Badelt was born in Frankfurt, West Germany. He started his musical career composing for movies and commercials in his homeland. In 1998, Oscar-winning film composer Hans Zimmer invited Badelt to work at Media Ventures in Santa Monica, California, his studio co-owned by Jay Rifkin. Since then, Badelt has been working on a number of his own film and television projects such as The Time Machine and K-19: The Widowmaker. He also collaborated with other Media Ventures composers, such as Harry Gregson-Williams, John Powell, and Zimmer; and mentored several others like Ramin Djawadi and Steve Jablonsky.
While collaborating with Zimmer, Badelt contributed to the Oscar-nominated scores for The Thin Red Line and The Prince of Egypt, and wrote music for many well known directors including Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, Terrence Malick, John Woo, Kathryn Bigelow, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Werner Herzog, Sean Penn, Gore Verbinski, Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg.
Badelt co-wrote and co-produced the score to Hollywood box office hit Gladiator, directed by Ridley Scott, along with Zimmer and singer/composer Lisa Gerrard. Having contributed music to Gladiator, Mission: Impossible II and Michael Kamen's score for X-Men, Badelt was involved in the three most successful movies in 2000. Badelt also collaborated with Zimmer on other successful films, such as The Pledge, and 2001 blockbusters Hannibal and Pearl Harbor. One of his more famous and popular scores was for the 2003 film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.
In 2004, Klaus founded his own film music company, Theme Park Studios, in Santa Monica. Since then, he has scored films such as Constantine, Poseidon, Rescue Dawn, and TMNT.
Among Badelt's most critically celebrated scores are the Chinese fantasy film The Promise and DreamWorks' remake of The Time Machine, the latter of which earned him the Discovery of the Year Award at the World Soundtrack Awards 2003. He also wrote the music for the closing ceremonies at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, and was commissioned to write an opera about China's First Emperor, to be premiered in 2015.
Klaus worked on the soundtrack for The Promise for almost 6 months. The song which can be heard in the movie's end credits is an ancient folk song in China, and very few people can still sing it. For that, Klaus traveled almost two weeks in China to find someone who was able to sing the whole folk song in order to rearrange it for the score.
Shelter For My Soul
Klaus Badelt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Into the open arms of the Holy Ghost,
To have lived such a life as I have known,
Fortune follows me, but I'm brave no more.
For my great mistakes I will surely pay,
I'm running low and the devil is on my trail,
When fate delivers me all I'll ask it for,
Oh if I could spend my days,
Free from the prison of your gates,
Then I could die a happy man.
Oh if I could spend my days,
Free from the shadow of my name,
Then I could die happy man.
When I am released from this mortal load,
I'll take my leave but I don't wanna go.
When fate delivers me all I'll ask it for,
A place to rest and shelter for my soul.
The lyrics of the song speak about a man who is at the end of his days and is ready to face death. He hopes that he has lived his life well enough to be accepted into the afterlife, into the "open arms of the Holy Ghost." However, he also acknowledges that he has made mistakes and is willing to pay for them in the next life. He feels that he is being pursued by the devil and is running low, but all he wants is a place to rest and find shelter for his soul.
The song also expresses the man's desire to live his last days in peace, away from the prison of other people's judgments and the shadow of his name. He wishes he could live free from the constraints of society and spend his last moments in happiness. Even though he is ready to go, he doesn't want to leave because he doesn't know what awaits him in the afterlife. But when his fate finally delivers him, all he asks for is a place to rest and find shelter for his soul.
The song is a beautiful reflection on the human condition and our desire for peace and acceptance in the face of death. It also highlights the importance of living a good life and being mindful of our actions, as they will have consequences beyond this life.
Line by Line Meaning
At the end of my days when I'm called to go,
When I eventually pass away,
Into the open arms of the Holy Ghost,
Into the hands of God,
To have lived such a life as I have known,
To have experienced the life I've had,
Fortune follows me, but I'm brave no more.
I may have had some success, but I don't feel brave anymore.
For my great mistakes I will surely pay,
I know I will face consequences for my significant errors,
I'm running low and the devil is on my trail,
I'm feeling drained and struggling while facing temptation,
When fate delivers me all I'll ask it for,
If destiny provides me with anything,
Is a place to rest and shelter for my soul.
I just want somewhere to rest and feel at peace.
Oh if I could spend my days,
If only I could live my life,
Free from the prison of your gates,
Without feeling trapped by someone else's expectations,
Then I could die a happy man.
I would leave this world content.
Oh if I could spend my days,
If only I could live my life,
Free from the shadow of my name,
Without being defined by my reputation,
Then I could die happy man.
I would leave this world content.
When I am released from this mortal load,
When I pass away,
I'll take my leave but I don't wanna go.
I'll depart, but I'm not eager to leave.
When fate delivers me all I'll ask it for,
If destiny provides me with anything,
A place to rest and shelter for my soul.
I just want somewhere to rest and feel at peace.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: BERNARD JOSEPH FANNING
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind