Big Bad John-Original Lyrics-Jimmy Dean Chords
Tempo:
88 bpm
Chords used:
F
G
Ab
Gb
C
Tuning:Standard Tuning (EADGBE)Capo:+0fret
Start Jamming...
Big John, [G] Big John
Every [F] [C] morning at the mine [F] you could see him arrive.
He [G] stood six [Cm] foot six and weighed [F] 245, [Gm] kind of broad [F] at the shoulder and narrow at the hip.
[C] And everybody knew you [F] didn't give no lip to Big John.
[Em] Big John, [C] Big John
[G] Big Bad John
Big John
[F] [C] Nobody [G] seemed to know where John [F] called home.
[G] He just drifted into town and stayed [F] all alone.
[G] He didn't say much, he was [F] kind of quiet and shy.
[Gm] And if you spoke at all, you just [F] said hi [G] to Big John.
[F] [Eb] Somebody said he [F] came from New Orleans [Gm] where he got in a fight over a [F] Cajun queen
[Cm] and a crashing blow from a huge [F] right [Cm] hand sent a Louisiana fella [Fm] to the promised land, [G] Big John.
[Em] Big John, [C] Big John
Big Bad John
[G] Big John
[F] Then [G] came the day at the bottom [F] of the mine [A] when a timber cracked and men started crying.
Miners were praying and [F] hearts beat [C] fast and everybody thought that they had [F] breathed their [G] last except John.
[F] [G] Through the dust and the smoke of this [F] man-made [G] hell walked a giant of a man that the [F] miners knew [Gm] well.
Grabbed a sagging timber and gave [Fm] out with a [G] groan and like a giant oak tree just [F] stood there alone, Big John.
[Em] Big John, [C] Big John
[G] Big Bad John
Big [Ab] John
[Gb] [Ab] And with all of his strength he [Dbm] gave a mighty [Gb] shove, then [Ab] a miner yelled out,
There's a light up [Gb] above and [Ab] twenty men scrambled from a would [Gb]-be grave.
[Ab] Now there's only one left down there [Gb] to save, [Ab] Big John.
[Gb] [Ab] With jacks and timbers they started back down, then came a grumble way down in the ground.
As [Eb] smoke and gas belched out [Gb] of that [Ab] mine, everybody knew [Gb] it was the end of the line [Ab] for Big John.
Big [Db] John, Big John
[Ab] Big Bad John
[Db] [Ab] Big John
[Gb] Now [Ab] they never re-opened that [Gbm] worthless pit, they just [Fm] placed a marble stand [Gb] in front of it.
[Ab] These few words were written on that stand,
At the bottom of this mine lies one hell of a man, [B] Big John.
[Gm] [B] Big John, [C] Big John
[Eb] Big Bad John
[Ab] Big John,
Every [F] [C] morning at the mine [F] you could see him arrive.
He [G] stood six [Cm] foot six and weighed [F] 245, [Gm] kind of broad [F] at the shoulder and narrow at the hip.
[C] And everybody knew you [F] didn't give no lip to Big John.
[Em] Big John, [C] Big John
[G] Big Bad John
Big John
[F] [C] Nobody [G] seemed to know where John [F] called home.
[G] He just drifted into town and stayed [F] all alone.
[G] He didn't say much, he was [F] kind of quiet and shy.
[Gm] And if you spoke at all, you just [F] said hi [G] to Big John.
[F] [Eb] Somebody said he [F] came from New Orleans [Gm] where he got in a fight over a [F] Cajun queen
[Cm] and a crashing blow from a huge [F] right [Cm] hand sent a Louisiana fella [Fm] to the promised land, [G] Big John.
[Em] Big John, [C] Big John
Big Bad John
[G] Big John
[F] Then [G] came the day at the bottom [F] of the mine [A] when a timber cracked and men started crying.
Miners were praying and [F] hearts beat [C] fast and everybody thought that they had [F] breathed their [G] last except John.
[F] [G] Through the dust and the smoke of this [F] man-made [G] hell walked a giant of a man that the [F] miners knew [Gm] well.
Grabbed a sagging timber and gave [Fm] out with a [G] groan and like a giant oak tree just [F] stood there alone, Big John.
[Em] Big John, [C] Big John
[G] Big Bad John
Big [Ab] John
[Gb] [Ab] And with all of his strength he [Dbm] gave a mighty [Gb] shove, then [Ab] a miner yelled out,
There's a light up [Gb] above and [Ab] twenty men scrambled from a would [Gb]-be grave.
[Ab] Now there's only one left down there [Gb] to save, [Ab] Big John.
[Gb] [Ab] With jacks and timbers they started back down, then came a grumble way down in the ground.
As [Eb] smoke and gas belched out [Gb] of that [Ab] mine, everybody knew [Gb] it was the end of the line [Ab] for Big John.
Big [Db] John, Big John
[Ab] Big Bad John
[Db] [Ab] Big John
[Gb] Now [Ab] they never re-opened that [Gbm] worthless pit, they just [Fm] placed a marble stand [Gb] in front of it.
[Ab] These few words were written on that stand,
At the bottom of this mine lies one hell of a man, [B] Big John.
[Gm] [B] Big John, [C] Big John
[Eb] Big Bad John
[Ab] Big John,
Key:
F
G
Ab
Gb
C
F
G
Ab
_ Big John, _ _ [G] Big John
Every [F] [C] morning at the mine [F] you could see him arrive.
He [G] stood six [Cm] foot six and weighed [F] 245, [Gm] kind of broad [F] at the shoulder and narrow at the hip.
[C] And everybody knew you [F] didn't give no lip to Big John.
[Em] _ _ Big John, _ [C] Big John
_ [G] Big Bad John
_ Big John
_ [F] [C] Nobody [G] seemed to know where John [F] called home.
[G] He just drifted into town and stayed [F] all alone.
[G] He didn't say much, he was [F] kind of quiet and shy.
[Gm] And if you spoke at all, you just [F] said hi [G] to Big John. _
_ [F] [Eb] Somebody said he [F] came from New Orleans [Gm] where he got in a fight over a [F] Cajun queen
[Cm] and a crashing blow from a huge [F] right [Cm] hand sent a Louisiana fella [Fm] to the promised land, [G] Big John.
_ _ [Em] Big John, _ [C] Big John
Big Bad John
_ [G] Big John
[F] Then [G] came the day at the bottom [F] of the mine [A] when a timber cracked and men started crying.
Miners were praying and [F] hearts beat [C] fast and everybody thought that they had [F] breathed their [G] last except John.
_ [F] [G] Through the dust and the smoke of this [F] man-made [G] hell walked a giant of a man that the [F] miners knew [Gm] well.
Grabbed a sagging timber and gave [Fm] out with a [G] groan and like a giant oak tree just [F] stood there alone, Big John.
[Em] _ Big John, _ [C] Big John
_ [G] Big Bad John
Big [Ab] John
_ [Gb] [Ab] And with all of his strength he [Dbm] gave a mighty [Gb] shove, then [Ab] a miner yelled out,
There's a light up [Gb] above and [Ab] twenty men scrambled from a would [Gb]-be grave.
[Ab] Now there's only one left down there [Gb] to save, [Ab] Big John.
_ _ [Gb] [Ab] With jacks and timbers they started back down, then came a grumble way down in the ground.
As [Eb] smoke and gas belched out [Gb] of that [Ab] mine, everybody knew [Gb] it was the end of the line [Ab] for Big John.
_ Big [Db] John, _ Big John
_ [Ab] Big Bad John
_ [Db] [Ab] Big John
[Gb] Now [Ab] they never re-opened that [Gbm] worthless pit, they just [Fm] placed a marble stand [Gb] in front of it.
[Ab] These few words were written on that stand,
_ At the bottom of this mine lies one hell of a man, [B] Big John.
_ [Gm] [B] Big John, _ _ [C] Big John
[Eb] Big Bad John
_ [Ab] Big John,
Every [F] [C] morning at the mine [F] you could see him arrive.
He [G] stood six [Cm] foot six and weighed [F] 245, [Gm] kind of broad [F] at the shoulder and narrow at the hip.
[C] And everybody knew you [F] didn't give no lip to Big John.
[Em] _ _ Big John, _ [C] Big John
_ [G] Big Bad John
_ Big John
_ [F] [C] Nobody [G] seemed to know where John [F] called home.
[G] He just drifted into town and stayed [F] all alone.
[G] He didn't say much, he was [F] kind of quiet and shy.
[Gm] And if you spoke at all, you just [F] said hi [G] to Big John. _
_ [F] [Eb] Somebody said he [F] came from New Orleans [Gm] where he got in a fight over a [F] Cajun queen
[Cm] and a crashing blow from a huge [F] right [Cm] hand sent a Louisiana fella [Fm] to the promised land, [G] Big John.
_ _ [Em] Big John, _ [C] Big John
Big Bad John
_ [G] Big John
[F] Then [G] came the day at the bottom [F] of the mine [A] when a timber cracked and men started crying.
Miners were praying and [F] hearts beat [C] fast and everybody thought that they had [F] breathed their [G] last except John.
_ [F] [G] Through the dust and the smoke of this [F] man-made [G] hell walked a giant of a man that the [F] miners knew [Gm] well.
Grabbed a sagging timber and gave [Fm] out with a [G] groan and like a giant oak tree just [F] stood there alone, Big John.
[Em] _ Big John, _ [C] Big John
_ [G] Big Bad John
Big [Ab] John
_ [Gb] [Ab] And with all of his strength he [Dbm] gave a mighty [Gb] shove, then [Ab] a miner yelled out,
There's a light up [Gb] above and [Ab] twenty men scrambled from a would [Gb]-be grave.
[Ab] Now there's only one left down there [Gb] to save, [Ab] Big John.
_ _ [Gb] [Ab] With jacks and timbers they started back down, then came a grumble way down in the ground.
As [Eb] smoke and gas belched out [Gb] of that [Ab] mine, everybody knew [Gb] it was the end of the line [Ab] for Big John.
_ Big [Db] John, _ Big John
_ [Ab] Big Bad John
_ [Db] [Ab] Big John
[Gb] Now [Ab] they never re-opened that [Gbm] worthless pit, they just [Fm] placed a marble stand [Gb] in front of it.
[Ab] These few words were written on that stand,
_ At the bottom of this mine lies one hell of a man, [B] Big John.
_ [Gm] [B] Big John, _ _ [C] Big John
[Eb] Big Bad John
_ [Ab] Big John,
Facts about this song