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Alright, the song is somewhat dark in nature. Any time one is dealing with a Chimera, that's going to happen. But she's intriguing no matter how you look at her. So why not sing about her?

According to Merriam-Webster: In Greek mythology, the Chimera was a fearsome, fire-breathing monster with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a dragon's tail. She terrorized the people of Lycia until their king, Iobates, asked the hero Bellerophon to slay her.

Iobates had an ulterior motive; his son-in-law wanted Bellerophon killed and the king was sure the Chimera would do the job. But Bellerophon called in Pegasus, the winged horse, and brought the Chimera down from above. The beast lived on in people's imaginations, and English speakers adopted her name for any similarly grotesque monster, or, later, for anything fanciful.

lyrics

The Chimera

She is a Chimera, a fantastic beast of dreams
Foolish, or fabulous, with no place in reality
She lives among the clouds where the air is rare and thin
A lion’s head, sharp goat hooves, and the tail of a serpent.

And when she gets riled she tends to breathe fire
And burns everything that she sees
That’s why she lives amongst eagles and marmots
Such creatures that just let her be.

They all danced in circles around, dance around
Like a serpent chasing its tail
Allemande with the left, promenade to the right
Bow down, balance me, bow down.

Long ago, before the sun had retreated to its cave
And before the moon had lost any chance of being saved
She lived in the world, just like anyone you see
And no one saw her lion’s head, her tail or her cloven feet

As they whispered their prayers to biscuits and wine
And Madonnas in lovely white veils
With a passion more frightening than anything else
They were lost on the labyrinth trail

They all danced in circles, around, dance around
Like a serpent chasing its tail
Allemande with the left, promenade with the right
Bow down, balance me, bow down.

Then in, a trying time, people did desperate things
Blind with fear, they could not hear
The message Peace would bring.
And so the shields of prejudice were raised by many hands
Only war, and nothing more, burned across the land.

The Chimaera was frantic to turn back the tide
But alas, there was little she could do
So in bitter defeat she made her retreat
And off to the mountain she flew,

They all danced in circles, around, dance around,
A serpent chasing its tail,
Allemande with the left, promenade to the right,
Bow down, balance me, bow down.

She is a Chimera, a fantastic beast of dreams
Foolish, or fabulous, with no place in reality
Place in reality.

credits

from Edge of the World, released March 20, 2008
Music and Lyrics by Maggie McKaig

Maggie McKaig--guitar and vocals
Luke Wilson--tenor guitar
Murray Campbell--violin

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Maggie McKaig Nevada City, California

I'm a singer-songwriter, guitarist, accordionist, composer, poet, essayist, playwright. Since 2009 I've led World music quartet Beaucoup Chapeaux. With my partner of 45 years Luke Wilson we raised two sons, made seven albums, and grown veggie gardens and fruit trees on five acres of never ceded land once occupied by the Nisenan Tribe near Nevada City, CA.
Photo by LeeAnn Brook. ... more

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