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Sunday Morning
Wake up early: just a coffee to keep it light.
The early bird catches the worm...
I put on the tracksuit from Decathlon. Matching shoes, the smartphone with Runkeeper and – new addition - the Bluetooth headphones ordered from Amazon just for running.
Connection successful! I put on the Roma cap and I'm ready. I even send a challenging message to my old buddy BlueDream… let's see if I wake him up. Peppa Pig! It's 7:00 AM, but damn, I'm too pumped! And the message is urgent: Watch out BlueDream, I'm coming for you (metaphorically, of course)! I attach a selfie with a pointing finger. Ouzzapp what a move! Well, I turn on the radio to MC2 and off I go.
Silence
Mmmh. The radio is on…
But it doesn't play.
Think, think, think…until a little light bulb turns on in my mind.
Now: what were those Samsung scientists thinking when they decided that the radio wouldn't work if you don’t plug in the headphones jack?
I'm flabbergasted! But I won't give up. I can't give up on the Bluetooth headphones. Going back to earbuds would be too bitter a defeat. I won’t be the one throwing in the towel.
Not this morning!
I turn on the player and look at what I have on the device to accompany my victorious run.
And among the albums in memory, a long forgotten file emerges:
The Alan Parsons Project – Pyramid
I go out. Alone with my mission.
Run.
The street is at my feet.
Here comes Voyager. No title was ever more fitting. A lightning bolt of four notes. It propels me into the metropolitan space to conquer. I have adrenaline; I have breath. And then it's downhill. I'm going like a spaceship!
What Goes Up… is its natural sequel. It's as if it tells you: well done, now keep the pace. You will be rewarded. And the reward comes halfway through the track, when the guitar solo is interspersed with a fanfare of horns. A triumphant parade! I'm not just running now. I’m flying over the asphalt.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t last long.
The Eagle Will Rise Again might be a beautiful song. Full of pathos and hope. But the eagle has to fly now. Or never again!
I must say that with One More River and Can’t Take It With You I recover a bit. The driving riffs, the syncopated rhythm. Yes, I'm still in the race.
But you can feel the fatigue.
The funeral bell of In The Lap Of The Gods sounds like a gunshot to my athletic ambitions. Then the gong sounds and here comes the majesty of the circle of the gods. I feel tiny. And I am, because my strength is leaving me. I need to slow down. Too bad. The music truly deserved it now.
The searing notes that introduce Pyromania hurt my ego. My legs are like wood. I believe my revenge on my friend Bluedream will have to be at least postponed.
I'm at the end, I know it. The moment of departure draws near.
Here comes Hyper-Gamma-Spaces. It's the cornerstone of the whole album. I think it's the most famous track. It deserves a burst of pride. I try but it’s not great. I know the pyramids aren't for me. I'm the shadow of a solitary man. I identify with the words of the last song. And I give in to the allure. I abandon the run to the sad notes of Shadow Of A Lonely Man.
I press the Galaxy button to end the RunKeeper activity.
The result is a modest 6.53 Km; in 37min.59 seconds. 703 calories burned.
And my wounded pride
But what a great album Pyramid!
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
03 The Eagle Will Rise Again (04:22)
Lead Vocal: Colin Blunstone
And I could easily fall from grace
Then another would take my place
For the chance to behold your face
As the days of my life are but grains of sand
As they fall from your open hand
At the call of the wind's command
Many words are spoken when there's nothing to say
The fall upon the ears of those who don't know the way
To read between the lines, that lead between the lines, that lead me to you
All that I ask you
Is, show me how to follow you and I'll obey
Teach me how to reach you I can't find my own way
Let me see the light, let me be the light
As the sun turns slowly around the sky
Till the shadow of night is high
The eagle will learn to fly
As the days of his life are but grains of sand
As they fall from your open hand
And vanish upon the land
Many words are spoken when there's nothing to say
The fall upon the ears of those who don't know the way
To read between the lines, that lead between the lines, that lead me to you
Show me how to follow you and I'll obey
Teach me how to reach you I can't find my own way
Let me see the light, let me be the light
And so, with no warning, no last goodbye
In the dawn of the morning sky
The eagle will rise again
06 In the Lap of the Gods (05:30)
Hail to the King,
Praise to the King
And glory to His name forever.
Gloria, Hosanna!
07 Pyramania (02:43)
There are pyramids in my head
There's one underneath my bed
And my lady's getting cranky
Every possible location
Has a simple explanation
And it isn't hanky-panky
I had read
Somewhere in a book, they improve all your food and your wine
It said, that everything you grow in your garden would taste pretty fine
Instead, all I ever get is a pain in the neck and a
Yap yap yap yap yap yap yap
I've consulted all the sages
I could find in yellow pages
But there aren't many of them
And the Mayan panoramas
On my pyramid pajamas
Haven't helped my little problem
I've been told
Someone in the know can be sure that his luck is as
Good as gold, money in the bank and you don't even pay for it
If you fold, dollar in the shape of the pyramid that's printed on the back
It's no lie, you can keep the edge of a razor as sharp as an eagle's eye
You can grow a hedge that is vertically straight over ten feet high
All you really need is a pyramid and just a little luck
La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la ooh
La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la ooh
I had read somewhere in a book they improve all your food and wine and
I've been told, someone in the know can be sure of his good luck and
It's no lie, all you really need is a little bit of pyramidic luck
09 Shadow of a Lonely Man (05:34)
(Lead Vocal - John Miles)
Look at me now, a shadow of the man I used to be
Look through my eyes and through the years of loneliness you'll see
To the times in my life when I could not stand to lose, a simple game
And the least of it all was the fortune and the fame
But the dream seemed to end just as soon as it had begun, was I to know?
For the least thing of all that was on my mind, was the close at the
End of the show
The shadow of a lonely man, feels nobody else
In the shadow of a lonely, lonely man
I can see myself
(looking out of nowhere, looking out of nowhere)
But the sounds of the crowds when they come to see me now, is not the same
And the jest of it all is I can't recall my name
But i'll cling to a hope till I can't hold on anymore, anymore
And for all the acclaim I am all alone and I see as I look through the door
The shadow of a lonely man, there's nobody else
In the shadow of a lonely, lonely man
I can see myself
Look at me now, a shadow of the man I used to be
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By pinkpower
"What goes up, must come down: there are no prayers, no destiny, no possibility; everything must fall."
"After all the wonders of Egypt, space travel, madness and death of time, there remains only a shadow of the long-forgotten presence of a single individual."
