Night Castle.....
Mother And Son
(Mother)
REMEMBER WHAT CONFUCIUS TAUGHT, ALWAYS BE KIND.
(Son - Tran Do)
YES, MOTHER.
(Mother)
ALWAYS HELP THE WEAK AND THE OLD.
(Son)
YES, MOTHER. I UNDERSTAND.
(Mother)
AND ALWAYS HELP THOSE LESS FORTUNATE THAN YOURSELF.
(Son)
YES, MOTHER. ALWAYS.
A jet passes by in the distance and the apparition of his mother fades away. The child turns towards Tran-Do in a non-judgmental but puzzled voice.
(Son)
HOW DID I BECOME YOU?
Epiphany
Tran Do: THE SILENCE (In Khmer)
DON’T GO
DOES IT HAVE TO BE THIS WAY?
CAN’T WE HAVE JUST ONE MORE CHANCE?
THOSE WHO KNOW
THEY WILL NOT SAY
MUST THIS BE THE FINAL
DANCE IN OUR LIVES?
AS TIME JUST MOVES ON
YESTERDAY’S YEARS
ARE TOO QUICKLY GONE
ALL VISIONS FADE
AS WORLDS FALL APART
DECISIONS ARE MADE
BUT THERE IN THIS DARK NOW
THERE IN THIS DARK NOW
SOMEWHERE ON THIS NIGHT
A LIFE IS OUT THERE
AND CAN SOMEONE TELL ME HOW
HERE ON THIS NIGHT
SO FAR AWAY
BITS OF STARLIGHT
FALL WHERE THEY MAY
I NEVER WANTED TO GO
I NEVER WANTED TO STAY
I NEVER WANTED TO BE AFRAID
BUT STILL
CHILDHOOD SEES WHAT CHILDHOOD WILL
BUT NOTHING EVER STAYS THE SAME
I FEAR THE NIGHT
I FEAR THE DARK
I NEED THIS LIGHT
THAT DISTANT SPARK
I KNOW THAT…
SOMEWHERE
SOMEONE’S LOOKING TO DECEIVE AND
SOMEWHERE
YOUNG MEN DIE AND CHILDREN BLEED AND
SOMEWHERE
SOME HAVE TOO MUCH WHILE OTHERS NEED AND
SOMEWHERE
SOMEONE’S LOOKING TO BELIEVE AND…
SOMEWHERE
SOMEWHERE
SOMEWHERE
SOMEWHERE
AND THE NIGHT AND THE DARK
AND THE HOPES AND THE DREAMS
AS WE ALL PLAY OUR PARTS
WHILE IGNORING THE SCREAMS
SO WE LIE TO OURSELVES
AND WE JUST CARRY ON
NEVER STOP, NEVER TURN
DON’T ADMIT WHAT IS …
GONE IN TO THIS TWISTED STORY
ALL THESE THINGS SO CLEAR BEFORE ME
EVERY PATH WE’VE EVER TAKEN
CAN’T ADMIT WE WERE MISTAKEN
IN THIS NIGHT
OF MY DEVISING
NEVER LIVE
AND NEVER DYING
EACH ESCAPE
I’VE NEVER TAKEN
NEVER DREAM
AND NEVER WAKEN…
SOMEWHERE
SOMEONE’S LOOKING TO DECEIVE AND
SOMEWHERE
YOUNG MEN DIE AND CHILDREN BLEED AND
SOMEWHERE
SOME HAVE TOO MUCH WHILE OTHERS NEED AND
SOMEWHERE
SOMEONE’S LOOKING TO BELIEVE AND…
(Tran-Do sees himself as a snake oil salesman selling the same lies that he was sold in a carnival barker’s voice.)
COME ONE COME ALL
WELCOME TO THE WORLD’S GREATEST ENTERTAINMENT SINCE THE FALL OF ROME
LIFE, DEATH
VICTIMS, VOYEURS
THE BEST OF SOCIETY
THE LOWEST OF PLEBEIANS
AND TO KEEP IT ALL IN EXTREMELY INTERESTING, TODAY’S PATRONS
COULD VERY EASILY BE TOMORROW’S ENTERTAINMENT
ALL COMPLIMENTS OF THE ULTIMATE SHOWMAN FATE
ALL THAT’S MISSING IS THE COLISEUM !!!!!!!!
(Tran-Do turns away from the apparition of himself as a snake oil salesman, and once more looks into the abyss.)
DID YOU EVER WALK UP
TO THE EDGE OF A CLIFF
STARE INTO THE ABYSS
AS YOUR MIND WONDERS IF
YOU SHOULD TAKE ONE MORE STEP
FURTHER INTO THAT NIGHT
WELL YOUR MIND SAYS YOU WON’T
BUT YOUR HEART SAYS YOU MIGHT
WOULD YOU FALL THROUGH THE DARK
FEEL THE WIND IN YOUR HAIR
WOULD YOU EMBRACE THE GROUND
AND END YOUR LIFE RIGHT THERE
OR WOULD GOD REACH HIS HAND
AND THAT MOMENT YOU FLY
OR IF HE CHANCED TO BLINK
AND THEN, THAT MOMENT YOU DIE
YOU DIE
YOU DIE
YOU DIE ...
STARE INTO THE DARK
AS THE ABYSS KEEPS CALLING
TRY TO TAKE A STEP
BUT THEN THE MIND KEEPS STALLING
CAN A SINGLE QUESTION
JUST GO ON FOREVER
AS A SINGLE THOUGHT GOES ON
IT’S NOW OR NEVER
STARE INTO THE DARK
AS THE ABYSS KEEPS CALLING
TRY TO TAKE A STEP
BUT THEN THE MIND KEEPS STALLING
CAN A SINGLE QUESTION
JUST GO ON FOREVER
AS A SINGLE THOUGHT GOES ON
IT’S NOW OR NEVER
NEVER REALLY TOOK MUCH
NEVER REALLY HAD TO
ONLY HAD A SMALL CRUSH
PROBLEM WAS THAT IT GREW
NEVER REALLY TOOK MUCH
NEVER REALLY HAD TO
ONLY HAD A SMALL CRUSH
PROBLEM WAS THAT IT GREW
BE WHO YOU ARE
WHAT YOU WERE
WHAT THEY SEE
FROM ETERNITY’S VIEW
TELL ME
WHICH ONE IS ME
CAN YOU…
BE WHO YOU ARE
WHAT YOU WERE
WHAT THEY SEE
FROM ETERNITY’S VIEW
TELL ME
WHICH ONE IS ME
ON THIS NIGHT
KEEP ME CLOSE
ON THIS NIGHT
BREATHE MY AIR
ON THIS NIGHT
HOLD ME TIGHT
FEEL MY HEART
BEATING THERE
ON THIS NIGHT
KEEP ME CLOSE
ON THIS NIGHT
BREATHE MY AIR
ON THIS NIGHT
HOLD ME TIGHT
FEEL MY HEART
BEATING THERE
ON THIS NIGHT
KEEP ME CLOSE
ON THIS NIGHT
BREATHE MY AIR
ON THIS NIGHT
HOLD ME TIGHT
FEEL MY HEART
BEATING THERE…
DID YOU EVER WALK UP
TO THE EDGE OF A CLIFF
STARE INTO THE ABYSS
AS YOUR MIND WONDERS IF
YOU SHOULD TAKE ONE MORE STEP
FURTHER INTO THAT NIGHT
WELL YOUR MIND SAYS YOU WON’T
BUT THEN THIS ALL IS YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
THIS ALL IS YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
THIS ALL IS YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
THIS ALL IS YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
THIS ALL IS YOUR…
IS YOUR LIFE
IS YOUR LIFE
IS YOUR LIFE
IS YOUR...LIFE
From the Night Castle Album by Trans Siberian Orchestra...
(Mother)
REMEMBER WHAT CONFUCIUS TAUGHT, ALWAYS BE KIND.
(Son - Tran Do)
YES, MOTHER.
(Mother)
ALWAYS HELP THE WEAK AND THE OLD.
(Son)
YES, MOTHER. I UNDERSTAND.
(Mother)
AND ALWAYS HELP THOSE LESS FORTUNATE THAN YOURSELF.
(Son)
YES, MOTHER. ALWAYS.
A jet passes by in the distance and the apparition of his mother fades away. The child turns towards Tran-Do in a non-judgmental but puzzled voice.
(Son)
HOW DID I BECOME YOU?
Epiphany
Tran Do: THE SILENCE (In Khmer)
DON’T GO
DOES IT HAVE TO BE THIS WAY?
CAN’T WE HAVE JUST ONE MORE CHANCE?
THOSE WHO KNOW
THEY WILL NOT SAY
MUST THIS BE THE FINAL
DANCE IN OUR LIVES?
AS TIME JUST MOVES ON
YESTERDAY’S YEARS
ARE TOO QUICKLY GONE
ALL VISIONS FADE
AS WORLDS FALL APART
DECISIONS ARE MADE
BUT THERE IN THIS DARK NOW
THERE IN THIS DARK NOW
SOMEWHERE ON THIS NIGHT
A LIFE IS OUT THERE
AND CAN SOMEONE TELL ME HOW
HERE ON THIS NIGHT
SO FAR AWAY
BITS OF STARLIGHT
FALL WHERE THEY MAY
I NEVER WANTED TO GO
I NEVER WANTED TO STAY
I NEVER WANTED TO BE AFRAID
BUT STILL
CHILDHOOD SEES WHAT CHILDHOOD WILL
BUT NOTHING EVER STAYS THE SAME
I FEAR THE NIGHT
I FEAR THE DARK
I NEED THIS LIGHT
THAT DISTANT SPARK
I KNOW THAT…
SOMEWHERE
SOMEONE’S LOOKING TO DECEIVE AND
SOMEWHERE
YOUNG MEN DIE AND CHILDREN BLEED AND
SOMEWHERE
SOME HAVE TOO MUCH WHILE OTHERS NEED AND
SOMEWHERE
SOMEONE’S LOOKING TO BELIEVE AND…
SOMEWHERE
SOMEWHERE
SOMEWHERE
SOMEWHERE
AND THE NIGHT AND THE DARK
AND THE HOPES AND THE DREAMS
AS WE ALL PLAY OUR PARTS
WHILE IGNORING THE SCREAMS
SO WE LIE TO OURSELVES
AND WE JUST CARRY ON
NEVER STOP, NEVER TURN
DON’T ADMIT WHAT IS …
GONE IN TO THIS TWISTED STORY
ALL THESE THINGS SO CLEAR BEFORE ME
EVERY PATH WE’VE EVER TAKEN
CAN’T ADMIT WE WERE MISTAKEN
IN THIS NIGHT
OF MY DEVISING
NEVER LIVE
AND NEVER DYING
EACH ESCAPE
I’VE NEVER TAKEN
NEVER DREAM
AND NEVER WAKEN…
SOMEWHERE
SOMEONE’S LOOKING TO DECEIVE AND
SOMEWHERE
YOUNG MEN DIE AND CHILDREN BLEED AND
SOMEWHERE
SOME HAVE TOO MUCH WHILE OTHERS NEED AND
SOMEWHERE
SOMEONE’S LOOKING TO BELIEVE AND…
(Tran-Do sees himself as a snake oil salesman selling the same lies that he was sold in a carnival barker’s voice.)
COME ONE COME ALL
WELCOME TO THE WORLD’S GREATEST ENTERTAINMENT SINCE THE FALL OF ROME
LIFE, DEATH
VICTIMS, VOYEURS
THE BEST OF SOCIETY
THE LOWEST OF PLEBEIANS
AND TO KEEP IT ALL IN EXTREMELY INTERESTING, TODAY’S PATRONS
COULD VERY EASILY BE TOMORROW’S ENTERTAINMENT
ALL COMPLIMENTS OF THE ULTIMATE SHOWMAN FATE
ALL THAT’S MISSING IS THE COLISEUM !!!!!!!!
(Tran-Do turns away from the apparition of himself as a snake oil salesman, and once more looks into the abyss.)
DID YOU EVER WALK UP
TO THE EDGE OF A CLIFF
STARE INTO THE ABYSS
AS YOUR MIND WONDERS IF
YOU SHOULD TAKE ONE MORE STEP
FURTHER INTO THAT NIGHT
WELL YOUR MIND SAYS YOU WON’T
BUT YOUR HEART SAYS YOU MIGHT
WOULD YOU FALL THROUGH THE DARK
FEEL THE WIND IN YOUR HAIR
WOULD YOU EMBRACE THE GROUND
AND END YOUR LIFE RIGHT THERE
OR WOULD GOD REACH HIS HAND
AND THAT MOMENT YOU FLY
OR IF HE CHANCED TO BLINK
AND THEN, THAT MOMENT YOU DIE
YOU DIE
YOU DIE
YOU DIE ...
STARE INTO THE DARK
AS THE ABYSS KEEPS CALLING
TRY TO TAKE A STEP
BUT THEN THE MIND KEEPS STALLING
CAN A SINGLE QUESTION
JUST GO ON FOREVER
AS A SINGLE THOUGHT GOES ON
IT’S NOW OR NEVER
STARE INTO THE DARK
AS THE ABYSS KEEPS CALLING
TRY TO TAKE A STEP
BUT THEN THE MIND KEEPS STALLING
CAN A SINGLE QUESTION
JUST GO ON FOREVER
AS A SINGLE THOUGHT GOES ON
IT’S NOW OR NEVER
NEVER REALLY TOOK MUCH
NEVER REALLY HAD TO
ONLY HAD A SMALL CRUSH
PROBLEM WAS THAT IT GREW
NEVER REALLY TOOK MUCH
NEVER REALLY HAD TO
ONLY HAD A SMALL CRUSH
PROBLEM WAS THAT IT GREW
BE WHO YOU ARE
WHAT YOU WERE
WHAT THEY SEE
FROM ETERNITY’S VIEW
TELL ME
WHICH ONE IS ME
CAN YOU…
BE WHO YOU ARE
WHAT YOU WERE
WHAT THEY SEE
FROM ETERNITY’S VIEW
TELL ME
WHICH ONE IS ME
ON THIS NIGHT
KEEP ME CLOSE
ON THIS NIGHT
BREATHE MY AIR
ON THIS NIGHT
HOLD ME TIGHT
FEEL MY HEART
BEATING THERE
ON THIS NIGHT
KEEP ME CLOSE
ON THIS NIGHT
BREATHE MY AIR
ON THIS NIGHT
HOLD ME TIGHT
FEEL MY HEART
BEATING THERE
ON THIS NIGHT
KEEP ME CLOSE
ON THIS NIGHT
BREATHE MY AIR
ON THIS NIGHT
HOLD ME TIGHT
FEEL MY HEART
BEATING THERE…
DID YOU EVER WALK UP
TO THE EDGE OF A CLIFF
STARE INTO THE ABYSS
AS YOUR MIND WONDERS IF
YOU SHOULD TAKE ONE MORE STEP
FURTHER INTO THAT NIGHT
WELL YOUR MIND SAYS YOU WON’T
BUT THEN THIS ALL IS YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
THIS ALL IS YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
THIS ALL IS YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
THIS ALL IS YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
YOUR LIFE
THIS ALL IS YOUR…
IS YOUR LIFE
IS YOUR LIFE
IS YOUR LIFE
IS YOUR...LIFE
From the Night Castle Album by Trans Siberian Orchestra...
Discussions
7 years ago
That's a depressing album cover.
Reply 7 years ago
It's a crap album-cover, too much symbolism cobbled-together... and an unappealing-font.
L
Reply 7 years ago
That was a part of it.
Reply 7 years ago
You need to read the story to understand the music, the words, the cover. This is what TSO is all about......reference: Beethoven's Last Night, which is the same way.
Reply 7 years ago
Yeah i got that.
Reply 7 years ago
The story, depending on how you look at it, is either depressing, or uplifting.....everyone has their direction they lean in, and everyone has their own particular tint that they add to the world around them....
Reply 7 years ago
Its a nice song though.
Reply 7 years ago
Reply 7 years ago
Don't let bad-art depress you, smile about it.
L
Reply 7 years ago
Art can only be bad to an individual. Or it wouldn't be art, it would be real.
Reply 7 years ago
That is the way it is supposed to look. If you read the story, you get the idea behind the picture (it takes nearly as long to read the story as it does to listen to both cd's but is well worth it IF you want to understand the songs themselves). If not, then it WILL be unappealing, like an untouched potato (runs after that last bad pun).
Reply 7 years ago
Go to the top link and read the story, it has it's good and bad parts.....forgiveness is a big part of the story, and so not so depressing, though parts are disturbing.
7 years ago
Be who you are, in your own words.
L
Reply 7 years ago
There are SO many suffering from anosognosia that want to deny me being me. As the song says, they want me to be "what they see".
To be honest, I can't "be" what they want to see, although, over the years I have become a great actor, so as not to offend people. I am sorry to those that deny me myself, it DOES make me want to reply with, "don't be idiots, you are what you are, let me be, ME. "
7 years ago
You do tend to Stare Into the Abyss :-)
Reply 7 years ago
This is my favorite section and most pertinent:
CAN YOU…
BE WHO YOU ARE
WHAT YOU WERE
WHAT THEY SEE
FROM ETERNITY’S VIEW
TELL ME
WHICH ONE IS ME
Reply 7 years ago
It asks and tells exquisitely so much....in 7 stanzas.
Reply 7 years ago
Indeed, so much so, I am finding that very few really DO understand it/me. You apparently do. And one or two friends in my immediate vicinity do too. And one youngster that picked me out of a crowd.
Reply 7 years ago
Although this comes in a REAL close second place.....
(spoken sarcastically)
COME ONE COME ALL
WELCOME TO THE WORLD’S GREATEST ENTERTAINMENT SINCE THE FALL OF ROME
LIFE, DEATH
VICTIMS, VOYEURS
THE BEST OF SOCIETY
THE LOWEST OF PLEBEIANS
AND TO KEEP IT ALL IN EXTREMELY INTERESTING, TODAY’S PATRONS
COULD VERY EASILY BE TOMORROW’S ENTERTAINMENT
ALL COMPLIMENTS OF THE ULTIMATE SHOWMAN FATE
(shouted) ALL THAT’S MISSING IS THE COLISEUM !!!!!!!!