A Spaceman Came Travelling by Chris de Burgh Lyrics Meaning – Unraveling Cosmic Folklore in Music
Lyrics
‘Twas light years of time since his mission did start
And over a village, he halted his craft
And it hung in the sky like a star, just like a star
He followed a light and came down to a shed
Where a mother and child were lying there on a bed
A bright light of silver shone round his head
And he had the face of an angel and they were afraid
Then the stranger spoke, he said, do not fear
I come from a planet a long way from here
And I bring a message for mankind to hear
And suddenly the sweetest music filled the air
And it went la la la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la, la la la la la la la la la
Peace and goodwill to all men and love for the child
La la la la la la la la la, la la la la la la la, la la la la la la la la la, oh
This lovely music went trembling through the ground
And many were awakened on hearing that sound
And travelers on the road
The village they found by the light of that ship in the sky
Which shone all around
And just before dawn at the paling of the sky
The stranger returned and said, now I must fly
When two thousand years of your time has gone by
This song will begin once again to a baby’s cry
And it went la la la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la, la la la la la la la la la
This song will begin once again to a baby’s cry
And it goes la la la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la, la la la la la la la la la
Peace and goodwill to all men and love for the child
Oh the whole world is waiting, waiting to hear the song again (la la la la la la la la la)
There are thousands standing on the edge of the world (la la la la la la la la la)
And a star is moving somewhere, the time is nearly here (la la la la la la la la la)
This song will begin once again to a baby’s cry
Chris de Burgh’s ‘A Spaceman Came Travelling’ interlaces the fibers of an interstellar journey with the tapestry of human myth, crafting a musical narrative that binds the cosmic to the spiritual. Released in the year 1975, this song echoes through the halls of time, gifting listeners a cosmic take on an event that has shaped millennia of human civilization.
At its core, ‘A Spaceman Came Travelling’ offers more than a simple ballad; it’s a conduit through which a ’70s musician presents a unique metaphysical theory wrapped in melody. As our collective gaze turns towards the song, we embark upon a voyage to unravel its meaning, peering through Chris de Burgh’s eyes and into the unknown.
The Galactic Herald: Unearthing Celestial Origins
One can’t help but wonder if Chris de Burgh had contemplated ancient astronaut theories or the magi’s star in Christian lore when composing this enigma of a song. With each verse, de Burgh replaces the star of Bethlehem with ‘his craft,’ a deliberate choice suggesting that the divine could merely be the misinterpreted technology of advanced beings.
This masterful juxtaposition of science fiction with biblical narrative prompts a profound reconsideration of our history. De Burgh, through his lyrical craftsmanship, bridges the gap between the explainable and the supernatural, offering a fresh lens through which to view the Christmas story.
The Angel’s Message: A Transcendent Communication
In the space-faring visitor’s declaration, ‘I bring a message for mankind to hear,’ listeners encounter the enduring theme of celestial messengers delivering wisdom. It’s telling that the spaceman arrives with music—the universal language—transcending words and resonating with the soul of all mankind.
Perhaps de Burgh is surmising that music is the purest form of communication, something that can cut through the noise of the cosmos, binding distant worlds with harmonic threads. It’s not just a message; it’s an experience, meant to be felt as much as understood.
The Moment of Awe: Encountering the Otherworldly
De Burgh’s narrative gifts the mother and child a front-row seat to the extraordinary: a light-bearing craft and its pilot, an angelic visage. This encounter kindles the imagination, instilling wonder and an inkling of fear—viscerally capturing the human response to encountering the unknown.
The descriptive choices here are rich with imagery, painting a vivid scene that tinges the historic Nativity with cosmic wonder. The song captures the collective human response to phenomena beyond our understanding—a mix of fear, awe, and eventual acceptance.
The Tuneful Prophecy: Envisioning the Future Echo
De Burgh’s spaceman speaks of an eon-spanning prophecy: ‘When two thousand years of your time has gone by, this song will begin once again to a baby’s cry.’ It’s a declaration that the cycle of enlightenment isn’t a one-off event but a recurring promise to humankind.
The artist could be musing on the cyclical nature of progress and revelation, where each era has its ‘song’—a metaphor for transformative ideas or events that ripple into the world, giving rise to new epochs. It implies an ever-renewing loop of cosmic and human interaction.
Echoes of Eternity: Memorable Lines That Resonate
In the hauntingly repetitive ‘la la la’, listeners find the heart of the song—a lullaby that calms the stir of cosmic energies and heralds peace. These simple syllables form a sonic mantra, reinforcing mankind’s perennial quest for peace and the enduring love for the ‘child,’ arguably a symbol for purity and new beginnings.
The repetition, far from being a lyrical crutch, becomes an instrument for embedding the song’s essence into our consciousness. It’s a stark reminder that often the most profound messages within music don’t lie in complex poetry, but rather in the threads of melody that bind us across time and space.
