Tallahassee (2002)
The Mountain Goats
All songs written by John Darnielle
1. Tallahassee
Chords:
D (xx0232)
E (022100)
G (355433) or (320033)
A (x02220)
(The G chord sounds like a barre chord mostly, but open sounds right sometimes)
Bassline (repeated throughout)
E|-------------------|
B|-------------------|
G|-------------------|
D|--2-0-0-2-0-0-2-0--|
A|-------------------|
E|-------------------|
Intro:
D E G D
D E G D
Window facing an ill-kept front yard
D E G D
Plums on the tree, heavy with nectar
D E G D
Prayers to summon the destroying angels
D E G D
Moon stuttering in the sky like film stuck in a projector
G
And you
D (1 extra measure)
You-oo-oo-oo-oo
Post-verse:
E|--5--5--5--3--3--3--2--|
B|--5--5--5--3--3--3--3--|
G|--------------------2--|(strum the D chord)
D|--------------------0--|
A|-----------------------|
E|-----------------------|
D E G D
D E G D
Twin prop airplanes passing loudly overhead
D E G D
Road to the airport, two lanes clear
D E G D
Half the whole town, gone for the summer
D E G D
Terrible silence, coming down here
G
And you
D (1 extra measure)
You-oo-oo-oo-oo
(Post-verse)
D E G D
D E
There is no deadline,
G D
There is no schedule
D E G D
There is no plan we can fall back on
D E G D
The road this far can't be retraced
D E
There is no punchline
G D
Anybody can tack on
D E G D
There are loose ends by the score
D E G A
What did I come down here for?
G
You
D (1 extra measure)
You-oo-oo-oo-oo
(Post-verse)
D E G D x4
End with bassline.
Notes:
(1)Not so sure about that one A chord (D maybe?), but I like it so I use it.
(2)Sometimes (particularly at the end) he arpeggiates the chords:
D E G D
E|------2-------0-----0-------2-0----|
B|--------3-------0-3---3---------3--|
G|----2-----1-1-----0-------2--------|
D|--0-------2-2-----0-----0----------|
A|----------2-2-----2----------------|
E|----------0-0-----3----------------|
Or something to that effect.
(3)Also, toward the first half of the song, he likes to let the F# (xxxxx2)
ring out sometimes.
Just play around with it.
2. First Few Desperate Hours
Chords:
E (022100)
F# (244300)
Asus2 (x02200)
B (x24442)
E2 (x79997)
Amaj7 (x77999)
Bsus4 (x24400)
Intro:
E F# Asus2 x2
E F# Asus2
Bad luck comes in from Tampa
E F# Asus2
Bad luck comes in from Tampa
E
On the back of a truck
B
Doing 90 up the interstate
E F# Asus2
We have bad dreams the night he rolls in
E F# Asus2
We have bad dreams the night he rolls in
E
And we try
B
To keep our spirits high
E2
But they flag
Amaj7
And they wave
F# Asus2
When the truck pulls up out front
Bsus4
In the light spring rain
E2 Amaj7
And they sag like whithering flowers
F# Asus2
Let the good times roll -- on --
Bsus4
Through these first few desperate hours
Yeah
E F# Asus2 x4
E F# Asus2
The driver drops his cargo at the curb
E F# Asus2
The driver drops his cargo at the curb
E
And the sun peeks in
B
Like a killer through the curtain
E F# Asus2
And when cloven hoofprints turn up in the garden
E F# Asus2
And when cloven hoofprints turn up in the garden
E
We keep up the good fight
B
And keep our spirits light
E2
But they draw
Amaj7
Like flies
F# Asus2
And there's a stomach-turning shift
Bsus4
In the way the land lies
E2
And they lean
Amaj7
Like towers
F# Asus2
On a hillside struggling to stand
Bsus4
Through these first few desperate hours
Yeah
E F# Asus2 x4
End on E.
Notes:
(1)The rhythm is tricky, it should take some time to get down but it's not terribly difficult.
(2)The theory name for that F# chord would be something like F#7sus4, but that's a pain
to write.
3. Southwood Plantation Roads
Chords:
A (x02220)
G (355433)
D (xx0232)
E (022100)
Dm (xx0231)
Bassline:
E|------------------------------------------------------------|
B|------------------------------------------------------------|
G|------------------------------------------------------------|
D|------------------------------------------------------------|
A|------/7-5~--5p4-5p4-5p4-5/7~------/7-5~--5p4-5p4-5p4-5-0~--|
E|--5-0--------------------------5-0--------------------------|
Intro:
A G D A x4
A G
I've got you
D A
You've got whatever's left of me to get
A G
Our conversations are like minefields
D A
No one's found a safe way through one yet
A G
I spend a lot of money
D A
I buy ya white gold
A G
We raise up a little roof
D E
Against the cold
A D
On Southwood Plantation Road
A D
Where at night the stars blow like milk across the sky
A E
Where the high wires drop
A D Dm
Where the fat crows fly
A G D A x4
A G
All night long
D A
You giggle and scream
A G
Your brown eyes
D A
Deeper than a dream
A G
I am not gonna lose you
D A
We are gonna stay married
A G
In this house like a Louisiana graveyard
D E
Where nothing stays buried
A D
On Southwood Plantation Road
A D
Where the dead will walk again
A E
Put on their sunday best
A D
And mingle with unsuspecting Christian men
Dm A G D A
La-la-la-la-la
A G D A x3
End on A.
Notes:
The Dm is quick, about half a normal measure. Listen for it.
4. Game Shows Touch Our Lives
Chords:
G (320033)
C9 (x32033)
F9 (xx3233)
D (xx0232)
Intro:
G G C9 F9 x4
G
Dug up a fifth of Hood River gin and
C9
That stuff tastes like medicine
F9 C9 G
But I'll take it, it'll do
G
On the couch in the living room all day long
C9
Music on the television playing our song
F9 C9 G
I'm in the mood, the mood for you
G G C9 F9 x4
G
Turn the volume up real high
C9
And all of that money, look at it fly
F9 C9 G
And you smoking, like a chimney
G
Shadows crawled across the living room's length
C9
I held onto you with a desperate strength
F9 C9 G
With everything, with everything in me
D C9
And I handed you a drink of the lovely little thing
G
On which our survival depends
D C9
People say friends don't destroy one another,
C9 D
What do they know about friends?
G G C9 F9 x4
G
Thunderclouds forming, cream white moons
C9
Everything's gonna be okay soon
F9 C9 G
Maybe tomorrow, maybe the next day
G
Carried you up the stairs that night
C9
All of this could be yours, if the price is right
F9 C9
I heard cars heading down to oblivion,
G
Up on the expressway
D
Your drunken kiss is as light as the air
C9 G
Maybe everything that falls down eventually rises
D
Our home sinking into disrepair,
C9
Ah, but look at this showroom
G
Filled with fabulous prizes
G G C9 F9 x4
End on G.
Notes:
Emphasize the high notes (xxxx33) during the G, C9 and F9 chords.
5. The House That Dripped Blood
Play the chords like this:
B D A
E|----7-7---7-7-7--10-10----10-10-10--5-5---5-5-5--|
B|----7-7---7-7-7--10-10----10-10-10--5-5---5-5-5--|
G|--7h8-8-7h8-8-8--11-11-10h11-11-11--6-6-5h6-6-6--|
D|--7h9-9-7h9-9-9--12-12-10h12-12-12--7-7-5h7-7-7--|
A|--7h9-9-7h9-9-9--12-12-10h12-12-12--7-7-5h7-7-7--|
E|--7-7-7-7-7-7-7--10-10-10-10-10-10--5-5-5-5-5-5--|
E (022100) strummed normally
Intro:
B D A B x2
B D
Look beyond the broken bottles
A B
Past the rotting wooden stairs
B D
Root out the wine-dark honeyed center
A E
Not everyone can live like millionaires
B D
Look through the air-thinned walls
A B
Tear up the floorboards, strip the paint
B D
Go over every inch of space
A E
With the patience of a saint
E B
Grab your hat, get your coat
B D
The cellar door,
A B
Is an open throat
B D
Look past the kitchen cabinets
A B
Go through the chest of drawers
B D
Scrutinize the casements
A B
Rip the varnish off the doors
B D
Dig up the laughing photographs
A B
They're here somewhere or other
B D
Take what you can carry
A E
But let me tell your brother
E B
Still waters go stagnant, bodies bloat
B D
The cellar door,
A B
Is an open throat
B D A B x4 with harmonica solo
Last time strike A 3 times slowly, and end on B.
6. Idylls of the King
Chords:
D (xx0232)
Gm6 (xx2333)
Bm (x24432)
G (320033)
A (x02220)
Asus4 (x02230)
E7 (020100)
A7 (x02023)
G-D:
E|--3-3-------2--|
B|--3-3-3-2-0-3--|
G|--0-0-------2--|
D|--0-0-------0--|
A|--2-2----------|
E|--3-3----------|
Intro:
D Gm6 Bm G G-D A Asus4 D
D Gm6
This place
Bm G
With its old plantations
G-D A Asus4 A
These roads leading out to the sea
D Gm6
This day,
Bm G
Full of promise and potential
G-D A Asus4 A
More clay pidgeons for you and me
(Chorus)
D G
Oh all of them, all of them
D G
All of them, all of them
D
All of them, all of them, all of them,
A(7) D
All of them all lined up
D Gm6
Huge crows
Bm G
Loitering by the curb
G-D A Asus4 A
Our shared pasts, unravelling behind us like ribbons
D Gm6
And I dreamed of vultures
Bm G
In the trees behind our house
G-D A Asus4 A
And cicadas and locusts, and the shrieking of innummerable gibbons
(Chorus)
D Gm6 Bm G G-D A Asus4 D
E7 A7 D G
How long must we ride this way about?
E7 A7 D G
How long 'til someone caves under the pressure?
E7 A7 D G
My dreams are haunted by armies, armies of ghosts
A Asus4
Faces to blurry to make out,
A Asus4
Numbers far too high to measure
D Gm6
Your face,
Bm G
Like a vision straight out of Holly Hobby
G-D A Asus4
Late light, drizzling through your hair
D Gm6
Your eyes,
Bm G
Twin volcanoes
G-D A Asus4
Bad ideas, dancing around in there
(Chorus)
D Gm6 Bm G G-D A Asus4
End on D.
Notes:
(1)I didn't go to too much trouble here, because others have already done that.
I'm sure you can find a more specific tab somewhere.
(2)Also, when the G-D bridges two words, that means the first word falls on the G and
the second on the D.
When it is above the word "and" in the 2nd verse, the word "cicadas" falls on G and
"locusts" on D.
7. No Children
Capo 4
Chords (relative to capo):
C#m (x46654)
F# (244322)
D (xx0232)
E (022100)
A (x02220)
Asus (x04230)
F#m (244222)
Intro:
C#m F# C#m F# D E A Asus*
A E
I hope that our few remaining friends
D A
Give up on trying to save us
A E
I hope we come up with a failsafe plot
D A
To piss off the dumb few who forgave us
A E
I hope the fences we mended
D E
Fall down beneath their own weight
A F#m
And I hope we hang on past the last exit
D E
I hope it's already too late
A
And I hope the junkyard a few blocks from here
F#m
Someday burns down
D
And I hope the rising black smoke carries me far away,
E D
And I never come back to this town again
E
In my life,
A
I hope I lie
F#m
And tell everyone you were a good wife
A
And I hope you die
E
I hope we both die
C#m F# C#m F# D E A Asus*
A E
I hope I cut myself shaving tomorrow
D A
I hope it bleeds all day long
A E
Our friends say it's darkest before the sun rises
D A
Well, we're pretty sure they're all wrong
A E
I hope it stays dark forever,
D E
I hope the worst isn't over
A F#m
And I hope that you blink before I do
D E
I hope I never get sober
A
And I hope when you think of me years down the line
F#m
You can't find one good thing to say
D
And I hope that if I found the strength to walk out
E
You'd stay the hell out of my way
D
I am drowning
E
There is no sign of land
A
You are coming down with me
F#m
Hand in unlovable hand
A
And I hope you die
E
I hope we both die
C#m F# C#m F# D E A Asus* x4
End on A.
Notes:
*the Asus chord isn't necessarily in there, but it helps to fill time on that A.
8. See America Right
Chords:
Em (022000)
Am (x02210)
C (x32010)
B (x24442)
Riff:
Em
E|-------------------------------------------|
B|-------------------------------------------|
G|-------------------------------------------|
D|-------------------------------------------|
A|----------5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5--|
E|--0-0-3-3----------------------------------|
Em
E|-------------------------------------------|
B|-------------------------------------------|
G|-------------------------------------------|
D|-------------------------------------------|
A|----------5-5-5-5/7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7--|
E|--0-0-3-3----------------------------------|
Am
E|-----------------------------------|
B|-----------------------------------|
G|-----------------------------------|
D|-----------------------------------|
A|--0-0-------------0-0--------------|
E|------3-3-0-0-3-3-----3-3-0-0-3-3--|
Em
E|-------------------------------------------|
B|-------------------------------------------|
G|-------------------------------------------|
D|-------------------------------------------|
A|----------5-5-5-5/7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7--|
E|--0-0-3-3----------------------------------|
C B Em
E|------------------------------------------------------|
B|------------------------------------------------------|
G|------------------------------------------------------|
D|-(2)--------------(1)---------------------------------|
A|--3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3--2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2/7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7--|
E|------------------------------------------------------|
I was
Em
Driving into tampa, when the radiator burst,
Em
I was three sheets to the wind, a civilian saw me first
Am
And then there was the cop, and then the children
Em
Standing on the corner
C B Em
Your love is like a cyclone in a swamp and the weather's getting warmer
(mute strums)
I was
Em
Getting out of jail, heading to the greyhound
Em
You said you'd hop on one yourself, and meet me on the way down
Am
I was shaking way too hard to think,
Em
Dead on my feet about to drop
C B
Went and got the case of vodka from the car
Em
And walked the two miles to the bus stop
(Instrumental verse)
Strummed chords over riff:
Em Em Am Em C B Em
Got
Em
On the bus half drunk again, the driver glared at me
Em
Met up with you in Inglis, thumbed a ride to Cedar Key
Am
If we never make it back to California,
Em
I want you to know I love ya
C B
But my love is like a black cloud full 'o rain
Em
That's always right there up above ya
End abruptly on Em.
Notes:
The song starts cold with vocals before any instruments come in.
Other than that, it's pretty much completely straight forward.
9. Peacocks
Chords:
C (x32010)
Fmaj7 (xx3210)
E (022100)
Am (x02210)
F (x33211)
G (320003)
F9 (xx3213)
Intro:
C Fmaj7 C
E|--0~-0-----0-----1-0~--0-----0-----0-----|
B|--1~---1-----1-----------1-----1-----1~--|
G|--0~-----0-----0-----------0-----0-------|
D|--2~-------------------------------------|
A|--3~-------------------------------------|
E|-----------------------------------------|
Guitar 1:
E|--0-----0-----1-0------------------------------------|
B|----1-----1--------3--1--0---------------------------|
G|------0-----0--------------2--0----------------------|
D|---------------------------------3--2--0----0-2-3-5--|
A|------------------------------------------3----------|
E|-----------------------------------------------------|
Guitar 2:
E|--0---------------------------------------------------|
B|--1---------------------------------------------------|
G|--0-(strum)-------------------------------------------|
D|--2-------------3-2-0--3-2-0--3-2-0--3-2-0--3-2-0-----|
A|--3-----------------------------------------------3~--|
E|------------------------------------------------------|
These two are simultaneous.
Listen to the record and you'll hear it.
Abridged riff:
E|--0~-0-----0-----1-0~--0-----0-----0-----|
B|--1~---1-----1-----------1-----1-----1~--|
G|--0~-----0-----0-----------0-----0-------|
D|--2~-------------------------------------|
A|--3~-------------------------------------|
E|-----------------------------------------|
E|--0-----0-----1-0-------------------|
B|----1-----1-------3--1--0-----------|
G|------0-----0--------------2--4--5--|
D|------------------------------------|
A|------------------------------------|
E|------------------------------------|
"Fear for my safety...":
F G C F F G C F9
E|--1-0-3------0--1-0-3------3--|
B|--1-1-3--3-1-1--1-1-3--3-1-1--|
G|--2-2-0--0-0-2--2-2-0--0-0-2--|
D|--3-3-0--2-2-3--3-3-0--2-2-3--|
A|------2--3-3--------2--3-3----|
E|------3-------------3---------|
"...rise."
E|--3-----3-----3-----3-----3----|
B|----1-----1-----1-----1-----1--|
G|------2-----2-----2-----2------|
D|-------------------------------|
A|-------------------------------|
E|-------------------------------|
Abridged riff 2:
E|--0~--0-----0-----1-0~-0-----0-----0-----|
B|--1~----1-----1----------1-----1-----1~--|
G|--0~------0-----0----------0-----0-------|
D|--2~-------------------------------------|
A|--3~-------------------------------------|
E|-----------------------------------------|
E|--0-----0-----1-0-----------------|
B|----1-----1-------3--1--0--1--3~--|
G|------0-----0---------------------|
D|----------------------------------|
A|----------------------------------|
E|----------------------------------|
Outro: (same feel as intro)
E|--0~--3-----3-----3-----3-----3-----3-----|
B|--1~----1-----1-----1~----1-----1-----1~--|
G|--0~------2-----2-----------2-----2-------|
D|--2~--------------------------------------|
A|--3~--------------------------------------|
E|------------------------------------------|
(Intro)
C E
I hear them squeal
Am F
I see them preen
C E
Fans all spread out
Am F
Neat and clean
(Abridged riff)
C E
Grab hold of the morning
Am F
Head out to the porch
C E
Feel the wind stopping
Am F
Feel the sun scorch
F G
Fear for my safety,
C F
You can see it in my eyes
F G
In an hour or two
C F9
We will rise...
(Intro)
C E
Then a sharp breeze kicks up,
Am F
I hug myself hard
C E
How come there's peacocks
Am F
In the front yard?
(Abridged riff 2)
C E
Sun's all prickly
Am F
On my neck
C E
When the helicopter passes
Am F
We both hit the deck
F G
Hands grasping and groping
C F
Seizing opportunity right where it lies
F G
The sky will fall
C F9
We will rise...
(Abridged riff)
(Outro)
(Intro - just guitar 2)
End on C.
10. International Small Arms Traffic Blues
Chords:
E (022100)
A (x02220)
B (x24442)
E2 (x79997)
A/G# (4x2220)
Intro:
E|--------------------------------------------------|
B|----------------------------------------------0~--|
G|--------2-1-----2-1-------------2-1-----2-1-2-----|
D|----2-------2-------2-------2-------2-------------|
A|------2-------2---------------2-------2-----------|
E|--0-------------------0~--0-----------------------|
|_____________________| |_____________________|
Main riff Variation 1
E|--------------------------|
B|--------------------------|
G|--------2-1-----2-1-2-1~--|
D|----2-------2-------------|
A|------2-------2-----------|
E|--0-----------------------|
Variation 2
E|---------------------------|
B|-----------------------0~--|
G|--1--1-1-2p1-1-1-2p1-1-1~--|
D|--2--2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2~--|
A|--2--2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2~--|
E|--0--0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0~--|
Variation 3 (strumming)
(Intro)
E A E
My love is like a powder keg
(Main riff)
E A E B
My love is like a powder keg in the corner
E2
Of an empty warehouse
A A/G#
Outside of town
B E
About to burn down
(Main riff x2)
E A E
My love is like a Cuban plane
(Main riff)
E A E
My love is like a Cuban plane
B E2
Flying from Havana
A A/G#
Up the Florida Coast to the 'Glades
B E
Soviet-made
(Main riff x2)
(Variation 2)
(Main riff)
E A E
Our love is like the border between Greece and Albania
(Variation 3)
E A E
Our love is like the border between Greece and Albania
B E2
Trucks loaded down with weapons
A A/G#
Crossing over every night
B
Moon yellow and bright...
A E
There is a shortage in the blood supply
A E
But there is no shortage of blood
A E
The way I feel 'bout you, baby, can't explain it
B E
You got the best of my love
(Variation 3 x4)
End on E.
Notes:
(1)During the closing Variation 3 cycle, play with gradually more abandon.
(2)Between repetitions of the main riff or any of its variations,
there are a few beats of just low E or (0221xx) strumming, but you don't really need it.
11. Have to Explode
Chords:
D (xx0232)
D/F# (2x023x)
A (x02220)
A/C# (x42220)
G (320033)
B/G (x2003x)
C (x32010)
Intro:
D/F# A/C# B/G G x4
D/F# A/C#
Tile floor of the bathroom
B/G G
Scrubbed clean and bright
D/F# A/C# B/G G
Checkerboard wh--i--te and grey
D/F# A/C# B/G G
Towels from the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Kingston, Jamaica
D/F# A/C# B/G G
I can still see the rust-colored stains today
A G
The stage is set
D G
Somebody's gonna do something someone else will regret
G A D G
I speak in smoke signals and you answer in code
C G D
The fuse will have to run out sometime
G A D G
Something here will eventually have to explode
D/F# A/C# B/G G
Have to explode
D/F# A/C# G G
D/F# A/C# B/G G
You and me lying on the tile floor
D/F# A/C# G
Trying to keep cool, restless all night
D/F# A/C# B/G G
Sweating out the poison as the temperature climbs
D/F# A/C# B/G G
Staring up, up, at the hundred-watt light
A G
That burns above
D G
Name one thing about us two anyone could love
G A
We roll out the red carpet
D G
When rotten luck comes down the road
C G D G
Five, four, three, two, one, watch for the flash
G A D G
Something here will eventually have to explode
D (2 extra measures)
Have to explode
D/F# A/C# B/G G x5
End on G.
Notes:
He doesn't have the B/G every time, sometimes he just does 2 measures of G.
It's a lot of work to figure out where they all go, so just use your discretion.
It works either way.
12. Old College Try
Chords:
A (x02220)
C#m (x46654)
D (xx0232)
E (022100)
F#m (244222)
Intro:
A C#m D E D
A F#m D E
A C#m
From the housetops to the gutters,
D E D
From the ocean to the shore
A F#m
The warning signs have all been bright and garish
D E
Far too great in number to ignore
A C#m
From the cities to the swamplands,
D E D
From the highways to the hills
A F#m
Our love has never had a leg to stand on,
D E
From the asprins to the cross-tops to the Elevils
D E
But I will walk
A
Down to the end
D
With you
A E
If you will come all the way down
A
With me
A C#m D E D
A F#m D E
A C#m
From the entrance to the exit
D E D
Is further than it looks from where we stand
A F#m
I wanna say I'm sorry for stuff I haven't done yet
D E
Things will quickly get completely out of hand
A C#m
I can feel it in the rotten air tonight
D E D
In the tips of my fingers, in the skin on my face
A F#m
In the last gasp of the evening's dying light
D
In the way those eyes I've always loved
E
Illuminate this place
D E
Like a trash-can fire in a prison cell
A D
Like the searchlights in the parking lots of hell
A
I will walk
E A
Down to the end
D
With you
A E
If you will come all the way down
A
With me
A C#m D E D A F#m D E x2
D E A D A E A D A E A
End on A.
13. Oceanographer's Choice
Capo 3
Chords:
E (022100)
C (x32010)
G (320033)
D (xx0232)
B (x24442)
A (x02220)
Em (022000)
Well
E
Guy in a skeleton costume
G
Runs up to the guy
C
In the superman suit
E
Runs through him with a broadsword
E
I flipped the television off
G C
Bring all the bright lights up
E
Turn the radio up loud
A
I don't know why I'm so persuaded
D
That if I think things through
C
Long enough and hard enough
B
I'll somehow get to you
Em
But then you came in, and we locked eyes
A
You kicked the ashtray over as we came toward each other
C
Stubbed my cigarette out against the west wall
B
And quickly lit another
Em
Look at that! Would ya look at that?
A
We're throwing off sparks
Em D A Em
What'll I do when I don't have you
B
To hold onto in the dark?
Em
Yes
Em
Everybody's gonna need a witness
G C
Everybody's gonna need a little back-up
Em
In case the scene gets nasty
Em
You throw the attic window open
G C
And I throw my arms all around you
Em
And night comes to Tallahassee
A
I don't know why it's gotten harder
D
To keep myself away
C
Thought I'd finally beat the feeling back
B
It all came back today
Em
Look at that! Would ya look at that?
A
The way the ceiling starts to swerve
Em D A Em
What'll I do when I don't have you?
B
When I finally get what I deserve?
(instrumental verse ad nauseum)
End on Em.
Notes: The E and Em chords are basically interchangeable,
though it sounds more like E in the first verse and Em later.
14. Alpha Rats Nest
Can be played in either standard or Drop D (to incorporate bassline)
Chords:
Standard Drop D
G (320033) (55x033)
D (xx0232) (000232)
Em (022000) (222000)
C (x32010) (x32010)
D7 (xx0212) (000212)
Am (x02210) (x02210)
Bassline (for Drop D guitar):
G D _
E|------------------- |
B|------------------- |
G|------------------- |
D|------------------- | Main riff
A|------------------- |
D|--5-5-5-4-0-0-0-0--_|
Em C G D D7
E|---------------------------------------------------------------|
B|---------------------------------------------------------------|
G|---------------------------------------------------------------|
D|---------------------------------------------------------------|
A|--------------3-3-3-3-3-3-------------5-5-5-5-5-5-3-3-3-3-3-3--|
D|--2-2-2-2-2-2-------------5-5-5-5-5-5-------------0-0-0-0-0-0--|
Intro: Main riff x3 Em C G D D7
G D Em
All the lengthening hours in the refinery
C D
Belching fire into the sky
G D Em
We do our best vampire routines
C D7
As we suck the dying hours dry
Am
The night is lovely as a rose
(Main riff x2)
C
If I see sunlight in you I am
D (D7)
sure that we'll both decompose
(Intro)
G D Em
All the fitful sleep and the fire engines
C D
That I dream of when I dream
G D Em
Someday we'll both wake up for good
C D7
I will try hard not to scream
Am
The evening wind will shake the blind
(Main riff x2)
C
You're stirring from your slumber we've got
D7
Something hateful on our minds
G D Em
Oh sing, sing, sing,
C D
For the dying of the day
G D Em
Sing for the flames that will rip through here
C D
And the smoke that will carry us away
G D Em
Oh sing for the damage we've done
C D7
And the worse things that we'll do
G D Em
Open your mouth up and sing for me now
C D7
And I will sing for you
(Intro x3)
When you get to the last D7 chord, let it ring and hit that low D just once.
Notes: (1)The bassline is actually played on a bass guitar here
so the octaves aren't right for the Drop D guitar.
On a bass guitar it looks like this:
G D x3 Em C G D D7
G|----------------------------------------------------------7-7-7-7-7-7--------------|
D|--5-5-5-4-0-0-0-0-----2-2-2-2-2-2-------------5-5-5-5-5-5-------------0-0-0-0-0-0--|
A|----------------------------------3-3-3-3-3-3--------------------------------------|
E|-------------------x3--------------------------------------------------------------|
That C note should be an octave lower than on the Drop D guitar.
(2)D's and D7's are largely interchangeable here.
I've noted when I noticed a difference but it's a matter of taste.
There it is. Enjoy.
