Originally, Gregorian was conceived as a more pop-oriented group in the vein of Enigma. Under this concept, they recorded the 1991 album Sadisfaction, with lead vocals provided by The Sisters of Oz: Susana Espelleta (Peterson's wife at the time) and Birgit Freud. However, this was the only album in that style.
In 1998, Peterson and his team Jan-Eric Kohrs, Michael Soltau and Carsten Heusmann re-invented the project to perform popular songs in the Gregorian style. The criteria for song selection were strict; in order to be considered, a song needed to be translatable into the 7-tone scale. For each album, songs were carefully chosen in addition to original songs written by Jan-Eric Kohrs, Amelia Brightman and Carsten Heussman. Twelve vocalists - previously acclaimed session and choir singers - were then hired to record the tracks.
Each Gregorian album is initially digitally tracked at Nemo Studios, Peterson's Hamburg studio. The vocalists then record their parts in a church atmosphere with dimmed lights and candles, in order to escape what Peterson referred to in a 2001 interview as the "cold and technical" studio atmosphere.
The concept proved to be successful, and the group proceeded to record several more Masters of Chant albums in the same style. Their 2004 album, The Dark Side, was a slight departure from the others, featuring a darker repertoire consistent with the title.
In 2005, The Masterpieces, a compilation album with a live DVD, was released. A fifth Masters of Chant album was released on 31 March 2006. In 2006, a festive album was also released, titled Christmas Chants. A sixth Masters of Chant album was released on 28 September 2007. In 2009 a seventh Masters of Chant album followed.
Gregorian in 2009
On 8 September 2010 the next album, titled The Dark Side of Chant, was announced to be published on 15 October 2010.
The members of the Gregorian choir group are Richard Naxton (Naxos), Johnny Clucas (Johnny), Chris Tickner (Chris T.), Richard Collier (Rich), Gerry O'Beirne (Gerry), Lawrence White (Lorro) and Rob Fardell (Rob F.).
Others who contribute to the vocals or sound of Gregorian are Sarah Brightman (under the pseudonyms Hepsibah or Sarah Hellmann), Amelia Brightman (Sarah Brightman's younger sister), Frank Peterson, and staff of Nemo Studio among others.
Who Wants To Live Forever
Gregorian Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's no place for us,
What is this thing that builds our dreams,
Yet slips away from us.
Who wants to live forever,
Who wants to live forever?
There's no chance for us,
This world has only one sweet moment
Set aside for us.
Who wants to live forever.
Who dares to love forever,
When love must die.
But touch my tears with your lips,
Touch my world with your fingertips,
And we can have forever,
And we can love forever
Forever is your today,
Who wants to live forever,
Who wants to live forever,
Forever is our today,
Who waits forever anyway?
Gregorian's song "Who Wants To Live Forever" explores the theme of mortality and questions the value of an eternal life. The first two lines of the chorus, "There's no time for us, There's no place for us," set the tone for the rest of the song, suggesting that our time on earth is limited and that we are constantly running out of time to make our dreams a reality. The next two lines, "What is this thing that builds our dreams, Yet slips away from us," ponder on the nature of our ambitions and how they seem to elude us in the course of our lives.
The song continues with the chorus asking "Who wants to live forever?" and answering that there's no chance for us, as everything is already decided for us. However, the song acknowledges that there is one sweet moment set aside for us in this world. The song then dares to ask "Who dares to love forever, When love must die," a poignant question about the nature of love and how it exists beyond our lifetimes.
The song concludes with a message of hope, noting that if we touch each other's lives with our hearts and hold on to love, we too can have forever. The final lines, "Forever is your today, Who wants to live forever, Forever is our today, Who waits forever anyway?" express the idea that we should live for today and make the most of the time we have, rather than waiting for something that may never come.
Line by Line Meaning
There's no time for us,
We don't have much time left.
There's no place for us,
We don't fit in this world anymore.
What is this thing that builds our dreams,
What inspires us to dream?
Yet slips away from us.
But seems to vanish quickly?
Who wants to live forever,
Who desires to live forever?
Who wants to live forever?
Who craves to live a life without end?
There's no chance for us,
We have no choice in the matter.
It's all decided for us,
Our fate is predetermined.
This world has only one sweet moment
There's only one perfect time in this world
Set aside for us.
Reserved just for us.
Who dares to love forever,
Who is brave enough to love unconditionally?
When love must die.
Knowing that love will eventually end.
But touch my tears with your lips,
Please kiss away my tears.
Touch my world with your fingertips,
Let us experience the world together.
And we can have forever,
We can make forever last.
And we can love forever
And we can keep loving forever.
Forever is your today,
You can live in the present forever.
Who waits forever anyway?
What's the point of waiting forever?
Contributed by Landon M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Arron English
My dad had this played at his funeral. song mean a lot to me. miss him so much
oneslifesadream
+arron english ditto. Didn't have the song but I miss my dad too.
theusuallywonderful
I'm a queen fan and this is a gift from gregorians to queen <3 i love it!
Matthew Gg
I love this cover of Queen's song from Highlander. In an alternative story, I can imagine the Gregorian monks sung this from a poem written by a young man who they and the priests took they care of on Holy Ground and didn't know is an immortal like Connor MaCleod and left them a poem, then adapted by Queen for the movie and the immortal to this day is struggling to be the last in battle.
There can be only one
Rochelle Zimmer Bishop
Fuckin A, Matthew. You need to write.
Alessandra Reitz
Actually divine!!! 🙏👏👏👏👏
Giovani Mendes
Simplesmente incrível...
Marie Taborski
Une pure merveille! Ces chants grégoriens! Douceur infinie, moments intenses de détente et de paix, merci de nous faire partager ces instants de grâce!
Leo Guarnieri
Obra-prima. Maravilhoso, adoro! Bjo! xD
upfrontbear74
I have to say this is amazing, would love to hear them do it withSarah Brightman, now that would be fantastic.