SONG MENU:
1. The Eyes of the Realm
2. Passages of Courage
3. Test Your Metal
4. It's A Mystery To Me
5. Don't Tempt Me Fate
6. Sometimes I See A Star
7. A Plan for the Universal Happiness...
8. Dance With Me Tonight
9. Rescue
10. Mirror of Simple Souls
SONG CREDITS:
Lyrics: Gould Music: Drysdale/Gould
Christy Campbell: lead vocals Cristopher Brammer: lead vocals Robert Noles: vocals Michael Gould: guitar
Li’Anne Drysdale: keys
Anthony Saitta: drums
B.J. DeClue: bass
Backing vocals: Robert Noles, Gina Ronat, Mandy Shelton, Jill Singletary.
Members of the Springfield
Chamber Chorus: Mandy Shelton,
Amy Francis, Stacey Luehrs,
Cristopher Brammer, Kelly Garrison, Adam Karnaghon, William Chiles,
Brad Groves.
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The Grand Inquisitor and Viana spar over his plan to save mankind.
If Christ returned today would we lock him away?
He’s been gone so long, he’s not singing our song
Hot pavement through a Spanish town
Follow the steps that lead you down
Past the Inquisition Row
Rat out your friends and save your soul!
Is it He? Mystery!
Auto de fe! Bread or free!
Speak to me!
Is it Thee who has a plan
for the happiness of man?
We set the fires alight of one purpose on this night
Yesterday they kissed your feet
Now they lay brush on the heap
We’ve learned from fifteen centuries,
no man is happy when he’s free
So humbly file into the street
and lay your freedoms at our feet
Is it He? Mystery!
Auto de fe! Bread or free!
Speak to me!
Is it Thee who has a plan
for the happiness of man?
The universal happiness of man
Universal happiness of man
The universal happiness of man
Universal happiness of man
Free from the confusion of thought
You’re just doing as you’ve been taught
Take the sword of Caesar, let it fall
and we’ll give rest to one and all!
Barter thy freedom for the trinity
of miracles, authority, and mystery
We thrust upon the world the gift of unity
But tell us have you come only to hinder what we’ve done?
Speak thy blasphemy!
The universal happiness of man
Universal happiness of man
The universal happiness of man
Universal happiness of man
Is it He? Mystery!
Auto de fe! Bread or free!
Speak to me!
Is it Thee who has a plan
Yes! I have a plan…© 2013 Theatrum Mundi
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COMMENTARY
Three influences converged to inspire the story The Eyes of the Realm is based on. They are: 1) The first 007, 2) the first computer, and 2) the Grand Inquisitor.
The first 007 was John Dee. He was a real dude who was a spymaster in the service of Queen Elizabeth I. The first computer was the Antkythera Mechanism, built two-thousand years ago in Greece by Archimedes (probably).
The first glimmer of this story was simple, and it was a question. If one of these ancient computers had turned up in the 16th-century, which could predict astronomical events such as solar and lunar eclipses, it would appear to be magical device that could predict the future. Renaissance men like John Dee would have wanted it for scientific and even alchemical studies. Governments would have wanted it to increase their power. But what would religion do with it? We figured the church would have seen it as a threat. They tried to bury anything that appeared to be an alternate source of answers, whether it was science or other religions.
When researching religious leaders of the time, one jumped out - the Grand Inquisitor of the Spanish Inquisition.
This lead back to a book Michael had read in college, The Brothers Koramazov by Dostoyevsky, which contained one of the most influential pieces of literature in western civilization, a chapter called "The Grand Inquisitor." In it there is a story of Christ returning to Earth during the Grand Inquisition in the 16th-century. As Christ goes about healing the sick and feeding the hungry, the church feels that he is threatening their power, and the Grand Inquisitor throws him in a dungeon.
This song is meant as a musical adaptation of that chapter. We hope we have captured its grandeur, its scope, and its meaning. It was a labor of love.
A two-minute choral introduction was omitted from the album version.
The Grand Inquisitor's sermon was taken from an actual sermon delivered by the historical Grand Inquisitor.
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