GUENEVERE
(words by Rick Springfield)
We had a game
I called her Guenevere
And she would always call me Galahad
I was her king
She was my queen
My Guenevere
The days were warm
The nights were sweet
I didn't think
That something troubling me
My Guenevere
You left one night
Farewell Guenevere
Where are you
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Galahad is waiting
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Watch the morning breaking
The city streets
No longer are
The English Countryside
They used to be
My armor rusts
My sword is waiting
For Guenevere
Where are you
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Galahad is waiting
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Watch the morning breaking
All the songs
I used to sing
I long to sing for you
Said in my letter
Write me soon
I'm waiting here
My lady
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Galahad is waiting
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Watch the morning breaking
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Galahad is waiting
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Watch the morning breaking
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Galahad is waiting
Guenevere come back to Camelot
Watch the morning breaking...
(total playing time: 3:08)
Song Facts: This can be found on Beautiful Feelings.
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In my opinion, this song has got to be one of Rick's most beautifully romantic ballads to date. I'm thrilled to have discovered this gem. Of course I'm a sucker for a fairy tale/sad song, so I can't help but like it. Lyrically it sounds like a fairy tale.....on the surface. But it's the complete opposite. It fooled me at first. I found after a few listens that it's a pretty common story of a love that's gone bad. They were madly in love, pet names and all, and for some reason she leaves in the night & he doesn't understand why. He's pleading for her to come back ("where are you" and "I'm waiting here my lady"). He's left waiting, wondering & writing letters to her. You can feel his heartache throughout this one. Leave it to our lyrical master to turn a basic story of heartbreak into a visually romantic treat ("The city streets no longer are, the English countryside they used to be " and "my armor rusts, my sword is waiting for Guenevere"). On the other hand, I can't help but feel total empathy for him, because of the hurt that was obviously there when he wrote this. Guenevere also has that "hook" that Rick loves! I have found the chorus floating in my head or slipping out many times ("Guenevere come back to Camelot, Galahad is waiting"). It's even crept up on me in my sleep!
The music is so masterful! I love the chimes in the opening music. It gives it a mystical, magical feel at first. I like the quietness of the instruments during each verse, and then how it picks up and gets louder for the chorus. Sounds smooth!
Rick's voice in this song is music to my ears. He is nearly whispering, with that quivering sound at times. The ranges he takes, so very high at points and then low & soft at others are breathtaking. I feel with this song, as with so many others, that he proves his vocal talent. He also demonstrates what a great way he has with words!
This song is now in my Rick's Top 40 countdown! In other words, it gets a lot of playing time.
I am always a sucker when Rick sings a love song so I have to say that I like this one...but it is a stretch for me. I really like the imagery of Rick being Sir Galahad-he would look mighty fine in a suit of armor. (Lord-where is that can opener??)
I wish the lyrics had more content-they seem to repeat over and over. Knowing that Rick is an awesome song writer- I think he could have put more into the lyrics, I think there is more story that he could have told us.
I like this song.I like the music and the lyrics.It's very romantic.Rick's voice is so urgent and sweet.I think this was yet another failed relationship and he was in that feeling of sadness and longing for what was,that you go through at the end of a relationship.I think the reference to Camelot,Galahad and Guinevere maybe is because this relationship was just not really something he thought was going to be the real thing.Maybe I'm reading too much into it,but I can appreciate the honesty in this song.
Rick paints such a pretty picture with these lyrics. I've always been fond of the King Arthur legend, so I love all the references in this lovely ballad. Even though, the song is about pain and loss, it's still very beautiful. The music is dreamy and very fairytale-esque. Whenever I hear "Guenevere", I'm reminded of the time I saw Lerner and Lowe's "Camelot", one of my fave musicals, at Westbury Music Fair on
Long Island
,
NY
. It was back in the '70s and this production starred Richard Harris, he was the original Professor Dumbledore to you Harry Potter fans, and then many years later I saw Rick perform on that very same stage. There's some kind of "six degrees of separation" going' on there.
Oops, there I go again, off on a tangent. Sorry. Back to the review.
I like the pretty poetry of, "the city streets no longer are the English countryside they used to be," it conjures up images of Camelot and knights riding around saving damsels in distress. But the pathos of, "my armour rusts, my sword is waiting" hits a little harder because of the double-entendre. His "sword is waiting" to continue with their Medieval "game" and his literal "sword", a reference to his sexual deprivation. I may be reading too much into that, but I believe Rick always writes on more than one level. That's part of his charm. And the reason his songs are so much fun to dissect.
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