"Kyrie" () is a song by American

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, ear ...

band Mr. Mister, from their album '' Welcome to the Real World''. Released around

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

in 1985, it hit the top spot on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in March 1986, where it was number 1 for two weeks. It also hit the top spot on the ''Billboard'' Top Rock Tracks chart for one week. In the UK, the song peaked at number 11 in March 1986.

Background and writing

The lyrics to "Kyrie" were written by

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-born John Lang who co-wrote the songs on all of Mr. Mister's albums. The music was composed by

Richard Page Richard Lewis Page (born 22 February 1941) is a former Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and from December 1979 to 2005. Early life Born the son of Victor Charles Page, he went to the independent Hu ...

and Steve George while on tour with

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. Kýrie, eléison means "Lord, have mercy" in Greek, and is a part of many liturgical rites in Eastern and Western Christianity. ''Kýrie, eléison; Christé, eléison; Kýrie, eléison'' is a prayer that asks "Lord, have mercy;

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

, have mercy; Lord, have mercy."Kýrie, eléison
– Translation from the StraightDope According to Page the entire song is, essentially, a prayer.
– RetroRewind interview There is a myth that singer Richard Page wrote "Kyrie" while lying in a hospital bed following being assaulted. John Lang has stated that he was the one who was assaulted, three years before the composition, and that the incident has nothing to do with the song. The video was directed by Nick Morris, and features the band in performance mixed with footage taken at the tail end of their Autumn 1985 tour with

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939) is an American-born Swiss retired singer and actress. Widely referred to as the " Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue before ...

.Kyrie details
– from Mr. Mister fansite "Kyrie" was used in the hit U.S. TV series ''

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'' during season two, episode fourteen "One-Way Ticket". It was also used in the

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series' '' GLOW'' as well as the ABC sitcom The Goldbergs. The U.S. 7" single can be found pressed on transparent purple vinyl or polystyrene, depending on where it was manufactured.

Reception

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'' said it's a "booming track which...features top musicianship and a soaring chorus

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Track listing

;7" single #"Kyrie" (single edit) – 4:10 #"Run to Her" – 3:36 ;12" single #"Kyrie" (album version) – 4:24 #"Run to Her" – 3:36 #"Hunters of the Night" – 5:07 The single edit (which was also used for the video version) ends with the

a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...

phrase "Kýrie, eléison, down the road that I must travel", while the album version simply fades out.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Cover versions

In 1993,

Acappella Vocal Band Acappella Vocal Band (AVB) was a vocal group put together by Keith Lancaster in 1986 to augment the vocal group Acappella. AVB's popularity and ministry quickly grew, prompting Lancaster to launch AVB as a full-time touring group in 1988. AVB we ...

, a traditional Southern gospel group, included a version of the song on their album ''U And Me And God Make 5 (Word)''. The group later recorded a Spanish version of the song as well. Also in 1993, the song, retitled as "Kyrie Eleison", was covered by

Contemporary Christian music Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christianity, Christi ...

duo East to West on their self-titled debut album. Contemporary Christian artist Mark Schultz recorded it for his 2001 album ''Song Cinema''.

Notes

{{authority control 1985 singles 1985 songs Mr. Mister songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Number-one singles in Norway RPM Top Singles number-one singles Songs written by Steve George (keyboardist) Songs written by Richard Page (musician) RCA Records singles Rock ballads