The Words of the Gypsy Queen

Rock music is sometime criticized for it's lyrical content. Yet Rock seems to deal with a wider variety of subjects than any other form of popular music. It is only within Rock music that songs with science fiction and horror themes seem to have life, and these tend to come from the harder side of Rock music. Blue Oyster Cult is probably the master of songs with these kind of themes, but other groups have songs that deal in these areas as well.

April Wine had a moderate hit with "Sign of the Gypsy Queen" from their The Nature of the Beast album in 1981. As with several other popular Rock groups in the '70s and '80s, April Wine was from Canadia and "Sign" had been a hit on Canadian radio in the 1970s for it's writer, Lorence Hud. The song warns of some impending disaster ("Hurricane at the very least") that has been foretold by the gypsy queen.

Trouble's coming without control
No one's staying that's got a hope
Hurricane at the very least
In the words of the gypsy queen

Like most classic rock songs, musically "Sign of the Gypsy Queen" is driven by guitars. Tending to the harder side of the spectrum, the guitars are electric and drums are also a prominent feature in the song. One disconnect that sometimes occurs in rock music is that the music and lyrics don't seem to line up. Upbeat music accompanying rather sad lyrics is not uncommon. But in this case the music helps support the sense of urgency present in the song.

The song begins in the night, with a strike of lightning and a Paul Revere like figure warning of impending danger. Now is the time to flee "while the darkness can help you hide." The song never gets specific about the nature of what is coming, just that it's bad. In the verse that follows (quoted above and repeated later in the song) whatever it is cannot be managed.

The chorus then tells us that the gypsy queen has a similar message. What is unclear is whether the man got his warning from her or if she in town confirming what he is saying. It really doesn't matter; all that matters is that you get away before disaster strikes.

In the verse following the chorus, the setting becomes more concrete. This is not a modern tale. The singer is not throwing things into a car to escape. He is leaving on horseback, facing a strong wind. But the horse is strong and he is confident they can make it to dawn.

This is another, to some perhaps surprisingly common rock motif, that of the western. The Eagles Desperado album is full of songs with this motif, and it features in songs from Billy Joel to Bon Jovi. This fascination probably has something to do with the freedom that is present in our romanticizing of the American West.

The song gets even darker as it closes. For those that remain in town, now "evil seems to be everywhere." It has come from somewhere in the town itself. The warnings are repeated, so perhaps there is still time, but surely it has grown short.

Overall, it's not surprising this song was not  more popular. Not because it's a bad song; I love it. But the subject matter simply isn't something that then, or now, would garner enough of an audience for it to be a top ten hit. But it exists, along with many other songs that I'm sure to touch on in this blog, as evidence that there is, or at least was, some audience for songs that deal with the mysterious.