Cassiopeia
Heidi Muller Lyrics


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Night hawk flyin' in the darkness
The city lights far from their flight
A cloud's silhouette hangs far to the west
Above us the clear spring sky

Cassiopeia, dance with Orion tonight
Cassiopeia, with the silvery light in your eyes.
Hardly a car on the highway
And hardly a light on the road
Just the ruby shine of coyote eyes
And the midnight stars all aglow

Cassiopeia, dance with Orion tonight
Cassiopeia, with the silvery light in your eyes.

Somewhere east of Othello
I saw her black velvet gown
Strewn with thousands of rhinestones
And the north star there in her crown

Cassiopeia, dance with Orion tonight
Cassiopeia, with the silvery light in your eyes.

Orion is the bold hunter
A sword of three stars he does bear
Beckons the Lady to come to his side
Your Majesty, rise from your chair

Cassiopeia, dance with Orion tonight
Cassiopeia, with the silvery light in your eyes.

Cassiopeia, dance with Orion tonight
Cassiopeia, with the silvery light in your eyes.





Cassiopeia, dancin' tonight

Overall Meaning

"Cassiopeia" by Heidi Muller is a song that combines elements of nature, mythology, and romance. The lyrics start by setting the scene of a dark and quiet night, with a night hawk flying overhead as the only sign of life. The city lights are far away, allowing for a clear view of the stars above. The singer then invokes the constellation of Cassiopeia, inviting her to dance with Orion. Cassiopeia is known for its distinctive W-shape, and Orion is a hunter who wields a sword made of three stars.


The second verse continues to describe the peaceful stillness of the night. There are hardly any cars on the nearby highway or lights on the road, other than the glowing eyes of coyotes. The song then returns to the idea of Cassiopeia and Orion, this time with a specific reference to the North Star as part of Cassiopeia's crown. The chorus repeats again, urging Cassiopeia to dance with Orion and reminding her of the silvery light in her eyes.


The final verse directly addresses Cassiopeia, calling her "Your Majesty" and echoing the mythological story of her being a queen. Orion beckons her to join him, and the song ends with one final invitation to dance. Overall, the song creates a dreamy and romantic atmosphere, with its focus on the natural world and the mythological figures of the constellations.


Line by Line Meaning

Night hawk flyin' in the darkness
A bird is flying in darkness


The city lights far from their flight
City lights are far away from where the bird is flying


A cloud's silhouette hangs far to the west
A cloudy shape can be seen towards the west


Above us the clear spring sky
The sky is clear and it's springtime


Cassiopeia, dance with Orion tonight
Calling out to Cassiopeia to dance with Orion tonight


Cassiopeia, with the silvery light in your eyes.
Cassiopeia has a silvery light in her eyes


Hardly a car on the highway
There aren't many cars on the highway


And hardly a light on the road
There aren't many lights on the road


Just the ruby shine of coyote eyes
Only the red shine of coyote eyes can be seen


And the midnight stars all aglow
The stars in the midnight sky are shining brightly


Somewhere east of Othello
A place east of Othello


I saw her black velvet gown
Saw Cassiopeia's black velvet gown


Strewn with thousands of rhinestones
The gown has thousands of rhinestones on it


And the north star there in her crown
The north star is in Cassiopeia's crown


Orion is the bold hunter
Orion is a bold hunter


A sword of three stars he does bear
Orion has a sword made of three stars


Beckons the Lady to come to his side
Orion calls for Cassiopeia to come to his side


Your Majesty, rise from your chair
Orion urges Cassiopeia to rise from her seat as a queen


Cassiopeia, dancin' tonight
Cassiopeia is dancing tonight




Contributed by David F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Comments from YouTube:

@summersnake

Heidi! My 21 year old kid and I were watching the perseid shower tonight and I pointed out cassiopea. This led to a conversation and swapping songs with that title, and i told them about recording you playing this and interviewing you for my show on KSER back in the early 90s. So glad to see you're still playing!

@roscoegrey6461

What a treasure! Thank you Heidi!

@heidimuller

Thank you!

@alleng9681

Beautiful song

@heidimuller

Thank you!

@brendasuebrooks6994

Beautiful

@heidimuller

Thanks!

@suzannelawson9215

This is such a lovely song. I remember seeing you at a house concert, in the mid 1990's. Just wanted to ask you if you have time, that you could please upload the song called "Sandwood Down to Kyle?" It is such a beautiful song.
Thanks

@rattytattyratnett

Could you please do a tutorial for this lovely song?

@heidimuller

Thanks for the idea. I can tell you that I'm playing in DGdd tuning in 4-equidistant-strings, and many of my chord forms are just fingered on the outer strings, like a 5-0-0-3.

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