Beginning in 1987 in London, England, Bill Drummond (alias King Boy D) and Jimmy Cauty (alias Rockman Rock) released hip hop-inspired and sample-heavy records as The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu and, on one occasion (the British number one hit single "Doctorin' the Tardis"), as The Timelords. As The KLF, Drummond and Cauty pioneered the genres "stadium house" (rave music with a pop-rock production and sampled crowd noise) and "ambient house". The KLF released a series of international top-ten hits on their own KLF Communications record label, and became the highest internationally selling UK band of 1991. The duo also published a book, The Manual, and worked on a road movie called The White Room.
From the outset, they adopted the philosophy espoused by esoteric novels The Illuminatus! Trilogy, gaining notoriety for various anarchic situationist manifestations, including the defacement of billboard adverts, the posting of prominent cryptic advertisements in NME magazine and the mainstream press, and highly distinctive and unusual performances on Top of the Pops. Their most notorious performance was at the February 1992 Brit Awards, where they horrified the formal audience with a hardcore thrash version of "3 A.M. Eternal" (performed with the justifiably named Extreme Noise Terror) that also included Drummond spraying the crowd with blanks from an automatic rifle and the post-performance announcement, "The KLF have left the music industry." Topping their already extreme actions, Cauty and Drummond delivered the carcass of a dead sheep -- plus eight gallons of blood -- to the lobby of the hotel after-party. In May 1992 the duo deleted their entire back catalogue.
With The KLF's profits, Drummond and Cauty established the K Foundation and sought to subvert the art world, staging an alternative art award for the worst artist of the year and burning a million pounds sterling. Although Drummond and Cauty remained true to their word of May 1992—the KLF Communications catalogue remains deleted—they have released a small number of new tracks since then, as the K Foundation, The One World Orchestra and most recently, in 1997, as 2K. Cauty has provided remixing services for bands as diverse as Hawkwind and Placebo, under the name Scourge of the Earth.
The KLF catalogue remained absent from digital platforms until January 1, 2021, when an 8-track compilation of their 7" hit singles 1988-1991 - Solid State Logik 1 was released on streaming platforms, marking the 1st installment of a series called Samplecity Thru Trancentral.
3 A.M. Eternal
The KLF Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
KLF, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
KLF is gonna rock ya (are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
(Here we go, ancients of Mu Mu)
KLF is gonna rock ya (are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) KLF, KLF is gonna rock ya
KLF (are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu)
Eternal
KLF is gonna rock ya 'cause you have to
Move to the flow of the P.D. Blaster
Bass ballistics, I'm gonna kick this hard
And you can catch it
Down with the crew-crew, talking 'bout the Mu Mu
Justified Ancient Liberation Zulu
Got to teach and everything you learn
Will point to the fact that time is eternal
It's 3 A.M., 3 A.M.
It's 3 A.M. Eternal (eternal)
KLF is gonna rock ya
(Are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
Eternal (here we go)
(Ancients of Mu Mu)
KLF (are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
Eternal
Sample city through Trancentral
Basic face kick elemental
Swings brings new technology
The 'K' the 'L' the 'F' and the ology
Da Force coming down with mayhem
Looking at my watch time 3 A.M.
Got to see that everywhere I turn
Will point to the fact that time is eternal
It's 3 A.M., 3 A.M.
It's 3 A.M. Eternal (eternal)
(Are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu)
(Here we go)
(Ancients of Mu Mu)
(Are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
Eternal
KLF, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
KLF, a-ha, a-ha
KLF is gonna rock ya (are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
(Here we go, ancients of Mu Mu)
KLF is gonna rock ya (are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) KLF, KLF is gonna rock ya
(Are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
Eternal (here we go)
(Ancients of Mu Mu)
KLF (are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
Eternal (here we go)
(Are you ready?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
Eternal (here we go, here we go)
(Ancients of Mu Mu, are you ready? Are you ready?)
Got to see that everywhere I turn
Will point to the fact that time is eternal (ancients of Mu Mu)
Eternal (here we go)
KLF
Ladies and Gentlemen
The KLF have now left the building
The KLF's "3 A.M. Eternal" is a combination of house rhythms and rap vocals, but what makes the lyrics stand out is the references to the mythology of the KLF, including the Ancients of Mu Mu, the Justified Ancients of Mu Mu (JAMs), and the seminal text The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Anton Wilson and Robert Shea.
The song opens with "This is Radio Freedom," which is a nod to the pirate radio stations that became popular in the UK in the 60s and 70s. The KLF's own self-styled mythology is then established through the repeated use of the phrase "Ancients of Mu Mu" and "KLF is gonna rock ya." The "Mu" in "Ancients of Mu Mu" is a reference to the mythical continent of Mu, which is supposed to have sunk into the Pacific Ocean thousands of years ago, and the band has described it as standing for "music."
The song takes on a more philosophical tone with the lyrics "Got to teach and everything you learn/Will point to the fact that time is eternal." This reflects the band's interest in the occult, numerology, and synchronicity, as well as their desire to create a sense of mysticism around their music.
The chorus, "It's 3 A.M. Eternal," speaks to the idea that music can transcend time and space, and that the energy created by the performance of the song can exist forever. The use of the phrase "eternal" emphasizes this idea.
Overall, "3 A.M. Eternal" is an energetic and memorable song with lyrics that incorporate the KLF's own mythology and philosophical beliefs.
Line by Line Meaning
This is Radio Freedom
We are Radio Freedom
KLF, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
We are KLF
KLF is gonna rock ya (are you ready?)
We are going to entertain you through our music (and are you ready for that?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are here to support KLF
(Here we go, ancients of Mu Mu)
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are ready to support KLF and begin the show
KLF is gonna rock ya (are you ready?)
We are going to entertain you through our music (and are you ready for that?)
(Ancients of Mu Mu) KLF, KLF is gonna rock ya
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are acknowledging that KLF is going to entertain the audience through their music
KLF (are you ready?)
We are KLF and we want to check if you are ready for our music
(Ancients of Mu Mu)
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are present
Eternal
We are emphasizing the concept of eternity
KLF is gonna rock ya 'cause you have to
We are going to entertain you through our music because it is necessary
Move to the flow of the P.D. Blaster
Allow yourself to get lost in the vibe of the music
Bass ballistics, I'm gonna kick this hard
Our bass is strong and will hit you hard
And you can catch it
You can feel the bass
Down with the crew-crew, talking 'bout the Mu Mu
We are talking about the Mu Mu group that we are a part of
Justified Ancient Liberation Zulu
We are members of the Justified Ancient Liberation Zulu group
Got to teach and everything you learn
We must teach others and everything we teach is a lesson
Will point to the fact that time is eternal
The lessons that we teach reflect the eternal concept of time
It's 3 A.M., 3 A.M.
It is currently 3 A.M.
It's 3 A.M. Eternal (eternal)
The time is eternal as it is always 3 A.M. somewhere in the world
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are here to support KLF
Eternal (here we go)
We are emphasizing the concept of eternity as we begin the show
KLF (are you ready?)
We are KLF and we want to check if you are ready for our music
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are here to support KLF
Eternal
We are emphasizing the concept of eternity
Sample city through Trancentral
We are taking samples from the city and incorporating them into our music
Basic face kick elemental
Our music is elemental and will impact you
Swings brings new technology
Our music is innovative and incorporates new technology
The 'K' the 'L' the 'F' and the ology
We are KLF and our music has a unique style and approach
Da Force coming down with mayhem
We are approaching this show with force and energy
Looking at my watch time 3 A.M.
We are acknowledging that it is currently 3 A.M.
Got to see that everywhere I turn
We must recognize that our surroundings reflect the eternal concept of time
Will point to the fact that time is eternal
Our surroundings reflect the eternal concept of time
(Ancients of Mu Mu) A-ha, a-ha, a-ha, a-ha
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are here to support KLF
(Here we go, ancients of Mu Mu)
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are ready to support KLF and begin the show
(Ancients of Mu Mu) KLF, KLF is gonna rock ya
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are acknowledging that KLF is going to entertain the audience through their music
(Ancients of Mu Mu)
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are present and will continue to support KLF
(Are you ready?)
We want to make sure that everyone is ready for the show
Eternal (here we go)
We are emphasizing the concept of eternity as we begin the show
(Ancients of Mu Mu)
We, the Ancients of Mu Mu, are present
KLF
We are KLF
Ladies and Gentlemen
We are addressing the audience
The KLF have now left the building
We are now finished with the show and are leaving
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: James Francis Cauty, William Ernest Drummond, Ricky Lyte
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@JACKYBOY281
I am 74 and i love this music man..
@NeilNZ
That's because you ROCK fine fellow 👍🕒😃🙏 Kia Ora 🙏
@JazzmansHardware
Take care and stay safe good old man!
@silverdollar1921
That's awesomeness!!
@victortaylor7737
You got class
@joesixpack1306
You are the coolest older person I've ever seen
@ARYAN2101
I am turning 91 this month . I loved this music when I was in my 50s. This track music will last till My rebirth 🎉🎉🎉
@v3195
Держись дед! Твои внуки любят тебя!
@daMacadamBlob
you sir dont look 91
@quarles1939
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👍🏻