White Rose
By Fred Eaglesmith

capo 4th fret


C Am Em F (x2)

          C
Well the whole town came out to watch
    Am
the day they paved the parking lot
    Em
Somebody hung a ribbon up
    F                       F
and then they cut it down

         C
And that big white rose upon that sign
    Am
put innocence in all our lives
Em
We could see its neon lights
F                 F
half a mile out

        C
Gas was fifty cents a gallon
     Am
They put it in for you
           Em
And they'd pump your tires and check your oil
    F                       F
and wash your windows too

         C
And we'd shine those cars bright as bright
         Am
And we'd go park underneath that light
Em
Stare out at the prarie sky
          F                    F
There was nothing else to do

Chorus:
                Am
But now there's plywood for glass
          Em
where the windows all got smashed
            F
And there's just a chuck of concrete
            G
where those old pumps used to stand
          Am
There's a couple of cars half outta the ground
         Em
And that oil sign still spins 'round and 'round
    F                                               G      Am 
But I guess the White Rose filling station's just a memory now

        C
And the girls would spend a couple a bucks
        Am
just to meet the boys workin' at the pumps
    Em
And they'd grow up and fall in love
    F                     F
And they all moved away

C
Strangers used to stop and ask
    Am
how far they'd driven off the map
    Em
And then they built that overpass
             F                         F
And now they stay out on the highway

(Repeat Chorus)

         F
And that neon sign was the heart and soul
   Am
of this old one horse town
         G
And it's like it lost its will to live
    F
the day they shut it down

(Repeat Chorus)

(Repeat last line of chorus)