Music and Lyrics by Rick Merino
Click on the Song Title to Read the Lyrics
Canto I (Only A Shade)

I was halfway through life
Lost in the wood
Its memory like a knife
Still, some of it was good

I’ll tell you what I saw
Although I was so tired
Upon a hill afar
With Venus on the rise   

Someone appeared as I ran  
And I called to the shape
“I’m no longer a man
I am only a shade”

“I was a poet and a pagan”
Run far back up the hill”  
“Could I be mistaken?
Are you Virgil?”

“You must take another path
Around the vicious beast
She’ll never let you pass
You’ll have to follow me”

“I will take you by the hand
Quick you must decide
Through Hell to see the damned
I will be your guide”


Canto II  (Beatrice)

It was getting dark and quiet     
In fear I had to ask
If I had the strength required
For this journey’s task

My master again spoke
“Your fear is understood
Now allow me to disclose
Who called me to these woods”

“She summoned me by name
In Limbo where I dwelled
And when she then explained
I felt myself compelled”

“You must hurry to a friend Beatrice
I’m told he’s on a barren slope
To your wisdom I commend
For I fear that he has lost hope

Hurry to a friend for me
Guide him on this lonesome path
All the heavens will be pleased
And I will sing on your behalf

And with his message sent
My teacher and my master
Began the long descent
Down the road I followed after

Canto III (Abandon All Hope)

 “Abandon All Hope
You who enter here
Enter the City of Woe
Leave behind your fear”

 “Where are we to go
Please make it clear”
 “Abandon All Hope
You who enter here”

 “We are at the Gates of Hell
As I told you before
These wretched souls and fallen angels
Pass over Acheron’s shore”

“Woe to you wicked souls        
You- stand clear of the dead
By someone else’s boat
From here you will be lead”

And again he spoke
From the ship he steered
 “Abandon All Hope
You who enter here”

“Charon it is willed”        
You know you must oblige
The ferryman held still
With wheels of flames in his eyes

We reached the shore
Through the cursing crowd
The earth shook just before
I fell to the ground  


Canto IV   (Where the Pagans Dwell)

With a clap of thunder
I was startled from my sleep
We began the journey under
Through a canyon dark and deep

It is time to descend
Into the first circle of Hell
This is home my friend
Where the Pagans the dwell

Then I heard the sound
Of someone in despair
Somewhere deep down
In the timeless air

We are the damned wanderers
Who never will be saved
The poets and philosophers
Honored in our days

All these hallowed names
Are here with me as well
Within these city gates
Where the Pagans dwell

Hector Electra
Saladin of Arabia
Lucretia Julia
Marcia Cornelia….
Orpheus  Cicero
Socrates
Euchlid
Hippocrates
Democritus


Canto V  (Francesca and Paulo)

I’ll tell how we came to be here
Please listen without scorn
Between our gentle hearts
Love was quickly born

It silenced my breath
I lost all will
Love even in death
That holds to us still

We read of Lancelot and Guinevere
Who had loved like this before
My lover kissed me and with a tear
That afternoon we read no more


Canto VI (Ciacco)
You who are lead thru Hell
In this city of scum
Allow me to foretell
What will become

Discontent then bloodshed
Cities sacked and burned
Resentments spread
The Old Guard return

Only one of them is just
Whose words the rest ignore
Soon they’ll be with us
Now I shall speak no more

Master if you please
What have you to say
Will all this pain increase?
On the judgment day

It will indeed
For so it remains
As they perfected greed
Hell will perfect their pain

Canto VII (Plutus  pape  satan  pape  aleppe)

Hoarders
Squanderers

Forever they return
To butt against their heads
Fortune’s wheel turns
On the greedy dead

Why did you hoarde
All your gold and jewels
Why did you squander
Your lives like fools


Canto VIII (Phlegyas)

Behold Phlegyas on his boat
Over waves he rolls
“Now you are caught
You God forsaken souls”

You will help us cross this bog
Over him you have no power
“Who is this dog?  
Who comes before his hour?”

“I know your face
Pride was your sin”
“Master may I stay
“As they tear him limb from limb”

“At Jamio Sarto”      “Attack Jamio Sarto”

We now approach
See where the entrance is
Within this fiery moat
The city whose name is Dis

Who is there
That without death
Goes through
The kingdom of the dead?

We will not let you pass
You cannot stop us
We will not let you pass
Who denies me this house?


Canto IX (O Medusa)

We will win this fight
For she who offered aid
Though it’s not yet arrived
And it’s getting very late

Then three hellish furies
Each clawing at her breast
Appeared in a tower
Crown of serpents on their heads

Who is this living one?
We will avenge our own
O let Medusa come
Turn him into  stone

Then with a fearsome crash
The evil souls fled
An angel strode the River Styx
Through the valley of the dead

Oh exiles of Heaven
Why such insolence?
You shall not avoid the pain
That the fates dispense

With that we passed through the gates
Through air more subdued
We heard groans of pain so great
From a Heretic entombed


Canto X (This Much I Foresee)

O you who have traveled far
From the land where you were born
Where I may have brought great harm
Before life from me was torn

Members of your clan
Were enemies to me
My own will rise again
This much I foresee

I know nothing of the present
Only what I have heard    said
Therefore it is destined
That my knowledge will be dead

Members of your clan
Were enemies to me
My kin will rise again
This much I foresee

When you confront her radiance
Whose eyes can surely see
Be assured that you will learn
What your life’s journey will be


Canto XI  (Gates of Dis)

Through this dark abyss
Behold the final spheres
Where the vilest of Dis
Lie consumed for endless years

The nearest are the violent
Murderers Plunderers
Beyond are the fraudulent
Flatterers  Sorcerers

And in the deepest bowels
Of the lowest circles pit
Are the traitors and Betrayors
Within the seat of Dis


Canto XII (River of Blood)

There goes the Minotaur
Be quick he gives chase
Descend before
He flies in a rage

Beware the Centaur
Who guards the bank
At the River of Blood

Look at him whose feet touch
The earth sand and mud
Why do you attempt to cross
This hellish flood

You will escort us
With orders from above
Through the River of Blood
 
They brought great harm
Such tyrants as this one
Stabbed in the heart
By his own son

Boil them hard
Until they are done
In the River of Blood


Canto XIII (Harpies)

We travel down
A dark and lonely route
Leaves are brown on trees
which bear no fruit

Harpies in trees
With claws and tails
Though I cannot see
I hear loud wails

Why do you hide?
Come out from within
I asked my guide
He said remove a limb

Why do you break me?
What is your purpose
Have you no pity?
For souls of serpents

In the court Augustus
Honors turned to pain
Death gave me justice
To avoid disdain

Minos casts our souls
To the seventh depth
As our foliage grows
Harpies eat our flesh


Canto XIV  (In Life And Death)

What I was in Life
I am in Death
He will not delight
 In his vengeance

Your pride remains
Unquenched even here
In the fiery rain    
With punishment near

Walk near the wood
Along this Red stream
This is the brook
That quenches all flame

On the Island Crete
Lies a mountain wild
In the golden age
Rhea hid her child

On feet of clay
A Man faces Rome
With a Golden face
Within the mountain’s dome

The rivers form
His tears flow through stone
And as their source
Styx and Phlegethon

We leave the woods
For a path on the plains
Red skies above
Extinguish all flames


Canto XV (This Firm Margin)

On this firm margin
Sheltered from the rain
Through the distance
I called out your name

Ser Brunetto
Whose words make me smile
Is that you Ser Brunetto
Sit and talk for a while

If I ever stop my pace
I’d lie still for 100 years
Such a wicked place
What makes you travel here

Before my old age    
I lost the true path
Through hell is the way
My guide leads me back

If you follow your star
A glorious port you’ll find
Had my years been more
And life not so unkind

But those ungrateful swine
Who still smack of the hills
Jealous Greedy and Blind
Consumed by their own will

You taught me how a man
Makes him self eternal
I am prepared for fortune
Whatever be her will

As fortune pleases
Let her wheel be turned
He who has listened
Surely has discerned


Canto XVI (Circle Dance)

Three shades ran towards me
Near the seventh circle’s rim
As they began to speak
Flames burned their limbs

If our charred features
Inspire contempt in you
Why do you, a living creature
Choose Hell to pass through
These circles all around you

I felt sorrow not contempt
I am led here by my lord
He guides my descent
As we go downward to the core

We are your brothers
The path you seek is near
Speak word of us to others
If you escape this dark sphere
These circles all around here

 I heard the falling water
Thunder in the mist
My master took a cord
And threw it into the abyss

The thing I hope to see  
Soon now will arise
What your mind dreams
Will be before your eyes


Canto XVII (Geryon)

Behold the beast
That has the pointed tail
Who makes the stench of which
The world is full

Behold the face
Half like other men
The body of a snake
The tail of a scorpion

Go over there and speak
But do not stay too long
I will parlay with this beast
He shall ferry us across

They batted at flames
Like swatting at flies
I knew not their names
I heard one of them cry

“What are you doing in this pit?
With these Florentine who joke
“Bring on the sovereign knight”
“Whose sack will show three goats”

We rode the monster’s back
Then he, weary of this new soul,
Landed on the jagged rocks
And flew like an arrow from the bow


Canto XVIII  (Malebolge)
Pouch 1

There is a place in Hell called Malebolge
With ten pockets full of souls
Each spaced by ten concentric moats
New tortures and new woes

The crowds pace in opposite ways
Prodded forward by brute force
A tortured spirit tries to hide his face
I have seen this fellow before

Pouch 2

I am not the only Bolognese
As Hell would see fit
You would be amazed
This place is covered in shit

Here in Hell I have found
My flattery helps not a bit
This whore lying on the ground
Look how she is covered in shit
“Is my favor with you great?”
“It is enormous”


XIX (Malebolge) Pouch 3

Is that you Boniface?
The writing lied by several years
Walk down the precipice
Find out why he is here

I am a simonist simonist
If you want to get ahead
You better give a little more

I am a simonist simonist
Just take a little money
From the alms for the poor

You made false Gods
Of silver and of gold
May your souls rot
And burn forever in these holes


Canto XX (Malebolge) Pouch 4

New Pain I found
For those submerged for years
Underneath the ground
In a canyon watered by tears

With faces so grotesque
Truly I wept
Pity lives when it is dead
Now raise your head
(Chorus)
Loom spindle thimble
For telling fortunes
Potions incantations
Magic predictions

(Manto)
Before I died
Mantua was my home
Where my bones lie
You built a city on my bones
(Chorus)


Canto XXI (Malebolge) Pouch 5 pt 1

“This is no place for your sacred face
Feel our hooks like this
You need to dance in secret now
Stay beneath the pit

Prod the meat

Go hide behind the rocks
I’ll deal with them

Before you dare to touch me with your forks
Do you O Malecoda think
I could get passed your defense      
Except by heaven’s will

Let us pass

Now no one strike him
Should I just touch him on the rump?
Yes go on and give him a cut
Hold Hold

You cant go farther by this route
A ridge not far from here
Does have a place where you can cross at will
My troops will escort you there

What do I see
We have no need of an escort
Have no fear
Let them scowl all they want


Canto XXII (Malebolge) Pouch 5 pt 2

Surrounded by demons
We descend this perch
Boozers in the taverns
Saints in the Church

Look here now I've caught one
Stand back while I do him in
First allow a question
Tell us “What was your sin?”

I cheated the king
And kept his enemies near
And if you stop gnashing your teeth
I will make seven souls appear

Just listen to this trick
He aims to jump below
Get beneath the pitch
You must not let him go



Canto XXIII (Malebolge) Pouch 6

Master we need to hide
The Malebranche are after us
The thought had entered my mind
Come with me at once

This one appears to be alive
See how he moves his throat
How did you arrive?
Where is your lead coat?

On the beautiful river
Lies the city of my birth
Oh you evil Friars
What have you done to be so cursed?

The man impaled there
Counseled the Pharisees
On the rack is his father
Who sewed his evil seeds

Where is the nearest bridge?
So we may escape this valley floor
Nearby is a rock ridge
But it has long been destroyed
 
Malecoda has mislead us
I should not be surprised
The devil has many vices
And is the father of lies


Canto XXIV (Malebolge) Pouch 7

To cast off sloth now
behooves you well

Go on I am ready
To descend the hill

That you have found me here
Brings such awful grief
Thrust down this far
Because I was a thief

But I have the power to foretell
A great war among your ken
A pestilence as well
And I hope this brings you pain


Canto XXV (Malebolge) Pouch 7

Take them God
For I am them at Thee

Canto XXVI (Malebolge) Pouch  8

Nothing could stop me
From my epic journey
Not for my son
Not for Penelope

We through many perils
Have arrived at the west
We shall conquer the new world
Now who is up to the test?

 We were old and tired
When we reached the warning post
To venture no further
And return to the coast

Five nights passed
The stars low in the sky         
When a mountain appeared
Rising up so high

Our joy soon turned to grief
As a wave stuck our ship
Which lifted up our stern
And sunk us in the abyss

Canto XXVII (Evil Counselors of the Eighth Chasm) (Malebolge) Pouch 8

This one is Italian
You and he may speak
Tell us who you are
Don't be as grudging as those theives

Since you must be dead I will answer
I was a man of arms
But decided to do penance
For a life of causing harm

I had practiced my art
And when it was time to retire
I let down my sails
And called myself a friar

But when a man of violence
Came seeking my advice
I remained silent
Such talk seemed unwise

Do not be mistrustful
I hold heaven in my hands
I wish to level Palestrina
I absolve you in advance

Given that you’ll wash
Away these sins of mine
By giving large promises
Triumph you shall find

Then the devil came for me
Because I counseled fraud
Minos coiled his tail
To myself I am lost


Canto XXVIII (Schismatics) (Malebolge) Pouch 9

All you see here taught schism
A devil waits to carve us fresh
"Why are you in this prison?
Who were you before your death?”

Not for punishment
I stand at his side
For the experience
I am his guide

Tell your cousin Guido
If you speak the truth
They will drown him in the sea
When they call for a truce

Also remember Mosca
I urged them to fight
Once done it’s done with
Death to your family line

There is no grieving worse than mine
Among all the other dead
I set the prince against the king
Now I am parted from my head


Canto XXIX (Falsifier) (Malebolge) Pouch 10

Why do you stare?
Time is running short
You found no other reason
To delay before

Inside that Hallow
I saw a sprit of my own blood
I heard him curse you
Distract yourself with him no more

Above Malebolge’s last pouch
Hear the sinners wail
As we now approach
The ridge’s final bank

Through the murky valley
I could see two back to back
Scratching at their bodies
Covered head to foot with scabs

I died by fire
Because I said I could fly
They burned me alive
And here is where I lie

Canto XXX (Weight of Sorrow)

Welcome to this unhappy world
Regard the misery
Now alas one drop of water
Is all I need
 
I falsely coined the currency
For these raging shades
Who had me make them Florins
For which they did persuade

Here is where I found them
They have not changed their place
They reek so badly
Oozing scabs and waste

Though I am kept from moving
My arm is kept freed
You mean for Counterfeiting
I am sure it is indeed

You speak the truth for once
What a pleasant change
I am here for a single sin
You have the most of any fiend

Stare a little longer and
And you will feel my ire
Wanting to hear them
is a low desire

Canto XXXI (Nimrod)

Your imagination goes astray
Before we go too far
Behold the ring of giants
Hidden in the misty fog

With  great power of mind
And incredible strength
With evil of this kind
There can be no defense

Raphel Mai Ameche Zalbi Ami

This one is Nimrod
Through his evil thought
There is no common language
Do not listen to him talk

This one had a wish
To test his power against Jove
Now he cannot move those arms
With which he once strove

O you who were bold
While the others fled
Set us down below
In the pit of the dead

This man is alive
Do not curl your lip
He alone can spread your fame
If he continues to live

Canto XXXII (Cocytus) (Bottom of the Universe)

If I had the words
For where all rocks converge
I could better describe
The bottom of the universe

Better to be born a sheep
Watch how you proceed
Through this lake of Ice
Spirits locked in misery

Who are you to be sent
To trample on our heads
Frozen in punishment
In this lake of the dead

Alive is what I am
And if fame is what you crave
Name yourself or not a hair
On your head will remain

Cocytus is a lake of ice
At the bottom of the universe
You did the crime, now you pay the price
At the bottom of the universe

Why do you show such hatred
What was your misdeed
Why do you lie here naked
Clenching this other in your teeth


Canto XXXIII (Ugolino)

You ask me to endure
Reliving my worst grief
You will hear my words
Of my deeds of infamy

I viewed several moons
When the Lord of the hunt
With him his lean hounds
Sent to ride in front

I woke before the dawn
My children cried to me
Asking for bread
They were hungry

Then I heard them
Nail shut the door
I saw my children’s faces
They wept even more

Father what ails you?
We are nearly dead
Our pain would lessen
If you eat us instead

And at the final hour
When I could no longer see
The hunger had more power
Than even sorrow had over me

Canto XXXIV (Vexilla Regis)

Off in the distance
The mill’s blades slowly spins
Before you stands his eminence
The emperor of sin

See my wings sail
Notice my three heads
I hold in my tail
The deadest of the dead

Vexilla Regis
Prodeunt  Inferni

This one is Brutus
Yeah he's a traitor
That one is Judas
He is the Betrayer

Vexilla Regis
Prodeunt  Inferni

Follow me and slide
Down the beast’s leg
The moon is on the rise
Let us make our escape
 
We climbed upon a perch
We traveled long and far
Through the center of the earth
Until we saw the stars


Copyright . Rick Merino. All rights reserved.
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