Got a tender kiss and a nighty-nite Watched my mother dim the light Enjoyed the warmth of my bed Didn't need no angels yet Made it safely through the night
What promise holds the nightly sky? Venus, Virgo, Libra, Mars Odd angelic shooting stars How many do I need to die? Who's taking care at my goodbye?
"Abends, will ich schlafen gehn", title of a traditonal German bedtime prayer from "Des Knaben Wunderhorn" that made it into "Hansel und Gretel" (1891), fairy-tale opera by Engelbert Humperdinck with lyrics by his sister Adelheid Wette.
ABENDS, WILL ICH SCHLAFEN GEHN
Abends, will ich schlafen gehn, vierzehn Engel um mich stehn: zwei zu meinen Häupten, zwei zu meinen Füßen, zwei zu meiner Rechten, zwei zu meiner Linken, zweie die mich decken, zweie die mich wecken, zweie die mich weisen zu Himmels Paradeisen.