Cemetery Gates

"Cemetery Gates" is a power ballad[2] by American heavy metal band Pantera. The song is the fifth track from the 1990 album Cowboys from Hell, the band's fifth record and second with lead singer Phil Anselmo. The song, the longest in Pantera's discography, showcases Anselmo's vocal ability and range, concluding with screaming high notes answered by Dimebag Darrell on guitar in a trade-off.

For the 2006 horror film, see Cemetery Gates (film). For the Smiths' song, see Cemetry Gates.
"Cemetery Gates"
Single by Pantera
from the album Cowboys from Hell
Released
  • July 24, 1990 (album)
  • 1990 (single)
Recorded1989–1990
GenreHeavy metal[1]
Length7:02
LabelAtco
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Terry Date
Pantera singles chronology
"Cowboys from Hell"
(1990)		 "Cemetery Gates"
(1990)		 "Psycho Holiday"
(1990)

Lyrics

The lyrics lament the death of a female lover and the prospect of dying or committing suicide and rejoining her in the afterlife.

Phil Anselmo has credited numerous inspirations for the song. He stated in an interview in 1991 that the song was written about his good friends that had committed suicide. He also stated in a Ustream.tv live Q&A that "there was a friend who had died in NOLA and it had a real heavy impact within my group of friends. When I wrote the lyrics I did not want them to be too personal, because that can be cheesy. I also had to make sure that the lyrics would not take away from the song, because that was one of our best songs."[3]

Release and reception

"Cemetery Gates" was the second single released by the band off their Cowboys from Hell album. It received a large amount of airplay by rock stations and has become one of Pantera's most popular songs. Guitar World magazine readers voted the song's solo the 35th-greatest of all time, which was Dimebag's second-highest ranking solo (after "Floods").[4] A live version of the song from Official Live: 101 Proof was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 40th Grammy Awards in 1998.

Metal Hammer considered "Cemetery Gates" to be the best Pantera song, writing that it is one of the greatest epic ballads in metal history, and that it is "etched into the hearts and minds of metalheads everywhere".[5]

Alternative versions

A shorter version of "Cemetery Gates" without its acoustic beginning was released into a music video. A shortened, 5:47-second version without the conclusion was included on the soundtrack of the 1995 film Tales from the Crypt Presents Demon Knight. Pantera's live album, Official Live: 101 Proof, includes a six-and-a-half-minute rendition of the song.

Charts
Chart performance for "Cemetery Gates"
Chart (1995) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[6] 99
US Rock Tracks Top 60 (Radio & Records)[7] 48

References
  1. Rivadavia, Eduardo (June 23, 2018). "Pantera Albums Ranked". Loudwire. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  2. "Top 10 Power Ballads That Don't Suck". Loudwire. April 12, 2018.
  3. "PHIL ANSELMO - Uncensored". Music Photocalypse. Archived from the original on February 1, 2015.
  4. "50 Greatest Guitar Solos". Guitar World. January 29, 2009. Archived from the original on February 19, 2011. Retrieved February 14, 2011.
  5. Lawson, Dom (February 4, 2019). "The 50 best Pantera songs ever". Metal Hammer. p. 5. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  6. "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 11 Jun 1995". Imgur.com (original document published by ARIA). Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  7. "R&R Rock Tracks Top 60" (PDF). Radio & Records. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
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