The band's first two albums, End of the World and It's Five O'Clock, combined a very '60s sounding Euro-pop-rock with Greek folk music elements. The former album featured the song "Rain and Tears", a reworking of Pachelbel's Canon in D major. The song was a minor hit in the United Kingdom, but did far better in France, where the band was based, as well as the rest of Europe. Other European hits included "Marie Jolie", "I Want to Live", and "Spring, Summer, Winter, and Fall" from 1969 and 1970 respectively.
The band began to record their crowning achievement in 1970: a musical adaptation of the biblical Book of Revelations, entitled 666 - The Apocalypse of St. John. Relations between Roussos, Vangelis and Sideras were not good at the time, and continued to worsen before the album's creation. However, the group was contractually obligated to release a third album, and went into the studio in 1970 to create 666.
Essentially, 666 was Vangelis' concept, created with an outside lyricist, Costas Ferris. The music that Vangelis was creating for 666 was much more psychedelic and progressive rock oriented than anything the band had done before. This did not sit well with the other band members, who wished to continue in the pop direction that had brought them success. Further, Roussos was being groomed for a solo career, and pressure from the record company for the band to produce another hit single did not help. In essence, the band broke up during the completion of 666. Vangelis finished the album primarily on his own with assistance from studio musicians.
Immediately afterwards, Vangelis engaged in a long fight with Mercury over the content of the album. The record company, in particular, objected to the song "∞" (infinity), which consisted of actress Irene Papas chanting the words "I was, I am, I am to come" in various stages of orgiastic ecstasy, while Vangelis accompanied her on percussion. However, the double-album length of 666 and the musical experimentation, as well as the subject matter, also exacerbated Mercury's ire. After Roussos and Sideras had already embarked on solo careers, Mercury finally agreed to release 666 two years after its completion, and it came out in 1972.
Strangely enough, 666 was the only Aphrodite's Child album to make any impact in America. The blood-red cover with the letters 666 prominently displayed in black and white was striking, and brought immediate accusations of occultism from various quarters. Any suspicions of occultism could be dispersed by simply reading the lyrics, which were fairly faithfully based around the Book of Revelations, but the accusations undoubtedly helped sell the album in the United States. The album met with less controversy overseas and sold reasonably well on its own merits.
The music itself was an impressive display of Vangelis' abilities, combining psychedelic and progressive rock with ethnic instruments, choral chanting, recitations, and very advanced use of synthesizers and keyboards for the time. In time the album became recognized as one of the most important early progressive rock works, and a defining example of the concept album. 666 also made Vangelis an underground name to watch, and earned him an offer from Jon Anderson to join Yes. Vangelis turned down the offer in order to concentrate on a solo career. However, he and Anderson later created several duet albums in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
After the band split, both Vangelis and Demis Roussos pursued successful solo careers, Roussos as a pop singer and Vangelis as one of the pioneers in progressive electronic music. Kolouris worked with both on occasion. Lucas Sideras pursued a less successful solo career, releasing the single "Rising Sun" after the break-up.
Discography
End of the World (1968)
It's Five O'Clock (1969)
666 (The Apocalypse Of John,13/18) (1971)
Best Of Aphrodite's Child (1980)
Aphrodite's Child's Greatest Hits (1995)
The Complete Collection (Aphrodite's Child) (1996)
Babylon the Great (2002)
Song Highlights:
"Four Horsemen", from the album 666, was a minor hit on FM radio in the United States, receiving AOR airplay to this day. "Babylon", from the same album, was released as a single, and found similar acceptance on AOR radio in the 1970's. "Hic and Nunc" and "Break", from the same album, were also tried out as singles but did not chart well at the time.
"Spring, Summer, Winter and Fall" - the final single before the release of 666 and the last of the band's singles to chart significantly in their European home base.
"Rain and Tears" - based on Pachelbel's Canon in D major, this song was probably their biggest hit as a single release.
"It's Five o Clock" and "Such a Funny Night" also charted in Europe. All of the above songs can be found on various compilation/greatest hits discs. The band's singles were aimed squarely at the pop market, and do not bear any significant resemblance to the music on 666.
End of the World
Aphrodite's Child Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Without telling your parents and your friends.
You know that you only need to say the word,
So end my play with the end of the world.
But I know that I'll go away by myself,
I feel you don't want to come.
You should come with me to the end of the world,
I would introduce you to my friend the bird
Who sings and flies along the fairy [trend]
But I know that I'll go away by myself
I feel you don't want to come.
If you come with me to the end of the world,
I'll give you anything that lives on earth.
You know that you only need to say the word
So end my play with the end of the world.
But I know that I'll go away by myself
I feel you don't want to come
The lyrics of Aphrodite's Child's "End of the World" speak of a proposal to escape reality and venture off to an unknown place with someone. The first verse builds the tension and intrigue of the lyrics with a proposal that the person should come with the singer to the end of the world without informing anyone. The second verse portrays the singer wooing the person by offering a relaxing day out with a bird who sings and flies along the fairy trend. The last verse is another plea for the person to come along, offering anything that lives on earth if they do.
The chorus "But I know that I'll go away by myself, I feel you don't want to come," implies the singer's awareness that the person they are trying to convince will not be willing to accompany them to the end of the world. The lyrics suggest the singer's longing for escape from the chaotic world, and it becomes apparent that the person they are trying to convince is a significant other already accustomed to the world they are trying to escape from. Overall, the song's theme is about the feelings of isolation and a longing for escape.
Line by Line Meaning
You should come with me to the end of the world,
Let's escape reality and venture into the unknown
Without telling your parents and your friends.
We must keep our journey a secret from the world
You know that you only need to say the word,
All you have to do is show your willingness to join me, and we'll embark on this adventure together
So end my play with the end of the world.
Let's leave our current lives behind and start anew. The world we know will cease to exist, and a new one will begin.
But I know that I'll go away by myself,
Even if you choose not to come with me, I'll still follow my desires and pursue this journey
I feel you don't want to come.
But I worry that you lack the adventurous spirit that I possess, and you will not join me
We could lay all day on the quiet sands.
Once we reach the end of the world, we can relax and appreciate the newfound solitude
I would introduce you to my friend the bird
I have encountered a bird that has become my companion during this journey, and I would like to introduce you to it.
Who sings and flies along the fairy [trend]
This bird is magical and possesses supernatural abilities. It's a sign that we followed the right path in our journey.
If you come with me to the end of the world,
Together, we can experience the unknown and enjoy the mysteries it holds.
I'll give you anything that lives on earth.
I'm determined to fulfill any wish you may have as we venture towards the end of the world
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: EVANGELOS PAPATHANASSIOU
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Rouss Diezmo
You should come with me to the end of the world,
Without telling your parents and your friends.
You know that you only need to say the word,
So end my play with the end of the world.
But I know that I'll go away by myself,
I feel you don't want to come.
You should come with me to the end of the world,
We could lay all day on the quiet sands.
I would introduce you to my friend the bird
Who sings and flies along the fairy [trend]
But I know that I'll go away by myself
I feel you don't want to come.
If you come with me to the end of the world,
I'll give you anything that lives on earth.
You know that you only need to say the word
So end my play with the end of the world.
But I know that I'll go away by myself
I feel you don't want to come
Forum Arcade
Twenty minutes passed, and the value of bottle caps remained the same.
Harshit Pandey
Just lemmino
Un Nu
@Ogbono Ohara yes thank you
Ogbono Ohara
@Un Nu grazed by the apocalypse, by lemmino. i think.
Un Nu
@Ogbono Ohara which vido-eo can u tell me name
∆vSteve
"Just lemino"
Fit Fat Gamer
So idk if anyone else had this same feeling that I get when I hear this song; but the best was I can say the feeling is, would be calm anxiety. I get anxious when I get really into the song because of the whole "end if the world" thing, but when it basically says to leave everything behind, I get this sense of relief. Relief like if all my problems will be over in a moment and even though it's the end, I can feel like I e had a good time and the bad will wash away in a little bit
exiles
I always assumed it talked about a sort of hypothetical "edge" or hence; "end" of the world as a sort of metaphor for the unknown.
RemarkablySquare
I also legitimately get shivers when listening to this song, very few songs can do that for me
There is something very special about this song
Christy Hosford
Yeah I kind of get like bleak relief I guess is the best way I can put it.