Villagers – To Be Counted Among Men

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Young Paul decides upon a future
And he asks from her a favor
He wants to know if she will tell him
If he's for Hell or he's for Heaven

If he's for Hell he'll show no sorrow
Until he's born again tomorrow
If he's for Heaven there's no reason
To lament the passing season

She says, Don't be a fool, son
There aren't any rules, son
And as she spoke
He lost his faith

He asked her name, she told him Laurie
Proceeded to give him her life story

She was a teacher and a scholar
They built a statue in her honor

Then she became a slave in ancient Athens
She doesn't know quite how it happened

Now she paints faces in the city
Making all those ugly girls look pretty

She says, Look at this town, son
Take a good luck around, son
Why should anyone here be saved?

So he says, Every crooked lane that you can see
Every open home, every hollow tree
Is a home for creatures loved by me
And oh to be counted among them
Among them
Oh to be counted among them
Among them
Oh to be counted among them

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Lyrics submitted by janerik

Track duration: 04:43


To Be Counted Among Men song meanings
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4 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:I haven't looked into the song meaning, but I just find the melody very McCartney-esque, quite funny given the name of the protagonist in the song. Especially the stranger chord passages (such as the "If he's for hell he'll show no sorrow" bit).
    Flag AlphaShallowson January 26, 2011   Link
  • 0
    Song Meaning:its about belonging.
    Flag clownfaceon November 03, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I think it's about a young boy asking his mother how he should live his life....if he is meant for "Hell" he'll live recklessly...if he's meant for "Heaven" he seems no reason to ponder on the passing of the years since something better awaits him after. She answers him by saying that there are no rules, in short there is no God or Heaven or Hell.

    The rest of the song i'm unsure about...who exactly she is meant to be or what her lifestyle is meant to imply...but perhaps the fact that she is a learned person who is making these old statues "pretty" might be a way of changing how we look at history in light of modern thinking and scientific fact.



    Flag Cyberghoston October 24, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:After listening to this song continuously for a month now I have finally realized what its about... At first I thought it was about him wanting to be counted among the great artists of the world. However I continued to listen and when i heard "young paul" it clicked its about St,Paul from the bible!! Many of you may know this already but some may not, Paul never met Jesus Christ although he was an apostle. He came to the faith when Jesus died. Thats why theres all the stuff about Heaven and Hell and being Born Again because Paul the baptist was born again christian...
    Thats what i think, I could be wrong of course but it feels right to me. Paul would have wanted to be counted among the rest of the apostles even though he was late in joining the gang so to speak....
    Flag beezybeaston August 02, 2010   Link

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