Pilate
Dennis DeYoung Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

I dreamed I met a Galilean
A most amazing man
He had that look
You very rarely find
The haunting hunted kind

I asked him
To say what had happened
How it all began
I asked again
He never said a word
As if he hadn't heard

And next the room was full
Of wild and angry men
They seemed to hate this man
They fell on him and then disappeared

Then I saw thousands of millions
Crying for this man




And then I heard them mentioning my name
And leaving me the blame

Overall Meaning

The first verse describes the encounter of the singer with a man known as the Galilean. The singer describes the Galilean as an amazing man with a unique look that he has rarely seen. The singer then asks the Galilean to explain what had happened and how it all began. However, the Galilean does not respond to the singer's questions, as if he did not hear anything. This verse may be referring to the biblical figure Jesus Christ, who was born in Galilee, and the singer is dreaming about an encounter with him. The haunting hunted kind could refer to the fact that Jesus Christ was hunted and executed by the Romans.


The second verse goes on to describe a scene where the room is full of angry men who seem to hate the Galilean. They fall on him, but then disappear. This scene may be referring to Jesus Christ's arrest and crucifixion, where he was arrested by the Romans and crucified, but his body disappeared from the tomb. The final verse describes the singer seeing thousands of people crying for the Galilean and mentioning his name. The singer is then blamed for something, although it is unclear what that is. This verse may be suggesting that even though Jesus Christ was hunted and executed, he still has followers who believe in him, and his name is still mentioned and revered by millions of people.


Line by Line Meaning

I dreamed I met a Galilean
The singer had a dream where he met a man from the town of Galilee


A most amazing man
The man he met was astounding and remarkable


He had that look
The man had an indescribable gaze that is rarely found in other people


You very rarely find
The look is uncommon and uncommonly seen


The haunting hunted kind
The look the man had had a haunting quality to it, as if he was being pursued by some unseen force


I asked him
The singer asked the man what had happened to him


To say what had happened
The singer requested for the man to explain his story


How it all began
The artist was curious as to how things started for the man


I asked again
The artist repeated his question to the man


He never said a word
The man remained silent and did not utter a single reply


As if he hadn't heard
The man appeared as though he could not hear the singer's inquiries


And next the room was full
Suddenly, the room the artist was in became crowded


Of wild and angry men
The men in the room were unruly and furious


They seemed to hate this man
The men appeared to despise the man the singer had met


They fell on him and then disappeared
The men attacked the man and then vanished without a trace


Then I saw thousands of millions
The artist witnessed a large number of people, more than he could count


Crying for this man
All these people were crying over the man the artist had met


And then I heard them mentioning my name
the singer heard the people say his name during all the shouting and commotion


And leaving me the blame
The people regarded the singer as being the one who caused harm to their beloved man




Lyrics Β© Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER, TIM RICE

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found
Comments from YouTube:

MrsLederer

I saw him in a touring production around that time. He was amazing.

Rainbow Star Productions

And the best part is HE'S actually Italian 😁

mysterywhiteboy41

i would give anything for a full copy of this performance. So cool. So different.

Mimi Ridgway

Never heard it sung quite so beautifully as that.

D. Mitroff

Saw the 93 production in LA. His solo was incredible. Looking forward to seeing him this summer.

Forsaken Hero

I went and listened to the other versions and none compare to the power and compassion Dennis carries in his vocal time

Philip Alamond

Dennis has SUCH A GREAT VOICE!

S. Sagan

I remember seeing this performance. I was already in love with DDY, but this cemented it. Thanks, Dennis.

Norma Dom

A hauntingly beautiful melody matched with the brilliance of Tim Rice's lyrical imagery in its depiction of the premonition of Pilates' dream and de Young's soulful rendition brings the curtains down on a perfect piece of music.

Matt Guerra

Saw this production on tour twice, and it still stands as the best live show I've ever seen.

More Comments

More Versions