Agnus Dei

Album: Want Two (2004)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The song's title and all of its lyrics are Latin. "Agnus Dei" is a movement from a mass (older composers write many of these) and literally means:

    (Agnus Dei) Lamb of God

    (qui tollis peccata mundi) who takes away the sins of the world

    (dona nobis pachem) grant us peace. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Chris - Philadelphia, PA
  • In this song, Wainwright is asking for clemency from people who attack him and his music.
  • This is essentially a classical song. It is a setting of the text of one movement from a mass done by Wainwright.
  • The song is in Bb minor, which is a very rare key.
  • Wainwright did the string arrangement himself.
  • The creaking at the beginning is actually a violin (though Wainwright agrees that it sounds like a fart). It was created by pressing down about a quarter of the way up a string and rubbing the string along the fingerboard while damping the string with the pinky. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Davis - Montreal, Canada, for all above

Comments: 1

  • Edward Pearce from Ashford, Kent, EnglandThanks for the info, Davis and Chris. I've just heard the song for the first time and it's certainly a very original (in a good way) song and makes me want to check out more of his work.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat WorldSongwriter Interviews

Jim talks about the impact of "The Middle" and uses a tree metaphor to describe his songwriting philosophy.

Song Titles That Inspired Movies

Song Titles That Inspired MoviesSong Writing

Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.

Jim McCarty of The Yardbirds

Jim McCarty of The YardbirdsSongwriter Interviews

The Yardbirds drummer explains how they created their sound and talks about working with their famous guitarists.

Ian Gillan of Deep Purple

Ian Gillan of Deep PurpleSongwriter Interviews

Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan explains the "few red lights" in "Smoke On The Water" and talks about songs from their 2020 album Whoosh!

Superman in Song

Superman in SongSong Writing

Not everyone can be a superhero, but that hasn't stopped generations of musicians from trying to be Superman.

Rick Astley

Rick AstleySongwriter Interviews

Rick Astley on "Never Gonna Give You Up," "Cry For Help," and his remarkable resurgence that gave him another #1 UK album.