Iron Maiden - 5. Paschendale (San Antonio,US 2010)

Iron Maiden - AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX, US, June 12, 2010, during the Final Frontier World Tour 2010.
A special thanks goes to EL REY, the owner of this DVD.

Paschendale (Smith, Harris)

[Lyrics]

In a foreign field you lay
Lonely soldier unknown grave
On his dying words he prays
Tell the world of Paschendale

Relive all that he's been through
Last communion of his soul
Rust your bullets with his tears
Let me tell you about his years

Laying low in a blood-filled trench
Killing time 'til my very own death
On my face I can feel the falling rain
Never see my friends again
In the smoke, in the mud and lead
Smell the fear and the feeling of dread
Soon be time to go over the wall
Rapid fire and the end of us all

Whistles, shouts, and more gun fire
Lifeless bodies hang on barbed wire
Battlefield nothing but a bloody tomb
Be reunited with my dead friends soon
Many soldiers eighteen years
Drown in mud, no more tears
Surely a war no-one can win,
Killing time about to begin

Home, far away from the war, a chance to live again
Home, far away but the war, no chance to live again

The bodies of ours and our foes
The sea of death it overflows
In no man's land God only knows
Into jaws of death we go

Crucified as if on a cross,
Allied troops they mourn their loss
German war propaganda machine
Such before has never been seen
Swear I heard the angels cry
Pray to God no more may die
So that people know the truth
Tell the tale of Paschendale

Cruelty has a human heart
Every man does play his part
Terror of the men we kill
The human heart is hungry still
I stand my ground for the very last time
Gun is ready as I stand in line
Nervous wait for the whistle to blow
Rush of blood and over we go

Blood is falling like the rain
Its crimson cloak unveils again
The sound of guns can't hide their shame
And so we die in Paschendale

Dodging shrapnel and barbed wire
Running straight at cannon fire
Running blind as I hold my breath
Say a prayer, symphony of death
As we charge the enemy lines
A burst of fire and we go down
I choke a cry but no-one hears
Feel the blood go down my throat

Home, far away from the war, a chance to live again [x4]

See my spirit on the wind
Across the lines, beyond the hill
Friend and foe will meet again
Those who died at Paschendale
.....................................
Bruce Dickinson:Vocals
Steve Harris:Bass
Janick Gers:Guitar
Dave Murray:Guitar
Adrian Smith:Guitar
Nicko McBrain:Drums
.....................................
''Paschendale'' is a song from the thirteenth studio album ''Dance of Death'' by Iron Maiden,released first in Japan on September 2 and rest of the world on September 8, 2003.

"Paschendale" tells us of the horrors of the First World War, taking the example of a battle that happened in Belgium, but the story could have taken place on virtually any battlefield of that time. Here, a new light is shed on the atrocity of war, as this one (like WW II) was fought essentially by conscripts who were dragged into this terrible nightmare, unlike most recent wars like the First Gulf War depicted by Iron Maiden in "Afraid To Shoot Strangers" -- wars that were fought by professional soldiers whose job is to guarantee peace after the famous Latin proverb "si vis pacem para bellum" (if you want peace, prepare for war).

The live version of the song on the album Death on the Road includes an intro where Bruce Dickinson recites parts from the first and second stanzas of the poem "Anthem for Doomed Youth" by Wilfred Owen, a British war poet who was killed in the First World War a week before the signing of the Armistice. Similar to live versions of The Trooper Dickinson wears a replica of an army coat of the time of the Battle of Paschendale.

''Dance of Death'' album marks the first participation in songwriting by Nicko McBrain, who co-wrote the song "New Frontier" and also is the first (and so far only) time that all members of the band get a songwriting credit. It is sometimes mistakenly said that Steve Harris performed all the keyboard parts on the album because no credit is given to usual collaborator Michael Kenney, but this is actually due to an oversight in the printing of the album booklet (no instrument credits are given to any of the full band members either). The band's usual message in every album (a variation on the line "Up the Irons!") is absent too.

The title of the album refers to the late-medieval allegory on the universality of death: no matter one's station in life, the dance of death unites all. This philosophy is more commonly known as Danse Macabre.