A Spaceman Came Travelling – English Lyrics
Lyrics & Translation
[English]
A spaceman came traveling on his ship from afar
'Twas light years of time since his mission did start
And over a village, he halted his craft
And it hung in the sky like a star
Just like a star
He followed a light and came down to a shed
Where a mother and child were lying there on a bed
A bright light of silver shone round his head
And he had a face of an angel
And they were afraid
Then the stranger spoke, he said, "Do not fear
I come from a planet a long way from here
And I bring a message for mankind to hear"
Suddenly, the sweetest music
Filled the air
And it went
La-la-la-la, la-la-la la-la-la
La-la-la-la la-la-la
La-la-la-la, la-la-la la-la-la
Peace and a goodwill to all men
And love for the child
La-la-la-la, la-la-la la-la-la
La-la-la-la la-la-la
La-la-la-la, la-la-la la-la-la
Oh-oh-oh
This lovely music went trembling through the ground
And many were wakened on hearing that sound
And travelers on the road, the village they found
By the light of that ship in the sky
Which shone all around
And just before dawn, at the paling of the sky
The stranger returned and said, "Now I must fly
When two thousand years of your time has gone by
This song will begin once again
To a baby's cry"
And it went
La la-la-la, la-la-la la-la-la
La-la-la-la la-la-la
La la-la-la, la-la-la la-la-la
This song will begin once again
To a baby's cry
And it goes
La-la-la-la, la-la-la la-la-la
La-la-la-la la-la-la (oh-oh-oh-oh)
La-la-la-la, la-la-la la-la-la
Peace and goodwill to all men
And love for the child
Oh, the whole world is waiting
Waiting to hear the song again
There are thousands standing on the edge of the world
And a star is moving somewhere
The time is nearly here
This song will begin once again
To a baby's cry
...
Key Vocabulary
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Key Grammar Structures
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A spaceman came traveling on his ship from afar
➔ Past Simple (came)
➔ Uses the simple past tense to describe a completed action in the past. "Came" indicates a single, finished trip.
-
'Twas light years of time since his mission did start
➔ Past Simple with auxiliary "did" (emphatic/archaic)
➔ Uses "did start" for emphasis or in an archaic style. While grammatically correct, the standard form would be "started".
-
Where a mother and child were lying there on a bed
➔ Past Continuous (were lying)
➔ Describes an action in progress in the past. "Were lying" shows the ongoing state of the mother and child.
-
I come from a planet a long way from here
➔ Present Simple (come)
➔ States a general truth or fact about the spaceman's origin. "Come" expresses a habitual or characteristic action.
-
And I bring a message for mankind to hear
➔ Present Simple (bring) + Infinitive of Purpose (to hear)
➔ The present simple "bring" denotes a current action, while "to hear" expresses the purpose of bringing the message.
-
This lovely music went trembling through the ground
➔ Past Simple (went) + Participle as Adjective (trembling)
➔ "Went" describes the action of the music moving, and "trembling" modifies the music, describing its quality.
-
When two thousand years of your time has gone by
➔ Present Perfect (has gone)
➔ Uses the present perfect to indicate a time period that starts in the past and continues to the present or has relevance to the present. The implication is that the two thousand years will have elapsed at some point in the future from the point of the spaceman's departure and is thus relevant at that future point.
-
The time is nearly here
➔ Present Simple (is)
➔ Uses the present simple "is" to express a current state or fact. The speaker perceives that the prophesied time is approaching.
-
This song will begin once again to a baby's cry
➔ Future Simple (will begin)
➔ Uses the simple future tense to describe an event that will happen in the future. "Will begin" indicates a prediction about the song starting again.
