Capo 3rd

G C D G 
 
G               D  
Well I remember William 
C                         G
We weren't much more than kids 
    C                 G
His family lived in a run down shack 
         D                       C
Like the rest of the white trash did 
G              D
Now me and ole William 
           C                    G 
We used to smoke out behind the barn 
        C                         G          
Til his daddy caught him stealing cigarettes 
D                                 G  
I still think he broke William's arm 
G                     D  
When I was drinkin my first beer 
     C                  G  
Ole William was getting high 
       C                        G  
He got kicked out of school for fightin and drugs 
       D                   C  
And he stayed out late at night 
G                  D  
He never said too much about home 
        C              G  
Or the bruises on his back 
C           G  
I asked him about em one time 
       D                C  
But he never answered back 
 
Chorus: 
C  
Yeah William 
     D                G  
You grew up hard and mean 
    C                         G  
You weren't the apple of your mama's eye 
         D                       C  
And your daddy was a burned out fiend 
G                       D  
For what it's worth now William 
           C                       G  
I know you could've had a heart of gold 
            C                            G  
But I don't think you ever knew that you had one 
         D                   G    C   D   G  
I don't think you were ever told 
 

G                  D   
He spent a year in reform school 
         C                   G# 
Cause he broke in a hardware store 
C                                 G  
Now me and William lost track of each other 
         D              C  
I never saw him much anymore 
G                   D   
The last time I seen William 
       C                   G  
He was married and had two kids 
            C                    G  
He tried to raise em like he was supposed to 
                 D                         C  
But sometimes he raised em like his daddy did 
 

C  
Yeah William 
     D                G  
You grew up hard and mean 
    C                         G  
You weren't the apple of your mama's eye 
         D                       C  
And your daddy was a burned out fiend 
G                       D  
For what it's worth now William 
           C                       G  
I know you could've had a heart of gold 
            C                            G  
But I don't think you ever knew that you had one 
         D                   G    C   D   G  
I don't think you were ever told 

 
G                     D    
Well just last Sunday mornin 
      C                G  
Momma called me on the phone 
                C                      G  
Said there's a story in the paper about William 
                   D              C  
She just thought I might like to know 
G                D  
He got shot by a city cop 
             C               G  
While he was robbin a local drugstore 
       C                      G  
He was survived by two hungry kids, a wife 
      D                     C  
and a pool of blood on the floor 


C  
Yeah William 
     D                G  
You grew up hard and mean 
    C                         G  
You weren't the apple of your mama's eye 
         D                       C  
And your daddy was a burned out fiend 
G                       D  
For what it's worth now William 
           C                       G  
I know you could've had a heart of gold 
            C                            G  
But I don't think you ever knew that you had one 
         D                   G    C   D   G  
I don't think you were ever told