Symphony Of Man - Commoners
Copyright 1997, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
Taken away from the place I belong / Torn away from the land I love
Fight for the crown (God save the King) Thy will be done / We will prevail
And so we're called to the battlefield / Our lives and loves we leave behind
Months pass in days, 'fore we near our foe / In final camp, we shun our sorrow
Without a sign, our swords we draw / And ask no omen, but our country's cause
And so we march to the battlefield / Our swords and time are now at hand
Impatient, straight to flesh my virgin sword / I feel the pain of another at my cord
Unwept, unhonored, uninterred we lie / The lot of man, to suffer and to die
And so we fall on the battlefield / Rain mixed with blood fills our eyes
And so we die, on the battlefield / While kings and princes carry on
Symphony Of Man - Princes
Copyright 1998, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
I've watched and waited / At your right hand
Greed and power consume me / I must take my stand
Ruled with an iron fist / They'll say of you
They never could see / The coward I knew
But when I look in the mirror / What do I see
A reflection of you / Staring back at me
Just beware what you wish for / I say to you
You might regret what you wished for / When it comes true
'Cause until you've lived your life / In absolute purity
Don't point out the mote in my eye / And I won't point out your beam
Things look so very different / When you're holding the reins
Acts that seemed so contrite, now / Serve to lessen the pain
Have I really improved his worth / Or was I too blind to see
Can I make more out of this work / Before they replace me
Symphony Of Man - Thieves
Copyright 1998, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
I sit and watch the moon cast shadows / On the wall - they dance and play
I could sit and watch the wall all day
I'll sit here by the window / And wait to see the sign
You know there's gonna be trouble / And some are gonna die
It's gotta be now; It's gotta be fast / It's gotta be perfect in the planning
Or we'll never realize / The way; the truth; the hope; the light
To live not just survive
They call us a den of thieves
But we're far more you and I
We hold the future for all to see
When commoners become kings
They sit in their ivory towers / And wait for their Judgement Day
They had their chance to lead our people / And all they did was lead us astray
repeat chorus
I sit and watch the moon cast shadows / On the wall - they dance and play
I'll sit and watch another day
Forever In Your Eyes
Copyright 1997, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
You came to me in search of happiness / I hope that all of your dreams came true
It's been so many years gone by and I realize / That I can see forever in your eyes
I can see forever in your eyes
I know you'll always be the one in my life
I can see forever in your eyes
Eternity is but a single night
I wanna live every moment now and you know they're all too few / My journey has always been to you
Our way is clear in the moonlight and in every sweet sunrise / I can see forever in your eyes
repeat chorus
And now we're here together / We're all alone / I live to have you here with me
repeat chorus
I Can See Forever
Copyright 1997, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
Going down the road to nowhere / I'm always keeping to myself
Out'ta the shadows comes a raggedy man / Bent and filthy lookin' kinda rough
I look away, I'm tryin' not to stare / Commit my crime of feelin' pity and disgust
He forces his way directly into my path / In the grip of his eyes I have been caught
He says, "Son, I can see forever
I wanna show you the way
You can have powers out of this world
The price is in the words I say"
I push him away and ask him, "Are you for real"
With ice in his gaze he says, "You'll see it for yourself"
Without care or reason, I will accept / Humor the man and back away - he's dangerous
All at once a light as bright as the sun / Consumes the man - only ashes as evidence
Then I realize that a change has come over me / Its subtlety has aroused a waking sense
So I cry, "I can see forever
I understand everything
I have the universe inside my grasp
And now I see what he means"
I live for centuries with all of man's answers / But noone hears - I'm no more than a lunatic
There's nothing new to live for - no day to look forward to
Except the end, and I know what I have to do
I'll say, "son, I can see forever
I wanna show you the way
You can have powers out of this world
The price is in the words I say."
I can see forever....
Event Horizon
Copyright 1998, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
"That which we fear most, is what we cannot see."
So many treasures / Those points of light - they say
You'll make your fortune here / So we travelled to the gateway
Explorers / Star-chasers, they said
Climb in your starship / Follow and be led
With our folded mates we wander far / The way seems harsh and wild
We follow the beck of a baleful star / Our path is dream-beguiled
Days, weeks, and months go by / I do not know how far
When we arrive / We're in the eye of a great, shining black star
Beyond the blue event horizon
Cast in azurian light
Beyond the blue event horizon
I see the mote in God's eye
The eternal silence of these infinite spaces terrifies my soul
Frozen in time and frozen in space
It's the only way to see her face again
Repeat Chorus
Fame and fortune / No guts, no glory
But when one's pushed to it / It's the same old story
Under an overwhelming tide / The ship is torn asunder
I board the only lifecraft / Depart in rolling thunder
Repeat Chorus
"Lost among bright stars on this most weary unbright cinder, lost!"
-Thomas Wolfe, Look Homeward, Angel
Need To Be (Osiris Gets A Mouth)
Copyright 1997-1998, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
"I rise up out of the Egg in the Hidden Land. May my mouth be given unto me that I may speak therewith in the presence of the Great God. I am Osiris, the Lord of Ra-stau. May I, the Osiris, the scribe Ani, whose word is true, have my portion with him who is on the top of the Steps. According to the desire of my heart, I have come forth from the Island of Nesersert, and I have extinguished the Fire." - The Egyptian Book of the Dead
From the days of my youth / I was chosen
The blood of kings and queens / Runs through my veins
I am Caesar; I am Ptolemy; I am man-god; I call night and day
How can one man lead all / When man is lead by destiny
The time of future is come / I'm not who I need to be
I don't wanna have to be another Powerslave / I don't wanna have to be another king
I don't wanna have to be another Son of Ra / I don't wanna have to rule o'er ev'rything
Like leaves on trees the race of man is found
Now green in yourth, now withering on the ground
Another race the following spring supplies / They fall successive, then they rise
Like leaves again they scatter all around
Let Rome in Tiber melt and the whole empire fall
I have kiss'd away the kingdoms of them all
You may try to break my body, but you'll never break my soul
A wildfire, my lesson burns like coals
I may not live to see another day like this
But I promise you, you'll see the Eye of Ra
Machinery of the Gods
Copyright 1999, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
We try to make it by each day / A lifetime of echoes
They give us simple pleasures and pain / Just to solve simple riddles
So we try to give it all we've got / Every ounce of strength; Pushed to the very top
Don't know if I can take this another day / But I cannot turn away
They make their way to the top
Will they change; Oh, no, not them
They are neither masters nor gods
But men in a world of men
Cast those shackles off your feet / It's within your power
Revolution is shouted in the streets / Let them watch from their towers
Everyone has control o'er their own destiny
Shine your light, don't confine it, you'll see you are free
If you dream you can do it, then do it you will / The child is inside you still
They make their way to the top
Will they change; Oh, no, not them
They are neither masters nor gods
But men in a world of men
We're not machinery of the gods
We're not machinery of the gods
We're not machinery of the gods
We're not machinery of the gods
Look into the light
Everything will turn out alright
You've got to take it day by day
Repeat and fade...
Deepest Chamber
Copyright 1999, Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
In the deepest chamber of your mind I sleep
Waiting for the moment when you might release me
I'll find a way to rear my ugly head
And leave you wondering what you just said
Do you think you'll ever see the day
When these biases will go away
Or do you think that they are doomed to be
With us through eternity
In the deepest chamber of your heart I wait
I'm there to fill your mind with fear and hatred
There's no refuge for you from my hungry jaws
No God, no fate, no path, no driving cause
Chorus...
In the deepest chamber of your soul I lie
I count the cost for you, I'm your inner eye
Where did you learn to hate your fellow men
What kind of fool are you, this is your greatest sin
Chorus...
Partitions Of Time
Copyright 1999; Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
We're all sands in the hourglass / Yet we find a way to shine
Just need a chance to discover / All those pasts we've left behind
One man finds religion / One man'll take the reins
One man will search for the answer in the cold, cold dark of distant space
Find me the truth, boy / That's all I ask of you
Every path's gotta yes or no answer / Can't be that hard to do
To seek the ultimate answer / Is to seek eternal flame
Do you even know the question / 'Fore you wander out into the rain?
Every man can better the other / and every man will die the same
To discover the ultimate question is to be interred within the grave
Repeat refrain
Spring, summer, winter, and fall / Goes the lifetime of us all
We're just partitions of time
Like seconds or hours or days / Divided in so many ways
We're just partitions of time
Repeat and fade...
The Portal
Copyright 1990, 1999; Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
"We stand before the doors of infinity at the boundaries of space and time;
Afraid to move forward - afraid to look back; forever reaching forward - forever falling back.
The realm of imagination builds a stronger wall than that of reality
And all of its subjects thrive on its energy.
Reality exists only when there is no life, no time, and no dreams..."
Through the mirror I will find the way / A portal to another place
A path less threatening that the morning rain / O realm of peace and grace
"The doors of infinity fall open - revealing the lives and loves, delights and dreams,
fairytales and fantasies, gods and kings.
The wash of space and time envelopes the darkness to illuminate and to inspire.
These dreams of infinity..."
Through the silver door I wander / To see a world so strange
Purple clouds and seas of gold / This dream within a dream
And in this place, an angel's face / Appears before my eyes
Where does the path lead? Uncertain aire... / What lies behind her eyes?
Labyrinthe
Copyright 1999; Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
One step into the darkness
To leave the light behind
Get lost in your maze of madness
In the labyrinth of your mind
What do you see? Heaven or Hell
I see the faces of angels who fell
No stars are in sight - no angels in flight
Eternal labyrinth where we all choose to dwell
Voices scream out in terror
Cries of horror from the damned
Your price to witness their redemption
An angel's blood spills on your hands
Repeat Chorus
Prophecy
Copyright 2000; Gary W. Franklin and William L. Neumann
I sought out the Oracle today; He showed me the future that I've made
I can not refuse the sign; This hell in the making is mine
The writing upon the wall is clear; The angels have so much more to fear
Reflections in Trinity's sky; Angelic faces dissolving in light
How can this be real? This innocence compelled disaster
There has got to be a way to change a future never passed at all
Is there a problem here? Are you too blind to see?
Heaven burns around you now. What will it take to believe?
What do you think we want you to do?
Just leave the "why"s to us, and we'll leave "it" to you
One step across the line will take us to the edge
Fulfill your prophecy and we can do the rest
Rest from your labors here and peace shall follow soon
I look to see a shining cloud with angels bearing steel
And then I saw a sea of glass scorched and ringed with fire
Blackened remains of angels fallen here - the plagues released at last
The first kingdom has passed away and paradise anew'ed
Surely the light will come quickly to greet a brand new day
I saw a star fall across the sky today to carry the omen of what may
A million suns have burned out; Is it too late to save us from ourselves?
How can this be real? This innocence compelled disaster
There has got to be a way to change a future never passed at all
repeat...