Paradise [Dennis DeYoung]

Paradise
Written by Dennis DeYoung
Lead Vocals by Dawn Marie

Esmerelda
One touch was all I needed to know
You were the one for me
My fate and my destiny
For true love is never easy to find
I never dreamed this day
Would ever come my way
But suddenly I realized
My chance for happiness
Can't be found in some make believe world
Where damsels are in distress

Cause paradise is any place where I can be with you
And leave behind the heartache and the pain that I've been through
Safe in your arms
Safe from the world tonight
For you are my paradise

And I know I could never have dreamed
A feeling so heavenly

Cause paradise is any place where I can be with you
And leave behind the sorrow and the pain that I've been through
Safe in your arms
Safe from the world tonight
For you are my paradise

Interpretation

In the first act of the Hunchback of Notre Dame story, beautiful gypsy Esmerelda falls in love with Captain Phoebus de Chateaupers, Captain of the King's Archers, after he saves her from abduction.  Here she sings of her love for him, and how that means more than just fulfilling her dream of being removed from her life as a poor street dancer.