astronomical navigation calculation techniques) both England's expansive search for the Northwestern Passage and personally convincing the Queen that it was a worthy endeavor and that England would rule the north. The areas they were exploring were all basically iceburgs and scantily frozen tundra. So her being queen of the frozen north was a big aspect of his life. Anyways, awesome song. Very accurate to the sources, more so than it might at first seem. Bruce and Harris love this kind of history (and Gers too), so I shouldn't be surprised.
@EdSmith
@EdSmith
Bruce is referring to the Cult of the Immortal Queen here. It refers to an occult secret society that is very real and has many rich and powerful members. Doctor Who did a riff on the cult of the Immortal Queen in the Tom Baker years called "The Pirate Planet". That's all I'm going to say.
Bruce is referring to the Cult of the Immortal Queen here. It refers to an occult secret society that is very real and has many rich and powerful members. Doctor Who did a riff on the cult of the Immortal Queen in the Tom Baker years called "The Pirate Planet". That's all I'm going to say.
You guys are right about the meaning. I can just see Bruce waving the Union Jack while playing this in concert.