D                            G             D
On a warm summer's evenin' on a train bound for nowhere,
D                                                    A7
I met up with the gambler; we were both too tired to sleep.
   D                               G              D
So we took turns a starin' out the window at the darkness
                          A7              D
'til boredom overtook us, and he began to speak.

         D                             G                D
He said, "Son, I've made a life out of readin' people's faces,
                                                             A7
and knowin' what their cards were by the way they held their eyes.
       D                               G                 D
And if you don't mind my sayin', I can see you're out of aces.
      G             D            A7            D
For a taste of your whiskey I'll give you some advice."

     D                           G                  D
So I handed him my bottle and he drank down my last swallow.
                                               A7
Then he bummed a cigarette, and asked me for a light.
        D                                G                 D
And the night got deathly quiet, and his face lost all expression.
                 G               D                  A7               D
Said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy, ya gotta learn to play it right.

Chorus:
           D                     G             D
You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em,
G            D                          A7
know when to walk away and know when to run.
          D     G    D                 G              D
You never count your money when you're sittin' at the table.
             G              D        A7                D
There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done.

Verse 4: (Key change)
E                            A             E
Ev'ry gambler knows that the secret to survivin'
                                                  B7
is knowin' what to throw away and knowing what to keep.
       E                         A              E
'Cause ev'ry hand's a winner and ev'ry hand's a loser,
        A                 E              B7          E
and the best that you can hope for is to die in your sleep."

Verse 5:
    E                               A                       E
And when he'd finished speakin', he turned back towards the window,
                                           B7
crushed out his cigarette and faded off to sleep.
    E                             A                 E
And somewhere in the darkness the gambler, he broke even.
    A            E                B7               E
But in his final words I found an ace that I could keep.

Chorus:
           E                      A             E
You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em,
A            E                          B7
know when to walk away and know when to run.
          E     A    E                 A              E
You never count your money when you're sittin' at the table.
             A              E        B7                E
There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done.