Iron Maiden - Rime Of The Ancient Mariner Lyrics






Hear the rime of the Ancient Mariner
See his eye as he stops one of three
Mesmerises one of the wedding guests
Stay here and listen to the nightmares of the Sea

And the music plays on, as the bride passes by
Caught by his spell and the Mariner tells his tale

Driven south to the land of the snow and ice
To a place where nobody's been
Through the snow fog flies on the albatross
Hailed in God's name, hoping good luck it brings

And the ship sails on, back to the North
Through the fog and ice and the albatross follows on

The mariner kills the bird of good omen
His shipmates cry against what he's done
But when the fog clears, they justify him
And make themselves a part of the crime

Sailing on and on and North across the sea
Sailing on and on and North 'til all is calm

The albatross begins with its vengeance
A terrible curse a thirst has begun
His shipmates blame bad luck on the Mariner
About his neck, the dead bird is hung

And the curse goes on and on and on at sea
And the thirst goes on and on for them and me

"Day after day, day after day, we stuck nor breath nor motion
As idle as a painted ship upon a painted ocean
Water, water everywhere and all the boards did shrink
Water, water everywhere nor any drop to drink"

There, calls the mariner there comes a ship over the line
But how can she sail with no wind in her sails and no tide

See onward she comes
Onwards she nears, out of the sun
See she has no crew
She has no life, wait but there's two

Death and she Life in Death, they throw their dice for the crew
She wins the Mariner and he belongs to her now

Then crew one by one
They drop down dead, two hundred men
She she, Life in Death
She lets him live, her chosen one

"One after one by the star dogged moon,
Too quick for groan or sigh
Each turned his face with a ghastly pang
And cursed me with his eye.
Four times fifty living men
(And I heard nor sigh nor groan),
With heavy thump, a lifeless lump,
They dropped down one by one."

The curse it lives on in their eyes
The Mariner he wished he'd die
Along with the sea creatures
But they lived on, so did he

And by the light of the moon
He prays for their beauty not doom
With heart he blesses them
God's creatures all of them too

Then the spell starts to break
The albatross falls from his neck
Sinks down like lead into the Sea
Then down in falls comes the rain


Hear the groans of the long dead seamen
See them stir and they start to rise
Bodies lifted by good spirits
None of them speak and they're lifeless in their eyes

And revenge is still sought, penance starts again
Cast into a trance and the nightmare carries on

Now the curse is finally lifted
And the Mariner sights his home
Spirits go from the long dead bodies
Form their own light and the Mariner's left alone

And then a boat came sailing towards him
It was a joy he could not believe
The Pilot's boat, his son and the hermit
Penance of life will fall onto him

And the ship it sinks like lead into the sea
And the hermit shrives the mariner of his sins

The Mariner's bound to tell of his story
To tell his tale wherever he goes
To teach God's word by his own example
That we must love all things that God made

And the wedding guest's a sad and wiser man
And the tale goes on and on and on and on





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Iron Maiden Rime Of The Ancient Mariner Comments
  1. T.... W....

    I vividly remember seeing Maiden in October 84 on their World Slavery Tour. This song blew me away live. The riff that kicks in after the line "Then down in falls come the rain........" is a juggernaut of metal. Never saw a better set either before or after.

  2. G.... ....

    Вот это реальная песня.
    А ваша Ария хуета

  3. L.... R....

    Love Maiden

  4. c.... v....

    up the irons from cerveza cristal viva chile jeje.

  5. B.... T....

    I bought this album when I was a kid (well, it was autumn '84 so I was 14 LOL) and the first thing I did after opening the record was read the printed lyrics on the album sleeve. Seeing 'Rime' I remember thinking "why did Maiden write such a long song"?, LOL. 13:52 on the liner notes, IIRC.


    Boy, was I wrong. A Masterpiece.

  6. A.... M....

    We must love all things that God made... we must treasure our world and all their living creatures.

  7. M.... M....

    What a fantastic song. And also a reminder of how crappy YouTube's compressed video / music files sound compared to a real music streaming service. Doesn't do this music Justice at all.

  8. t.... k....

    (ノ^_^)ノ daleeeeeeeeeeeee

  9. E.... o....

    The galloping of the bass is phenomenal :)

  10. R.... B....

    Soooo pumped for work. God damn.

  11. K.... M....

    I love history class!!!!

  12. A.... M....

    👍👍👍👍✌

  13. j.... w....

    To me I think this was the last of the greatest classic Iron Maiden albums. They just don't seem to sound the same after course they do have some great songs and great musicians but the prisoner, Number of the Beast, live after death, powerslave, killers... then they think they did a little break up and Bruce Dickinson did that lame song bring your daughter to the show or something. But that was a massive drop off from powerslave and everything that came before it

  14. T.... C....

    Great song that reminds me The Lighthouse's movie.

  15. L.... C....

    When you realize how cool it would be been if your High School teacher made you listen to this for English Honors...we had to read this..this way cooler!

  16. N.... I....

    I love to play this song in the public jukebox right before closing

  17. R.... A....

    The BEST Iron Maiden song of all time

  18. G.... D....

    "The Mariner, he wished he died....along with the sea creatures, but they lived on so did he...."

  19. M.... W....

    March 4th 1985 reunion arena.One of the best shows I've ever been to...oh and WASP had to open! Steve Harris and Neil Peart(RIP Professor), two of the best lyricists in music.

  20. D.... V....

    One of my favourite lines ever by maiden.

    "And the curse goes on and on and on.."

  21. N.... W....

    i have a test over this poem in ap literature tomorrow and this is the only extra studying i’m doing
    edit: as i went through slides my teacher made the exact quote i was reading coincided with the lyric of the song.

  22. s.... ....

    best concert i ever

  23. G.... S....

    Long live Eddie..lol...ironic isn't it.lol..maiden fukn rocks...stoned toooo..lol.

  24. G.... S....

    When I was in (,high ) school in the 80s this came out and at same time we were studying this poet in my one class that made learning kool...

  25. c.... g....

    Very maiden song is an epic tale

  26. P.... ....

    Upp the irons!!!!!!!!!!

  27. a.... b....

    Fuck the people that dislike this song they just can't handle real history

  28. C.... C....

    A Opera do metal! Fodaaa!

  29. M.... A....

    Whenever I comment on maiden I can't help but just put
    Wadadadawahwahwahwaaaaaa

  30. L.... R....

    "Rime of the ancient mariner a primeira música que eu escutei do Iron Maiden...PORRA ESSE CARA DENOVO?! só tem ele jogando?" Smzinho, 2019

  31. W.... G....

    When Bruce Dickinson spits out better rhymes than most rappers today

    W.... G....

    Let's be real
    Most singers in his time spit better rhymes than today's rappers

  32. R.... G....

    1.8K headed to Davey Jones's Locker!

  33. A.... G....

    I came here because it is the inspiration of Brook of one piece

  34. �.... �....

    Песподобно!!!

  35. b.... ....

    This the be all end all greatest song Maiden has ever made in my opinion. I can get tired of Maiden songs the same as any other band or group but this, never. It literally has everything.

  36. L.... P....

    I miss the days of tapes and records it was an adventure sat with what you could afford just enjoying the music

  37. M.... B....

    Can anyone make an AMV to this with one piece?

  38. D.... ....

    The best way to open your way to learning & history? Listen to metal!

  39. f.... 2....

    Powerslafe and Number of the Beast the best Maiden Albums ever.

  40. I.... A....

    Read about Bruce Dickinson. Everyone thinks these guys are just druggies. Very intelligent. Smart enough to know working for the man is a waste of your life.

  41. s.... s....

    IRON MAIDEN the best band ever.. Check this small band is awesome "Awe Delusion" https://youtu.be/A2EOCsZT3jA

  42. D.... D....

    Listened to this song for the first time the other day while working in my garage, just after midnight, on a cold evening. When it got to the boat and the floor boards creaking and the fog rolling in, I was throwing my headphones down and banging on the kitchen door, yelling for my kids to let me in the house.

  43. S.... M....

    Moral of the story: Don't kill a bird

    S.... M....

    Scott Sprecher what does autism have to do with a fascination towards birds?

    S.... M....

    Well my therapist say's that we people become deeply entrance with certain ideas or items.
    She say;s that more commonly she see;s snakes but frogs and birds also.
    I don't know but maybe I like her ideas for letting me feel ok about being weird.
    Autism or not.
    I connect with this song and I think that once you have a bird as a pet you begin to understand them.
    Maybe my therapist lies but I still fancy birds.
    Do you think thats ok?

    S.... M....

    The chicken has to stay in the house or St,Cloud Mn would take it away because I am in the city. Serama chickens should be recognized as a pet.
    Look into they are just funky.

    S.... M....

    Cluck cluck^ Serama and Mango *Macaw hate each other .
    Both females so go figure.
    Mango would destroy Cluck Cluck given the chance.
    Some Serama's only weigh 1/4 of a pound.
    Cluck cluck weighs almost a pound,
    She is than she was promised to be but such a bird.
    I am teaching/training her to try and poop on the paper.|
    Having mixed results, at the end of day she poops were she wants to.
    You can't ever spank or punish a bird, they are not like dogs and like an elephant they will remember the time forever.
    Are you making fun of me?
    This is kind of neat stuff but...
    If you don't care I don't care to tell you either.

    S.... M....

    "Moral of the story is 'what not to do when a bird shits on you'"....Bruce Dickenson

  44. T.... W....

    😍😍

  45. W.... G....

    Best bass solo ever.

  46. j.... ....

    Excelente musica

  47. E.... Z....

    I headbang and twitch my head slightly to the right whenever Nicko hits his china crash cymbals. Is it just me?🤷🏻‍♂️😂

  48. E.... Z....

    My favorite part starts from 0:00 to 13:41

  49. A.... K....

    Eat it Lombardy

  50. J.... F....

    Absolute distinction in this Band! No other comes close to this, talent wise!

  51. d.... p....

    Our english teacher taught us one day..." I' ve got a poem for you"
    ...the rime of the ancient mariner...

    d.... p....

    I'm Dutch but also true. Love this song. Iron Maiden is a class appart.

  52. D.... d....

    This song can be monetized

    D.... d....

    No it cant its listed as copyrighted via the record label. I have no monetization on this piece of content.

    D.... d....

    @remotenightowl oh I don't really all of youtubes copyright laws, sorry

    D.... d....

    @Dylan does stupid crap ur fine the way it was worded sounded like you meant that I could lol.

    D.... d....

    @remotenightowl I just say that it was over 10 minutes and thought of that

  53. u.... u....

    no cd before.. just a sony Walkman n cassette.. missing that moment

  54. T.... N....

    This was the first time I saw Maiden. Twisted sister opened. It was like 85. I was like 14 man.

  55. 2.... C....

    1.7k souls that will never get it.....

  56. N.... C....

    The rhyme of the ancient mariner is a little known short story of doom and was a favorite of H.P. Lovecraft.

  57. D.... V....

    Bohemian rhapsody of heavy metal.

    D.... V....

    No, that title goes to hallowed be thy name

    D.... V....

    @Alyssa Courtney or concubine.

    D.... V....

    Idk why people say hallowed be thy name is the best iron maiden song. Far from it tbh

  58. �.... �....

    HELLO FROM THE REAL MACEDONIA IN GREECE!!!!

    �.... �....

    Hello man.

  59. G.... T....

    Epic, all time great from Maiden!

  60. F.... H....

    I’ve seen them 5 times in concert and they get better each time.

    F.... H....

    No they don't. They were better in 84. I would know.

  61. M.... ....

    Who's still jamming this in 2020 🎛🎤🎛🔊🔊🔊🔊

    M.... ....

    No one yet, for you're posting that comment on the 21st December 2019. But I sur will be ! Up the Irons !

  62. P.... P....

    Excelente, lo máximo del rock, sigan recorriendo el mundo

  63. Y.... R....

    Awesome comment !

  64. G.... V....

    wow! This is a really good song!

    G.... V....

    U bet ur fkn ass it is.!!!!!!!!

  65. D.... F....

    LOVE IRON MAIDEN 18/12/2019 VERSAILLES 78 PARIS RESITA ROUMANIE .

  66. k.... r....

    i have a test on this poem tomorrow. this is how i study.

    k.... r....

    Cool, how was the test?

    k.... r....

    pretty epic ngl

    k.... r....

    Did u pass????

    k.... r....

    @Ted Nugent yee i think so, my teacher hasnt put in the grades yet but i feel pretty confident

  67. F.... J....

    I'm actually using this song in a college assignment. I'm studying Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

  68. L.... M....

    This whole album has to be one of their all time fkn best imo. When I hear this it makes me wanna sing along and headbang!!!!! Hell yeah!! Nobody can sing or will ever sing quite like Bruce with those opera-ish lungs!!!!! He really sang his balls off in this album !!!!

  69. T.... P....

    Grupazo!!!!! Era todavía metal estudiado .!!!!!!!!!!

  70. r.... a....

    Only the best, that’s Maiden...!

  71. A.... V....

    This is The Ultimate Maiden Song.
    I.e. The Ultimate Metal Song. Period.

  72. V.... p....

    Damn, this guy can sing

  73. V.... B....

    5:00 ~ish 7:30 Excellent stage work when Maiden's on Tour! Creepy lights and the creaking-ship ambience was noticeable! Suweet!

  74. E.... P....

    😎✌🎸👍😎✌🎸👍😎👍😎🎸✌😎🎸👍🎸😎

  75. T.... ....

    Probably my favorite maiden song to listen high

    T.... ....

    Maiden for 40+yrs still my favourite

  76. D.... C....

    There are ancient people that still live on this earth longer than scientific testing .

  77. S.... V....

    I saw this concert🤘back in the day. It was my first Iron Maiden concert.

  78. J.... D....

    I thought he was saying 'through the fuckin' ice'

  79. C.... C....

    Based on a magnificent poem by Samuel T Coleridge. No I didn’t look that up. I already knew it

  80. T.... O....

    I wonder if there were “celebrities” in ancient Egypt.

    T.... O....

    If Rome is anything to go on, they probably had action figures for their most famed fighters.

  81. a.... ....

    You know when they're singing about the albatross...that its going to be some real shit 💪💪🔥🌎

  82. G.... R....

    Samuel Taylor Coleridge

  83. D.... B....

    Chef d œuvre musique classique contemporaine

  84. C.... P....

    They still strong in 2020 i love it

  85. B.... C....

    This is the only band that can make the music sound like Gods! Bruce you kill it and the band just so awesome

  86. A.... C....

    Lifting lit 🔥

  87. _.... ....

    I remember being on an 18 hour bus journey to Berlin with school in 2015. Listening to 5:06 onwards, watching the sunrise in some part of Europe, was one of the most beautiful memories I have from that trip.

    _.... ....

    lucky you.

  88. G.... 2....

    Just had to say. Don't under estimate how great 8:48 to 9:03 is. What a piece of work this is. 😁🍄😁

  89. s.... ....

    I was out in the Mediterranean when I turned onto this.

  90. S.... S....

    IRON MAIDEN RULES!

  91. J.... S....

    CLASSIC

  92. V.... C....

    🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟

  93. J.... A....

    Obrigado fique com Deus que só ele para nos abencoar

  94. J.... A....

    Se eu tivesse condições não estaria no Brasil, mas por falta de oportunidades

  95. J.... A....

    Aqui ouvindo agora é jai metal para todos do mundo

  96. c.... d....

    It 2019! I'm still rocking iron maiden!
    🤘😜

  97. w.... ....

    My best friend sent me this.