Requiem by Jethro Tull – Charing Cross, London - Immortalized in Lyrics on Waymarking.com

During a business trip to England, I took a little time to walk around London and do some sightseeing. One morning, while walking along the Strand, I looked up and saw the Charing Cross train station. The combination of the Strand and the taxi stand in front of the train station immediately reminded me of the Jethro Tull song ‘Requiem.’ As the title intimates, it’s not a very happy song:

Well, my lady told me, "Stay."
I looked aside and walked away
Along the Strand.

But I didn't say a word,
As the train timetable blurred
Close behind the taxi stand.

Saw her face in the tear-drop black cab window.
Fading into the traffic; watched her go.

And taking in the morning,
Heard myself singing
O Requiem.

Charing Cross Station is named for the large ornate monument standing in front of the building. It is one of twelve memorial crosses erected by Edward I across England as memorials to his beloved wife, Eleanor of Castille after she died in 1290. They marked the various stops Eleanor’s funeral cortège made on its way to Westminster Abbey. Charing was the last stop, and its memorial was the largest and most ornate of the lot. Only two of the original ‘Eleanor Crosses’ are still standing, and Charing Cross is not one of them: It’s a reproduction designed and carved in the middle of the nineteenth century.

I doubt that Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull was thinking about Edward I when writing ‘Requiem,’ but it’s an interesting tie-in, nonetheless. The song appeared on the album ‘Minstrel in the Gallery’ released in 1975.

Musician: Jethro Tull Name of Song: Requiem Relevant Verse: ...Well, my lady told me, "Stay." I looked aside and walked away Along the Strand. But I didn't say a word, As the train timetable blurred Close behind the taxi stand... Location website: Not listed

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