------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lyrics to Chronicles ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Finding My Way (Rush) ------- -- --- Yeah, oh yeah! Ooh, said I, I'm comin' out to get you. Ooh, sit down. I'm comin' out to find you. Ooh, yeah. Ooh yeah. Findin' my way! I've been gone so long I've lost count of the years. Well, I sang some sad songs, oh yes, and cried some bad tears. Look out! I'm comin'. Whoa, whoa. Look out! I'm comin'. Whoa, yeah. I'm runnin', finding my way back home. Oh yeah! Yeah, oh yeah! Ooh, said I, I'm comin' back to look for you. Ooh, sit down. I'm goin' by the back door. Ooh, yeah. Ooh yeah. Findin' my way! You've done me no right, but you've done me some wrong. Left me lonely each night while I sing my sad song. Look out! I'm comin'. Whoa, whoa. Look out! I'm comin'. Whoa, yeah. I'm runnin', findin' my way back home. I'm comin'. Ooh, babe, I said I'm runnin'. Whoa, babe, I said I'm comin' to get you, mama. Said I'm runnin'. Ooh, babe, I said I'm comin' for you, babe. I said I'm runnin'. Ooh yes, babe, I said I'm comin' to get you, babe. I said I'm comin'. Ooh, yeah. I'm findin', I'm findin' my way back home. Well, I've had it for now, livin' on the road. Ooh, yeah. Ooh, yeah. Findin' my way! Working Man (Rush) ------- --- I get up at seven, yeah, and I go to work at nine. I got no time for livin'. Yes, I'm workin' all the time. It seems to me I could live my life a lot better than I think I am. I guess that's why they call me, they call me the workin' man. They call me the workin' man. I guess that's what I am. I get home at five o'clock, and I take myself out a nice, cold beer. Always seem to be wond'rin' why there's nothin' goin' down here. It seems to me I could live my life a lot better than I think I am. I guess that's why they call me, they call me the workin' man. They call me the workin' man. I guess that's what I am. Well they call me the workin' man. I guess that's what I am. Fly By Night (Fly By Night) --- -- ----- Why try? I know why This feeling inside me says it's time I was gone Clear head, new life ahead I want to be king now, not just one more pawn Fly by night away from here Change my life again Fly by night, goodbye my dear My ship isn't coming and I just can't pretend Moonrise, thoughtful eyes Staring back at me from the window beside No fright or hindsight Leaving behind that empty feeling inside Start a new chapter, I find what I'm after Is changing every day. The change of a season's enough of a reason To want to get away Quiet and pensive, my thoughts apprehensive The hours drift away Leaving my homeland, playing a lone hand My life begins today Anthem (Fly By Night) ------ Know your place in life is where you want to be Don't let them tell you that you owe it all to me Keep on looking forward; no use in looking 'round Hold your head above the ground and they won't bring you down Anthem of the heart and anthem of the mind A funeral dirge for eyes gone blind We marvel after those who sought New wonders in the world, wonders in the world, Wonders in the world they wrought. Live for yourself -- there's no one else More worth living for Begging hands and bleeding hearts will Only cry out for more Well, I know they've always told you Selfishness was wrong Yet it was for me, not you, I Came to write this song Bastille Day (Caress Of Steel) -------- --- Ooh, there's no bread, let 'em eat cake There's no end to what they'll take Flaunt the fruits of noble birth Wash the salt into the earth But they're marching to Bastille Day. La guillotine will claim her bloody prize. Free the dungeons of the innocent The king will kneel And let his kingdom rise. Ooh, blood stained velvet, dirty lace, naked fear on every face See them bow their heads to die As we would bow as they rode by And we're marching to Bastille Day La guillotine will claim her bloody prize Sing, oh choirs of cacophony The king has kneeled To let his kingdom rise. Lessons taught but never learned All around us anger burns Guide the future by the past Long ago the mould was cast For they marched up to Bastille Day La guillotine claimed her bloody prize Hear the echoes of the centuries power isn't all that money buys. Lakeside Park (Caress Of Steel) -------- ---- Midway hawkers calling "Try your luck with me." Merry-go-round wheezing same old melody. A thousand ten-cent wonders, who could ask for more. A pocketful of silver, the key to heaven's door. Lakeside Park, willows in the breeze. Lakeside Park, so many memories. Laughing rides, midway lights, Shining stars on summer nights. Days of barefoot freedom, racing with the waves, Nights of starlit secrets, crackling driftwood flames, Drinking by the lighthouse, smoking on the pier, Still, we saw the magic was fading every year. Everyone would gather on the twenty fourth of May, Sitting in the sand to watch the fireworks display. Dancing fires on the beach, singing songs together, Though it's just a memory, some memories last forever. Overture (Instrumental) (2112) ------------------------ The Temples Of Syrinx (2112) --------------------- We've taken care of everything The words you hear the songs you sing The pictures that give pleasure to your eyes. It's one for all and all for one We work together common sons Never need to wonder how or why. We are the Priests, of the Temples of Syrinx Our great computers fill the hallowed halls. We are the Priests, of the Temples of Syrinx All the gifts of life are held within our walls. Look around this world we made Equality our stock in trade Come and join the Brotherhood of Man Oh what a nice contented world Let the banners be unfurled Hold the Red Star proudly high in hand. We are the Priests, of the Temples of Syrinx Our great computers fill the hallowed halls. We are the Priests, of the Temples of Syrinx All the gifts of life are held within our walls. What You're Doing (Rush/All The World's A Stage) ---- ------ ----- Well, I see you standin' there with your finger in the air. Ev'rything we do, you wanna leave it up to you. Who do you think you are? You think you are a star, try'n' to run the town, always try'n' to put us down. Well, you think that you're right. You think you're out of sight. Tell me something, mister; why'd you have to make us so uptight? Well, you say you've been try'n'. You know that you're ly'n'. I think you need some groovin'. Who do you think you're foolin' now? Well, you better start changin'. You life needs rearrangin'. You better do some talkin' or you better do some walkin' now. Yeah, you think that you're right. You think you're out of sight. Tell me something, mister; why'd you have to make us so uptight? I know what you're doing, all that you been doin' wrong. I don't know what you're feelin', oh, but you been feelin' long. Well, you think that you're right. Tell me something, mister; why'd you have to make us so uptight? A Farewell to Kings (A Farewell To Kings) - -------- -- ----- When they turn the pages of history When these days have passed long ago Will they read of us with sadness For the seeds that we let grow We turned our gaze From the castles in the distance Eyes cast down On the path of least resistance Cities full of hatred Fear and lies Withered hearts And cruel tormented eyes Scheming demons Dressed in kingly guise Beating down the multitude And scoffing at the wise The hypocrites are slandering The sacred halls of Truth Ancient nobles showering Their bitterness on youth Can't we find The minds that made us stong Can't we learn To feel what's right and wrong Cities full of hatred Fear and lies Withered hearts And cruel, tormented eyes Scheming demons Dressed in kingly guise Beating down the multitude And scoffing at the wise Can't we raise our eyes And make a start Can't we find the minds To lead us closer to the Heart Closer To The Heart (A Farewell To Kings) ------ -- --- ----- And the men who hold high places Must be the ones to start To mould a new reality Closer to the Heart The Blacksmith and the Artist Reflect it in their art Forge their creativity Closer to the Heart Philosophers and Ploughmen Each must know his part To sow a new mentality Closer to the Heart You can be the Captain I will draw the Chart Sailing into destiny Closer to the Heart The Trees (Hemispheres) --- ----- There is unrest in the forest, There is trouble with the trees, For the maples want more sunlight And the oaks ignore their pleas. The trouble with the maples, (And they're quite convinced the're right) They say the oaks are just too lofty And they grab up all the light. But the oaks can't help their feelings If they like the way they're made. And they wonder why the maples Can't be happy in their shade. So the maples formed a union And demanded equal rights. "These oaks are just too greedy; We will make them give us light." Now there's no more oak oppression, For they passed a noble law, And the trees are all kept equal By hatchet, axe, and saw. La Villa Strangiato (Instrumental) (Hemispheres) -- ----- ---------- (An Exercise in Self-Indulgence) Includes: 1. Buenas Noches, Mein Froinds! 2. To sleep, perchance to dream... 3. Strangiato Theme 4. A Lerxst in Wonderland 5. Monsters! 6. Danforth and Pape 7. The Waltz of the Shreves 8. Never turn your back on a Monster! 9. Monsters! (Reprise) 10. Strangiato Theme (Reprise) 11. A Farewell to Things Freewill (Permanent Waves) -------- There are those who think that life is nothing left to chance, A host of holy horrors to direct our aimless dance. A planet of playthings, We dance on the strings Of powers we cannot perceive "The stars aren't aligned Or the gods are malign"- Blame is better to give than receive. ou can choose a ready guide in some celestial voice. If you choose not to decide, you still haven't made a choice. ou can choose from phantom fears and kindness that can kill; I will choose a path that's clear- I will choose Free Will. There are those who think that they were dealt a losing hand, The cards were stacked against them- they weren't born in lotus-land. All preordained- A prisoner in chains- A victim of venomous fate. Kicked in the face, ou can't pray for a place In heaven's unearthly estate. Each of us- A cell of awareness- Imperfect and incomplete. Genetic blends With uncertain ends On a fortune hunt that's far too fleet. The Spirit of Radio (Permanent Waves) --- ------ -- ----- Begin the day with a friendly voice, A companion unobtrusive Plays the song that's so elusive And the magic music makes your morning mood. Off on your way, hit the open road, There is magic at your fingers For the Spirit ever lingers, Undemanding contact in your happy solitude. Invisible airwaves crackle with life Bright antennae bristle with the energy Emotional feedback on timeless wavelength Bearing a gift beyond price, almost free All this machinery making modern music Can still be open-hearted. Not so coldly charted, it's really just a question Of your honesty, yeah, your honesty. One likes to believe in the freedom of music, But glittering prizes and endless compromises Shatter the illusion of integrity. For the words of the profits were written on the studio wall, Concert hall And echoes with the sounds of salesmen. Tom Sawyer (Moving Pictures) --- ------ A modern-day warrior Mean mean stride, Today's Tom Sawyer Mean mean pride. Though his mind is not for rent, Don't put him down as arrogant. His reserve, a quiet defense, Riding out the day's events. The river And what you say about his company Is what you say about society. Catch the mist, catch the myth Catch the mystery, catch the drift. The world is, the world is, Love and life are deep, Maybe as his eyes are wide. Today's Tom Sawyer, He gets high on you, And the space he invades He gets by on you. No, his mind is not for rent To any god or government. Always hopeful, yet discontent, He knows changes aren't permanent, But change is. And what you say about his company Is what you say about society. Catch the witness, catch the wit, Catch the spirit, catch the spit. The world is, the world is, Love and life are deep, Maybe as his skies are wide. Exit the warrior, Today's Tom Sawyer, He gets high on you, And the energy you trade, He gets right on to the friction of the day. Red Barchetta (Moving Pictures) --- --------- My uncle has a country place That no one knows about. He says it used to be a farm, Before the Motor Law. And on Sundays I elude the Eyes, And hop the Turbine Freight To far outside the Wire, Where my white-haired uncle waits. Jump to the ground As the Turbo slows to cross the Borderline. Run like the wind, As excitement shivers up and down my spine. Down in his barn, My uncle preserved for me an old machine, For fifty-odd years. To keep it as new has been his dearest dream. I strip away the old debris That hides a shining car. A brilliant red Barchetta From a better, vanished time. I fire up the willing engine, Responding with a roar. Tires spitting gravel, I commit my weekly crime... Wind- In my hair- Shifting and drifting- Mechanical music- Adrenalin surge... Well-weathered leather, Hot metal and oil, The scented country air. Sunlight on chrome, The blur of the landscape, Every nerve aware. Suddenly ahead of me, Across the mountainside, A gleaming alloy air-car Shoots towards me, two lanes wide. I spin around with shrieking tires, To run the deadly race, Go screaming through the valley As another joins the chase. Drive like the wind, Straining the limits of machine and man. Laughing out loud With fear and hope, I've got a desperate plan. At the one-lane bridge I leave the giants stranded at the riverside. Race back to the farm, to dream with my uncle at the fireside. Limelight (Moving Pictures) --------- Living on a lighted stage Approaches the unreal For those who think and feel In touch with some reality Beyond the gilded cage. Cast in this unlikely role, Ill-equipped to act, With insufficient tact, One must put up barriers To keep oneself intact. Living in the Limelight, The universal dream For those who wish to seem. Those who wish to be Must put aside the alienation, Get on with the fascination, The real relation, The underlying theme. Living in a fisheye lens, Caught in the camera eye. I have no heart to lie, I can't pretend a stranger Is a long-awaited friend. All the world's indeed a stage, And we are merely players, Performers and portrayers, Each another's audience Outside the gilded cage. A Passage To Bangkok (2112/Exit...Stage Left) - ------- -- ------- Our first stop is in Bogota To check Columbian fields The natives smile and pass along A sample of their yield Sweet Jamaican pipe dreams Golden Acapulco nights Then Morocco, and the East, Fly by morning light We're on the train to Bangkok Aboard the Thailand Express We'll hit the stops along the way We only stop for the best Wreathed in smoke in Lebanon We burn the midnight oil The fragrance of Afghanistan Rewards a long day's toil Pulling into Katmandu Smoke rings fill the air Perfumed by a Nepal night The Express gets you there Subdivisions (Signals) ------------ Sprawling on the fringes of the city In geometric order An insulated border In between the bright lights And the far unlit unknown Growing up it all seems so one-sided Opinions all provided The future pre-decided Detached and subdivided In the mass production zone Nowhere is the dreamer or the misfit so alone Subdivisions -- In the high school halls In the shopping malls Conform or be cast out Subdivisions -- In the basement bars In the backs of cars Be cool or be cast out Any escape might help to smooth The unattractive truth But the suburbs have no charms to soothe The restless dreams of youth Drawn like moths we drift into the city The timeless old attraction Cruising for the action Lit up like a firefly Just to feel the living night Some will sell their dreams for small desires Or lose the race to rats Get caught in ticking traps And start to dream of somewhere To relax their restless flight Somewhere out of a memory of lighted streets on quiet nights... New World Man (Signals) --- ----- --- He's a rebel and a runner He's a signal turning green He's a restless young romantic Wants to run the big machine He's got a problem with his poisons But you know he'll find a cure He's cleaning up his systems To keep his nature pure Learning to match the beat of the Old World man Learning to catch the heat of the Third World man He's got to make his own mistakes And learn to mend the mess he makes He's old enough to know what's right But young enough not to choose it He's noble enough to win the world But weak enough to lose it -- He's a New World man... He's a radio receiver Turned to factories and farms He's a writer and arranger And a young boy bearing arms He's got a problem with his power With weapons on patrol He's got to walk a fine line And keep his self-control Trying to save the day for the Old World man Trying to pave the way for the Third World man He's not concerned with yesterday He knows constant change is here today He's noble enough to know what's right But weak enough not to choose it He's wise enough to win the world But fool enough to lose it -- He's a New World man... Distant Early Warning (Grace Under Pressure) ------- ----- ------- An ill wind comes arising Across the cities of the plain There's no swimming in the heavy water -- No singing in the acid rain Red alert Red alert It's so hard to stay together Passing through revolving doors We need someone to talk to And someone to sweep the floors -- Incomplete Incomplete The world weighs on my shoulders But what am I to do? ou sometimes drive me crazy -- But I worry about you I know it makes on difference To what you're going through But I see the tip of the iceberg -- And I worry about you... Cruising under your radar Watching from satellites Take a page from the red book -- Keep them in your sights Red alert Red alert Left and rights of passage Black and whites of youth Who can face the knowledge That the truth is not the truth? Obsolete Absolute Absalom, Absalom, Absalom Red Sector A (Grace Under Pressure) --- ------ - All that we can do is just survive All that we can do to help ourselves is stay alive... Ragged lines of ragged grey Skeletons, they shuffle away Shouting guards and smoking guns Will cut down the unlucky ones I clutch the wire fence until my fingers bleed A wound that will not heal -- a hear that cannot feel -- Hoping that the horror will recede Hoping that tomorrow, we'll all be freed Sickness to insanity Prayer to profanity Days and weeks and months go by Don't feel the hunger -- too weak to cry I hear the sound of gunfire at the prison gate Are the liberators here -- do I hope or do I fear? For my father and my brother, it's too late But I must help my mother stand up straight... Are we the last ones left alive? Are we the only human beings to survive?... The Big Money (Power Windows) --- --- ----- Big money goes around the world Big money underground Big money got a mighty voice Big money make no sound Big money pull a million strings Big money hold the prize Big money weave a mighty web Big money draw the flies Sometimes pushing people around Sometimes pulling out the rug Sometimes pushing all the buttons Sometimes pulling out the plug It's the power and the glory It's a war in paradise It's a cinderella story On a tumble of the dice Big money goes around the world Big money take a cruise Big money leave a mighty wake Big money leave a bruise Big money make a million dreams Big money spin big deals Big money make a mighty head Big money spin big wheels Sometimes building ivory towers Sometimes knocking castles down Sometimes building you a stairway -- Lock you underground It's that old-time religion it's the kingdom they would rule It's the fool on television Getting paid to play the fool Big money goes around the world Big money give and take Big money done a power of good Big money make mistakes Big money got a heavy hand Big money take control Big money got a mean streak Big money got no soul... Manhattan Project (Power Windows) --------- ------- Imagine a time when it all began In the dying days of a war A weapon -- that would settle the score Whoever found it first would be sure to do their worst -- They always had before... Imagine a man where it all began A scientist pacing the floor In each nation -- always eager to explore To build the best big stick To turn the winning trick -- But this was something more... The big bang -- took and shook the world Shot down the rising sun the end was begun -- it would hit everyone When the chain reaction was done The big shots -- try to hold it back Fools try to wish it away The hopeful depend on a world without end Whatever the hopeless may say Imagine a place where it all began They gathered from across the land To work in the secrecy of the desert sand All of the brightest boys To play with the biggest toys -- More than they bargained for... Imagine a man when it all began The pilot of "Enola Gay" Flying out of the shockwave on that August day All the powers that be, and the course of history, Would be changed for evermore... Force Ten (Hold Your Fire) ----- --- Tough times demand tough talk demand tough hearts demand tough songs demand -- We can rise and fall like empires Flow in and out like the tide Be vain and smart, humble and dumb We can hit and miss like pride We can circle around like hurricanes Dance and dream like lovers Attack the day like birds of prey Or scavengers under cover Look in -- to the eye of the storm Look out -- for the force without form Look around -- at the sight and the sound Look in look out look around -- We can move with savage grace To the rhythms of the night Cool and remote like dancing girls In the heat of the beat and the lights We can wear the rose of romance An air of joie de vivre Too-tender hearts upon our sleeves Or skin as thick as thieves' rising falling at force ten we twist the world and ride the wind Look in -- look the storm in the eye Look out -- to the sea and the sky Look around -- at the sight and the sound Look in look out look around -- Time Stand Still (Hold Your Fire) ---- ----- ----- I turn my back to the wind To catch my breath, Before I start off again. Driven on without a moment to spend To pass an evening with a drink and a friend I let my skin get too thin I'd like to pause. No matter what I pretend Like some pilgrim -- Who learns to transcend -- Learns to live As if each step was the end Time stand still -- I'm not looking back But I want to look around me now See more of the people and the places that surround me now Freeze this moment a little bit longer Make each sensation a little bit stronger Experience slips away... I turn my face to the sun Close my eyes. Let my defences down -- All those wounds that I can't get unwound I let my past go too fast No time to pause -- If I could slow it all down Like some captain, whose ship runs aground -- I can wait until the tide comes around Make each impression a little bit stronger Freeze this motion a little bit longer The innocence slips away... Summer's going fast, nights growing colder Children growing up -- old friends growing colder Experience slips away... Mystic Rhythms (Grace Under Pressure) ------ ------- So many things I think about When I look far away Things I know -- things I wonder Things I'd like to say The more we think we know about The greater the unknown We suspend our disbelief And we are not alone -- Mystic rhythms -- capture my thoughts And carry them away Mysteries of night escape the light of day Mystic rhythms -- under northern lights Primitive things stir The hearts of everyone We sometimes catch a window A glimpse of what's beyond Was it just imagination Stringing us along? More things than are dreamed about Unseen and unexplained We suspend our disbelief And we are entertained Mystic rhythms -- capture my thoughts And carry them away Nature seems to spin A supernatural way Mystic rhythms -- under city lights Or a canopy of stars We feel the powers and we wonder what they are We feel the push and pull of restless rhythms from afar Show Don't Tell (Presto) ---- ----- ---- How many times do you hear it? It goes on all day long Everyone knows everything And no one's ever wrong Until later Who can you believe? It's hard to play it safe But apart from a few good friends We don't take anything on faith Until later Show Don't Tell SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME You've figured out the score SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME I've heard it all before SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME I don't care what you say SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME You can twist perceptions Reality won't budge You can raise objections I will be the judge And the jury I'll give it due reflection Watching from the fence Give the jury direction Based on the evidence I, the jury SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME Hey - order in the court SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME Let's try to keep it short SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME Enough of your demands SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME Witness take the stand SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME Hey - order in the court SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME Let's try to keep it short SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME I don't care what you say SHOW ME DON'T TELL ME Let's see exhibit A