The Fountain Of Salmacis


Written by Banks/Collins/Gabriel/Hackett/Rutherford
From the Genesis album: Nursery Cryme, 1971

Key: E minor, Time: 4/4, Tempo: 106

Intro: {Hammond riff, then Mellotron (choir) fades in}
~~~~~
|:Em   |Em/G  |Bm7   |     :| (X 2)
 |Em   |Cmaj7 |      |     ||D    |     ||


Verse A-1: (0:34-)
~~~~~~~~~~
|Em                    |Bm                |
 From a dense forest of tall dark pinewood,
|Em      F#7              |B/F#
   Mount Ida rises like an island.
        |Em          |Bm
Within a hidden cave, nymphs had kept a child;
|Em          F#7   |B                        ||
   Hermaphro-ditus, son of gods, so afraid of 


Verese B-1: (0:52-) {Enters Melloron (strings)}
~~~~~~~~~~~
  |:Cmaj7/A  /G     Am6/B  Am6   |D6/E  D6  G6/F# :|
    their    love.________________________________
    As       the    dawn   creeps up    the sky
The hunter   caught sight  of a   doe._____ In de-
    sire___________ for_________  con   -   quest,

  |Cmaj7/A      /B        Am6/C  /D        |
He found    him-self with-in a   glade he'd 
|D6/E    D6/F#    G6   ||
 not  be-held  be-fore.


Chorus 1: (1:13-) {Enters guitar chord}
~~~~~~~~
   |C/D                      |G/D     |
 H:    "Where    are  you, my father?"
(N:    "  Then he could go no farther")

        |C/D                G/D      |D        ||
 H:                   "Give wisdom to your son"
(N: "Now lost, the boy was  guided by the  sun")


[Verse B-2] (1:23-)

  And as his strength began to fail. He saw a 
  shimmering lake.
  A shadow in the dark green depths
 
  Disturbed the strange tran-quility.


Chorus 2: (1:41-)
~~~~~~~~
S & N: "The waters are disturbed"

    S: "Some creature has been stirred"
   (N: "Naiad queen Salmacis has been stirred")


Interlude A: (1:50-)
~~~~~~~~~~~
|D     ||

{Hammond & guitar riffs, Mellotron fades in}
|:Cmaj7 |      |Bm7   |     :|(X 2)
|Em     |Cmaj7 |      |      ||D     |     ||


[Verse A-2] (2:25-)

 As he rushed to quench his thirst,
 A fountain spring appeared before him
 And as his heated breath brushed through the cool mist,
 A liquid voice called, "Son of gods, drink from 


[Verse B-3] (2:42-)

  my spring".
  The water tasted strangely sweet.
  Behind him the voice called again. He turned and 
  saw her, in a cloak of mist alone

  And as he gazed, her eyes were filled with the 
  darkness of the lake.


[Chorus 3] (3:07-)

  S: "We shall be one"
 (N: "She wanted them as one")

  S: "We shall be joined as one"
 (N: "Yet he had no desire to be one")


Interlude B: (3:15-) {Faster, Tempo: 150}
~~~~~~~~~~~
|E       |       ||

{Guitar solo} (3:18-)
|E       |Em7     |D/E  B/E ||
|Em      |        |F/C  F   |       ||
|Cm7     |        |D        |       ||
|A       |       ||E        |        |
|        |       ||

{Bass solo} (3:43-)
||E5    || (X 4 bars)

{Flute solo on organ chord} (3:49-)
|E  A/E  B/E  E |B/E  F#/E  Em7  A/E |
|Em7         D  |Em7           D  Em7|
|D         G/D  |D           G/D   D ||
|C#dim          |                    ||

|E  A/E  B/E  E |B/E  F#/E  Em7  A/E |
|Em7         D  |Em7           D  Em7|
|C#      F#/C#  |C#         F#/C#  C# 


Bridge A: (4:10-)
~~~~~~~~~
     ||F#          G#m         |F#
H: "A- way from me cold-blooded woman
         G#m      |C#m      G#m/D# |
    Your thirst is not mine"

{Guitar solo}
|C#m/G#   G#m/C# |C#        F#/B  |C#    F#/C#  C#|
|F#       C#/F#  |F#     C#/F#  F#||

   |F#           G#m        |F#
S: "Nothing will cause us to part
   G#m       |C#m  G#m/D#  |
   Hear me, O Gods_______"

{Guitar solo}
|C#m/G#   G#m/C# |C#        F#/B  |C#    F#/C#  C#|
|F#       C#/F#  |F#     C#/F#  F# 


Bridge B: (4:34-) {Slower}
~~~~~~~~~
  ||D#m            |                |D            |
Un- earthly calm de-scended from the sky  (Ah, ah)
|                |C#sus4      |C#    ||
 (Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah____, ah_________)

|E              |                    |B           |
  And then their flesh and bones were strangely merg-ed
   |G#   C#m/G# |2/4 A/G#     ||D         |
For-ever to be       joined as  one. (Ah)
|E/D     |D       |E/D    ||
(Ah, ah,  ah, ah,  ah, ah)


Interlude C: (4:57-) {Guitar solo} 
~~~~~~~~~~~~
|D     E/D     ||C#    F#  |C#    F#/C#  C# |F#  C# |
|F#   C#/F#  F# |C#    F#  |C#    F#/C#  C# |F#  C# |
|F#   C#/F#  F# ||6/8

(5:10-)
|C#      F#/C#  B/D#    D#m7   |
|E       E-5    E       C#m/E  |
|Bbm/F   Fsus4  Bbm     Bbsus4 |
|F#      F#-5   F#/G#   D#m/C# |

{Enters percussive organ} (5:15-)
||G#m   C#m  ||(X 4 bars)
||Bm    Em   ||(X 4 bars)


Interlude D: (5:28-) 
~~~~~~~~~~~~
|4/4 Em   |Am7  B  ||

{Hammond riff} (5:31-) 
|Em    |      |      ||      |
              {Mellotron fades in}
|Cmaj7 |      |      |      ||
|D     |      ||


[Verse B-4] (5:55-)

 The creature crawled into the lake. A fading 
 voice was heard:
"And I beg, yes I beg that all who touch this spring

 May share my fate"


[Chorus 4] (6:12-)

   S: "We are the one 
  (N: "The two are now made one,")

   S: "We are the one"
  (N: "Demi-god and nymph are now made one")


Coda: (6:22-) {cf. Bridge B}
~~~~~
        
|D    ||D#m    |
                                {Half tempo}
|              |               |D            |
 Both had given everything they had. (Ah, ah)
|               |C#sus4    |C#   ||
(Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah__, ah_______)

|E         |                  |B        |
  A lover's dream had been ful-filled at last,
   |G#    C#m/G#   |2/4 A/G#     ||D             |
For-ever  still  be  -  neath the  lake. (Ah, ah)
|E/D     ||:D       |E/D    :|| (X 3)
(Ah, ah,    ah, ah,  ah, ah )

{Guitar solo} (7:03-)
|:D      |E/D     |D      |E/D    :| (X 5)
 (Ah, ah, ah, ah,  ah, ah, ah, ah)

{Rubato} (7:39-7:52)
|F#      ||
(Ah____.)


Note:

 H = Hermaphroditus
 N = Narrator
 S = Salmacis

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