Veteran of the Psychic Wars
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| “Veteran of the Psychic Wars” | ||
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Album cover
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| Song by Blue Öyster Cult | ||
| Album | Fire of Unknown Origin | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 4:49 | |
| Writer | Eric Bloom, Michael Moorcock | |
"Veteran of the Psychic Wars" is a song by the American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult, written by Eric Bloom (band vocal) and Michael Moorcock (British author, creator of Elric of Melniboné, Hawkmoon and the myth of the Eternal Champion). It is on the album Fire of Unknown Origin. The song can also be found on the soundtrack of the 1981 animated film Heavy Metal. An extended live version of the song is on the live album of BÖC Extraterrestrial Live.
The lyrics can be interpreted as a second-person look at an Eternal Champion after many exhausting trials and tribulations in the endless war between Law and Chaos.
Though "Veteran of the Psychic Wars" is the song's proper name, it is possible to find it titled "Veteran of a Thousand Psychic Wars" because the song contains the line "You see me now a veteran of a thousand psychic wars".
The phrase "...veterans of a Thousand Psychic Wars" is from the Hawkwind song Standing At The Edge, from the album Warrior on the Edge of Time, which also dealt with the myth of the Eternal Champion, and contained lyrics written by Moorcock.
- The song was also covered by Ozzy Osbourne and by Finnish metal band Tarot.
- Mentioned frequently in John Ringo's Legacy of the Aldenata series of books.
- Covered by Metallica at the Bridge School Benefit on Oct 28, 2007.
