Deep Purple - Burn - Meaning of the song
"Burn" is both the opening track and the title track of the first album by Deep Purple Mark III; co-written by new vocalist David Coverdale and the time serving Ritchie Blackmore, it runs to 6 minutes 5 seconds, and features some typically blistering lead guitar from the man in black. According to the Jerry Bloom biography Black Knight... the music was inspired by the Gershwin brothers standard "Fascinating Rhythm."
Like the rest of the album, "Burn" was recorded at Montreux, Switzerland, in November 1973. Although Coverdale wrote the lyrics, they could just as easily have been penned by Blackmore, whose fascination with the Middle Ages, witchcraft and the supernatural is reflected in this tale of a bewitching female. The song became a regular with the band for the next two years.
Though Blackmore was the band's main songwriter, he enlisted vocalist David Coverdale, who had only recently joined the band to help. Coverdale explained:
"I was a complete unknown but I was involved in writing 'Burn' from the start. Ritchie was obviously the chief composer but I was given a cassette tape of the songs-in-progress and sent back to the north of England to work on the lyric with Glenn Hughes."
Burn - Lyrics
The sky is red, I don't understand, past midnight I still see the land. People are sayin' the woman is damned, she makes you burn with a wave of her hand. The city's a blaze, the town's on fire. The woman's flames are reaching higher. We were fools, we called her liar. All I hear is "Burn!" I didn't believe she was devil's sperm. She said, "Curse you all, you'll never learn! When I leave there's no return." The people laughed till she said, "Burn!" Warning came, no one cared. Earth was shakin', we stood and stared. When it came no one was spared. Still I hear "Burn!" You know we had no time, we could not even try. You know we had no time. You know we had no time, we could not even try. You know we had no time. The sky is red, I don't understand, past midnight I still see the land. People are sayin' the woman is damned, she makes you burn with a wave of her hand. Warning came, no one cared. Earth was shakin, we stood and stared. When it came no one was spared. Still I hear "Burn!"
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