Time Has Come

At its core, 'Time Has Come' is a song about longing, perseverance, and the emotional release of homecoming. Explicitly, the lyrics paint portraits of individuals who endure profound isolation and hardship: the sailor lost under the vast sky, the soldier bearing physical and emotional wounds, and the dreamer caught in a loop of sadness. The recurring resolution is the journey's end, marked by the powerful declaration of returning home.

Implicitly, the song touches on the psychological tolls of transition. The recurring line 'the stranger you know so well' can be interpreted as a metaphor for an estranged loved one from whom the traveler has been separated, or even a representation of the traveler's own past self. This duality suggests that after long periods of struggle and wandering—perhaps mirroring the band's own relentless journey on the road to global fame—the process of returning home involves reconnecting with a neglected or forgotten part of one's identity.

Crucially, the song contains a brilliant self-referential easter egg. The line 'Pray for the dreamer, he's still so sad' is a direct nod to Europe's 1984 track 'Dreamer' from their sophomore album, Wings of Tomorrow. This connection deepens the lyrical narrative, suggesting that the idealistic dreamer from their earlier work is still waiting for peace, which is finally achieved through this homecoming.

The narrative of the song opens with a series of vivid, melancholic evocations of distant souls and enduring archetypes. It speaks of a deep yearning for the sailor traveling beneath open skies and a profound longing for the white dove, drifting wherever the winds carry her. This sense of longing extends even to a stranger, a paradoxical figure who is intimately familiar yet distant.

The narrator transitions to a state of prayer, calling for grace upon a soldier who has returned from the battlefield deeply wounded. He also asks for comfort for the dreamer, whose heavy heart remains shrouded in a persistent sadness. Once more, the stranger is invoked, highlighting a universal human connection that bridges isolation.

As these images of struggle and distance coalesce, the emotional core of the song breaks through with a resolute declaration of homecoming. The traveler announces that the arduous journey is coming to an end, and the long-awaited time has finally arrived to return back home.

In the subsequent verses, the perspective expands back to the natural and wild world. There is a sense of admiration and longing for the eagle, soaring on powerful, unyielding wings, and a quiet confidence that the hunter's pursuit is nearing its completion. Yet beneath these metaphors, the underlying connection to the familiar stranger persists. The return becomes not just a physical movement, but a spiritual reconciliation, a culmination of enduring hardships and finding solace in the place where one truly belongs.

'Time Has Come' was written entirely by Europe's lead vocalist and primary songwriter, Joey Tempest. The track was recorded for the band's landmark third studio album, The Final Countdown, which was released on May 26, 1986. Recording sessions for the album were highly collaborative and spanned from September 1985 to March 1986 across several prominent international studios, including Powerplay Studios in Zürich, Switzerland, and Soundtrade Studios in Stockholm, Sweden, with final work completed in the United States.

The album was produced by the acclaimed Kevin Elson, famous for his polished production work with legendary American arena rock acts like Journey and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Elson was instrumental in helping Europe refine their raw, heavy metal roots into a highly melodic, commercially accessible hard rock sound. While the album was dominated by massive, synth-driven hits, 'Time Has Come' was designed to showcase the band's ability to balance heavy, driving guitar elements with soft, atmospheric keyboard arrangements. The track prominently features the classic Europe lineup, highlighted by John Norum's incredibly expressive, melodic guitar solo and Mic Michaeli's layered keyboard textures.

The lyrical and musical rhythm of 'Time Has Come' are meticulously synchronized to convey the physical and emotional sensation of a journey:

Rhyme Scheme: The song employs a loose and melodic rhyme structure that relies on partial and perfect end rhymes to maintain flow. In the first verse, lines like 'skies' and 'flies' form a perfect rhyme, while 'well' serves as a persistent, comforting phonetic anchor across different stanzas. The simplicity of the rhyming pattern allows the emotional weight of the words to take center stage without feeling forced.

Rhythm and Meter: Written in a standard 4/4 time signature, the song's pacing is deliberate. The tempo is a relaxed, mid-tempo groove that begins at a slow, ballad-like pace during the intro. As the song progresses, the rhythm section—led by Ian Haugland's steady drumming and John Levén's pulsing bass—drives the track forward, mimicking the forward momentum of a traveler marching home. This interplay between the lyrical pacing and the driving musical rhythm reinforces the central theme of an inevitable, steady return.

The song skillfully employs several literary and musical techniques to enhance its emotional and structural impact:

Literary Techniques:

• Anaphora: The repetitive use of phrases like 'Long for the...' and 'Pray for the...' at the beginning of consecutive lines structures the lyrics like a solemn, meditative prayer or a folk incantation.
• Paradox: The line 'the stranger you know so well' functions as a key paradox, capturing the complex feeling of being intimately familiar with someone (or a version of oneself) from whom you have grown deeply estranged.

Musical Techniques:

• Dynamic Contrast: The song is structured with a dramatic, slow-building crescendo. It starts with a delicate, stripped-down intro featuring soft piano chords and a restrained vocal performance by Joey Tempest. This vulnerability suddenly shifts during the chorus, where the full band erupts with driving drums, heavy power chords, and sweeping synth pads.
• Expressive Vocal Delivery: Tempest shifts his vocal tone from a tender, breathy whisper in the verses to a passionate, full-throated belt in the chorus, mirroring the transition from sorrow to triumphant relief.
• Melodic Guitar Soloing: John Norum's guitar solo is highly melodic and structured, utilizing smooth bends and fluent phrasing that echo the vocal melody, elevating the emotional intensity before the final chorus.

While 'Time Has Come' was not released as a major worldwide commercial single, it occupies a significant place within Europe's discography and legacy:

The song is a vital track on Europe's multi-platinum 1986 album, The Final Countdown, which catapulted the Swedish band to global superstardom, selling over 15 million copies worldwide. Within the album's tracklist, 'Time Has Come' stands out as a critical bridge between the commercial pop-metal of 'Carrie' and the heavier, guitar-driven rock of 'Rock the Night,' demonstrating the band's compositional depth.

Among the band's dedicated fanbase, the song has achieved legendary 'deep cut' status. Its lasting legacy is evidenced by its inclusion in major live sets across the decades. Europe performed the song during their massive 1986 Swedish tour, and later resurrected it for their landmark 20th-anniversary tour in 2004, and the 30th-anniversary tour of The Final Countdown in 2016. It remains a celebrated example of 1980s melodic rock craftsmanship.

The lyrics of 'Time Has Come' are rich with poetic imagery and traditional metaphors that elevate the song's themes of journeying and emotional recovery:

• The Sailor and the Skies: Represent wandering, isolation, and the vast, unpredictable nature of life's journey, where one is at the mercy of forces beyond their control.
• The White Dove: A classic symbol of peace, hope, and vulnerability, flying through the unknown in search of safe harbor.
• The Soldier: A powerful metaphor for the scars, trauma, and weariness that result from enduring life's continuous conflicts and hardships.
• The Eagle and the Hunter: The eagle represents strength, freedom, and perspective, while the hunter symbolizes focus and determination. Together, they suggest that the strength required to survive is finally guiding the wanderer back to safety.
• The Stranger: This paradoxical figure represents the emotional distance that develops over time, serving as a mirror for both lost connections and the traveler's own alienated sense of self.

Several prominent motifs and phrases are woven throughout the track to reinforce its structural integrity and core message:

• 'Long for the...' and 'Pray for the...': These recurring lyrical anchors establish a structural symmetry between the verses, systematically introducing different figures of struggle to build a collective sense of shared human suffering.
• 'The stranger you know so well': This phrase acts as the ultimate thematic refrain at the end of each verse. Its repetition emphasizes the mystery of identity and the persistent presence of the estranged target of the traveler's journey.
• 'Now the time has come / For me to come back home': This is the central hook of the chorus. It acts as the emotional release valve of the song, resolving the tension and longing built up in the verses with a triumphant statement of purpose.
• The Harmonic Transition: Musically, the progression from the soft piano chords in the intro to the heavy, amplified guitar chords in the chorus serves as a recurring musical motif, signifying the transformation of vulnerability into strength.