RUNNIN' BACK TO SASKATOON
The Guess Who

from the album "Live at the Paramount" (1972)

tabbed by John Will 9/21/98
sbw@sk.sympatico.ca

This is the live version from the ultimate hoser band (according to
Geoff Pevere and Greig Dymond in Mondo Canuck: A Canadian Pop Culture
Odyssey). Tune down 1/2 step, as the key sounds a little closer to Ab,
at least on my old vinyl version from Best of The Guess Who Volume II.

A:577655
B:799877
G:355433
D:x57775
E:x79997
F:x81010108
G(II):x1012121210
D7:x57575
B7:x24242 or 797877


 Main riff (guitar 1)(the notes in brackets are not played every time)
    (A)  (G)  (D)  (C)       (D) (C)  (A)
E||-(9)--(7)--------------|---------------------|------------------|
B||--10---8----7----5-----|---7---5---(5)-------|------------------|
G||--9----7----7----5-----|---7---5----6--------|------------------|
D||-----------(7)--(5)----|--(7)-(5)---7--------|------------------|
A||-----------------------|---------------------|------------------|
E||-----------------------|---------------------|------------------|

   (guitar 2)slight distortion
E||----------------------|---------------------|---------------------|
B||----------------------|---------------------|---------------------|
G||--2----0--------------|---------------------|---------------------|
D||------------0---------|--0------------------|---------------------|
A||-----------------3----|-------3----0--------|------------0--------|
E||----------------------|---------------------|--0----3-------------|

Fill 1: (play on 2nd and 4th line of each verse,once with lyrics,once
without)
E||------------------------|
B||------7--5--7--5b-------|
G||------7--5--7--5b-------|
D||--7-7-------------------|
A||------------------------|
E||------------------------|

Spoken intro:(over main riff)
There's a province up in Canada that's right next door to ours...it's
called Saskatchewan. And in that province there's a small town where
nothing much ever happens called Saskatoon. This is a tune about that
town...it's called Runnin' Back to Saskatoon

(harmonica solo with main riff)

I been hangin' 'round gas stations
I been learnin' 'bout tires
I been talkin' to grease monkeys
I been workin' on cars

chorus:
B
Moose Jaw, Southview, Moosomin too
G               D    A
Runnin' back to Saskatoon
B
Red Deer, Terrace and-a Medicine Hat
G            D       A
Singin' of a prairie tune
G            D       A
Singin' of a prairie tune

I been hangin' 'round libraries
I been learnin' about books
I been talkin' to playwriters
I been workin' on words
Phrases

(chorus)
Saskatchewan!
I been hangin' 'round hospitals
I been learnin' 'bout dyin'
I been takin' to heart doctors
I been workin' on disease

(chorus)
Prairie!
refrain:
E (over some nonsense patter I can't decipher)
D7                 B7
This spirit is homegrown
                D7   B7
Don't come from Hong Kong
               D7  B7
This spirit is homegrown
                D7   B7
Don't come from Hong Kong


Solo(reasonably accurate, I think)
      D                         D7                      A
E||------------------------||------------------------||------5-------------|
B||---7----7----7----7-----||---7----7----7----7-----||--5h8---8-----------|
G||*--7----7----7----7----*||*--5----5----5----5----*||----------7p5-------|
D||*--7----7----7----7----*||*--7----7----7----7----*||--------------7--7--|
A||------------------------||------------------------||--------------------|
E||------------------------||------------------------||--------------------|
                                         E                         F
------------5h8--10--8--10--8--10----|---10b--10b&r--8--8--10---|--8-------|
-------5h8---------------------------|--------------------------|----------|
--5h7--------------------------------|--------------------------|----------|
-------------------------------------|--------------------------|----------|
-------------------------------------|--------------------------|----------|
-------------------------------------|--------------------------|----------|
   G(II)                         A
--------------------|----------------------|
----10p---8---------|----------------------|
---------------9----|--7----5--------------|
--------------------|------------7---------|
--------------------|----------------------|
--------------------|----------------------|

------------------------|----------------------|-------------------||
------------------------|-------7----5----7----|--5b---------------||
----7----5----7----5b---|--7-------------------|-------------------||
--7---------------------|----------------------|-------------------||
------------------------|----------------------|-------------------||
------------------------|----------------------|-------------------||

(main riff x2)
I been hangin' 'round grain elevators
I been learnin' 'bout food
I been talkin' to soil farmers
I been workin' on land

(chorus)

I been hangin' 'round camera stores
I been learnin' 'bout sights
I been talkin' to filmmakers
I been workin' on eyes

(chorus)
Sing!
(refrain)

*I suppose Saskatoon is "small" to a Winnipegger, although it would
have been over 130,000 even when Burton rapped this, albeit to an
American audience;so we'll forgive him.
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