Song #72 - Memory of Babylon
Written by David Newton (Wong)
Completed on 20/5/2005
Length: 5min 5sec
davidknewton@gmail.com
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The idea for this song came out of nowhere one evening - I
wrote out the last half of the chorus and left it there,
thinking it would be left as an experimental ten-second song.
The lyrics felt like they needed a meaning to them, though,
and I first thought of making the song an epic telling the
story of the arrival and removal of the "shadow". I decided
that this was a bit too typically power-metallish, though, so
instead turned it in to a description of the city of Babylon
and the way that its achievements have faded in to obscurity.
I think that the guitar-led pattern that first appears near
the beginning and keeps reappearing throughout is one of the
catchiest things I've ever written. The song also has two
very brief sections where I've experimented with an awkward
7/4 time signature.
This is the first time that a title for a song has completely
eluded me - usually I begin with a title and work from that,
but in this case the lyrics were written first, then the song
around them, then the title was thought up last. It was
originally going to be "Shadowcaster", and I tried similar
ideas like "Shadow Over Babylon" before settling on the
current one.
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The splendour of our city, a wonder to the eye
The tower of babel reaching up to the sky
In the centre of it all, the hanging gardens stand
Carved by the son of Naboplashar's hand
We've come, we run, to find our sun
The light that we once had
From the mighty walls that border south
We travel to the river's mouth
The darkness has been cast across our land
The wonder of our city never to be seen
The darkness of the night replaced the golden dawn
A shadow has been cast all over Babylon
A tower rises to the sky, the symbol of our might
All the empire comes together to this beacon in the night
The end of understanding, confusion has begun
The start of nations, birth of our tongue
We've come, we run, to find our sun
The light that we once had
From the mighty walls that border south
We travel to the river's mouth
The darkness has been cast across our land
We'll always be remembered, an evil of the world
The darkness of the night replaced the golden dawn
A shadow has been cast all over Babylon
Babylon
Babylon
We'll find our star, Seleucia
Away from all we had
Together from the fall we shall all travel on
Away from the dark shadow over Babylon
The death of Alexander marked our city's end
Our wonder torn by war and with our leader gone
A shadow has been cast all over Babylon
