Artist: Susanne Vega 蘇珊薇格
Album: Susanne Vega 同名專輯 / 1985
Label: A&M Records
Genre: Folk, Rock



The Queen and the Soldier　4'46"
Lyrics/Melody: Suzanne Vega

The soldier came knocking upon the queen's door
He said, "I am not fighting for you any more."
The queen knew she'd seen his face, someplace before
And slowly she let him inside

He said, "I've watched your palace up here on the hill
And I've wondered who's the woman for whom we all kill
But I am leaving tomorrow, and you can do what you will
Only first I am asking you, why?"

Down in the long narrow hall, he was led
Into her rooms, with her tapestries red
And she never once took the crown from her head
She asked him there to sit down

He said, "I see you now, and you are so very young
But I've seen more battles lost, than I have battles won
And I've got this intuition, says it's all for your fun
And now will you tell me why?"

The young queen, she fixed him with an arrogant eye
She said, "You won't understand, and you may as well not try."
But her face was a child's, and he thought she would cry
But she closed herself up, like a fan

And she said, "I've swallowed a secret burning thread
It cuts me inside, and often I've bled."
He laid his hand then on top of her head
And he bowed her down to the ground

Ooh~

"Tell me how hungry are you? How weak you must feel?
As you are living here alone, and you are never revealed
But I won't march again, on your battlefield."
And he took her to the window to see

And the sun, it was gold, though the sky, it was gray
And she wanted more than she ever could say
But she knew how it frightened her, and she turned away
And would not look at his face again

And he said, "I want to live, as an honest man
To get all I deserve, and to give all I can
And to love a young woman who I don't understand
Your highness, your ways are very strange."

But the crown, it had fallen, and she thought she would break
And she stood there, ashamed, of the way her heart ached
She took him to the doorstep, and she asked him to wait
She would only be a moment inside

Out in the distance, her order was heard
And the soldier was killed, still waiting for her word
And while the queen went on strangling in the solitude she preferred
The battle, continued on


Suzanne Vega's Live at Elysèe Montmartre Paris on June 27, 2007

＜本人中譯＞

皇后與士兵

士兵敲了敲　皇后的大門
他說　「我不要再為您而戰了」
皇后知道她曾在某處　看過他的臉
慢慢地　她讓他進來

他說　「我一直看著您這聳立在山丘上的宮殿
我不斷思考著　為了什麼樣的女人　我們殺了這麼多人
不過我在明天就要離開　而您可以做任何您想做的事
但請讓我先問您　為什麼？」

沿著窄長的大廳　他被引領著
來到她掛滿　紅色繡帷的房間
而她從未拿下頭上的皇冠
她要他在那裡坐下

他說　「現在見到您　發現您居然這麼年輕
可我見過的的敗仗　比我打過的勝仗還要多
而我有股直覺　這全都只是因您以此為樂
現在可否請您告訴我　為什麼？」

年輕的皇后　用高傲的眼神盯著他
她說　「你不會懂的　而你也不會試著了解」
但她的臉像個孩子　他以為她快要哭了
可她只是像把扇子　緊閉雙唇

然後她說　「我一直守著一個　如導火線的秘密
它折磨著我　常讓我受到傷害」
他摸了摸她的頭
接著對她磕頭鞠躬

嗚喔～

「告訴我您有多飢餓？　您得感覺多虛弱？
就像您在這裡一直孤獨地活著　您不曾表現如此過
可是我已不願繼續　在您的戰場上衝鋒陷陣」
然後他領著她　來到窗邊探頭眺望

太陽　黃金般耀眼　但天空　卻黯然灰暗
她有好多話想說　卻無法說出口
但她知道　這對她來說有多可怕　所以轉過身
不願再看著他的臉

他說　「我只是想當個老實人　努力地活下去
擁有我應該得到的　付出我能夠付出的
去愛一個我不曾好好了解的　年輕姑娘
而陛下　您的生活方式實在太奇怪了」

皇冠　掉落而下　她以為她會打破它
而她只是站在那裡　為她的　心痛感到羞恥
她帶他來到門階　要他在這裡等著
她只是進去裡頭　一下子

在一段距離之外　她下了命令
而士兵被殺了　卻仍等著她的答覆
正當皇后在她選擇的孤獨中　不斷地感到窒息壓迫
那場戰爭　仍在持續著


- - - - -



首先，先來抱怨一下。當我看到上面那個影片的日期，心裡實在幹得要死！因為那晚我人就在巴黎啊～～～～～（扯頭髮怒吼中）！！！！為啥我每次總是跟這種機會擦身而過呢？！（我隔了一天才造訪蒙馬特，而且還是走那條路！）現在心裡真的一連串髒話在聯播……（雖然我覺得就算我當時知道 Suzanne Vega 要在那裡開唱，我想我爸大概也不會讓我去……囧）

其實，第一次知道 Suzanne Vega，是在高中時候，老師播了這首〈The Queen and the Soldier〉。當時的我沒有多大留意，甚至忘了。後來大一看完了《女搖滾》一書，就開始對這號人物產生興趣，把她的名字牢牢記在心裡。去年到西雅圖，有位老師也在課堂上播了這首〈The Queen and the Soldier〉，當下的我有股 Deja Vu 的感覺，想了很久才想起來，原來這首歌我老早就在高中聽過，而這首歌就是 Suzanne Vega 的作品。（天哪我實在很糟…）

之前在《超級星光大道》，某集主題是「我的出生年代歌曲」。看完之後，我便一直留意著我的年代歌曲，因為我愛的老歌裡，還沒有我的年份（或者該說，是我還沒有發現到）。昨天偶然在資料夾發現原來我早已有了這首歌（它被我放在一個久久才開一次的資料夾…），馬上開來聽，一些回憶就這樣飄進了腦子裡。我看了看 TAG 裡的年份，這首歌就是那麼剛好跟我一樣老！（啊，我曝露年齡了XD ～）

〈The Queen and the Soldier〉收錄在 Suzanne Vega 的第一張專輯中，是一首反戰的歌曲。我一直都對這種敘事性的歌詞有某種程度的好感，而這首歌的歌詞反映出了戰士的心聲，卻也連帶地將執政者內心不願說出口之真相或理由的心態一同呈現出來。我不懂政治，但卻覺得 Suzanne Vega 讓這首歌詞看似童話，事實上影射出了社會殘酷的現實。

好啦，我不想說太多。聽歌吧。