Chords for Hayes Carll talks Guy Clark
Tempo:
162.7 bpm
Chords used:
Am
C
G
E
F#
Tuning:Standard Tuning (EADGBE)Capo:+0fret
Jam Along & Learn...
I met Guy at a little festival in Spring, Texas many years ago.
I think I was the first act of the day at 11 or something.
And Guy was the headliner.
And afterwards we went out to this sort of ranch house to have a party.
Anyway, we all sat around and Guy, he had just released that record, The Dark.
And at some point, like three in the morning, he sits on a stool out in the backyard and
the rest of us all sit around in a circle like school children.
And he played the entire record, just solo acoustic.
Well, Merlin Thompson was there with him.
And so they just played.
We got this concert, 15 people of a Guy Clark record that had just been released.
And I remember him, he's got that song, The Dark, and
there's a sort of a repeating phrase.
It was, how dark is it?
And it [E] was like we were all sitting around the campfire and
he was regaling us with this, how dark is it?
And we're just sitting there like this unbelievable experience.
And so that record was a big one for me and
then I kind of parlayed that into getting to write with him.
I just called him up.
I said, you don't remember me probably, but
you bummed a bunch of my cigarettes a couple months ago.
And I'm gonna be in Nashville.
Can I come over and write a song with you?
He said, well, come on over.
So I did and we wrote a tune.
[Am] And I played just a clip of [Em] it, sort of go to my own.
There's a million [F#] guy songs, but this was just really special to me because I was
sitting in his basement with that big picture of Townes over the workshop where
he builds his guitars and watching him write down my words into graph paper,
one letter at a time, and just the intensity and
discipline with which he worked, and it was shed all fat.
I had never seen that.
I hadn't done much co-writing.
You just kind of figure it out on your own as a songwriter.
Like, well, I guess I'll rhyme this with that.
And to watch him and the approach that he had and
the lines he would pretty unceremoniously shut down of mine and say, no, that's crap.
This is what we're going for.
And that discipline and focus was, I wish I could say I adopted a lot of it,
but it was really informative and inspiring to watch.
Anyway, this is, just do a verse here.
[Am] Take me to [C] Rivertown, where [G] you can't tell night [Am] from day.
And everything is [C] forgiven [D] that [G] did not wash [Am] away.
Where dreaming [B] comes too [E] easy, yeah, but living is [Am] twice as hard.
And everything is [C] buried beneath the [D] water and the [Am]
star.
[A] Now here I am from [C] Corsican,
[G] wayward on the storm.
[Am]
I've been rolling [B] empty [C] sevens [Gm] since the day that I was [Am] born.
Got no rings upon my [C]
fingers, got [G] no ink [D] beneath my [Am] skin.
[F#] I'd be as clean [C] going out [G] as I [Gm] was coming [A] in.
[F#] [Am] And I'm gonna [F] wash [G] my sins in the Angelina [A] River.
[F] And all that she could [C] take from me [E] was all that I could [E] give her.
[F] And time will take you [C] back, [G] and time will bring you [Am] home.
[F] I turned my back some [C] time ago, [G] and now I'm [D] going.
[F#]
[Am] [E] I forgot the lyrics [F#] to my own song, but anyway, it was really cool.
It was an amazing experience to walk out of that day and
have written a song with Guy Clark.
There was this mysterious underworld of beatnik, hippie,
intellectual, redneck poets that I was so fascinated with.
Because you had this mainstream country stuff, and you had the faces of that,
the Willie Nelsons and the Johnny Cashes.
And you hear them talking about the people that they admired.
And so that was kind of my next phase of exploring this stuff.
It's okay, I've got the guys I love, and this music that means a lot to me.
But now I'm discovering there's this whole world of people that are not as
well known, that are maybe behind the scenes, but are really admired.
[Am]
And maybe don't fit inside [G#] of this kind of,
[A] they're a little too rough around the edges for
the mainstream success that some of these other guys had enjoyed.
And, or for whatever reason.
And Guy fit into that, and Outlaw Poet Intellectual
group really appealed to me.
And the fact that they were writing stuff like they were writing.
They were pushing the boundaries of that and
referencing poets and literature.
And these were well read, in many cases deep thinking people,
who at the same time looked like a cast of easy rider.
And just had a coolness about them that I thought,
yeah, that was something I aspired to, certainly.
[N]
I think I was the first act of the day at 11 or something.
And Guy was the headliner.
And afterwards we went out to this sort of ranch house to have a party.
Anyway, we all sat around and Guy, he had just released that record, The Dark.
And at some point, like three in the morning, he sits on a stool out in the backyard and
the rest of us all sit around in a circle like school children.
And he played the entire record, just solo acoustic.
Well, Merlin Thompson was there with him.
And so they just played.
We got this concert, 15 people of a Guy Clark record that had just been released.
And I remember him, he's got that song, The Dark, and
there's a sort of a repeating phrase.
It was, how dark is it?
And it [E] was like we were all sitting around the campfire and
he was regaling us with this, how dark is it?
And we're just sitting there like this unbelievable experience.
And so that record was a big one for me and
then I kind of parlayed that into getting to write with him.
I just called him up.
I said, you don't remember me probably, but
you bummed a bunch of my cigarettes a couple months ago.
And I'm gonna be in Nashville.
Can I come over and write a song with you?
He said, well, come on over.
So I did and we wrote a tune.
[Am] And I played just a clip of [Em] it, sort of go to my own.
There's a million [F#] guy songs, but this was just really special to me because I was
sitting in his basement with that big picture of Townes over the workshop where
he builds his guitars and watching him write down my words into graph paper,
one letter at a time, and just the intensity and
discipline with which he worked, and it was shed all fat.
I had never seen that.
I hadn't done much co-writing.
You just kind of figure it out on your own as a songwriter.
Like, well, I guess I'll rhyme this with that.
And to watch him and the approach that he had and
the lines he would pretty unceremoniously shut down of mine and say, no, that's crap.
This is what we're going for.
And that discipline and focus was, I wish I could say I adopted a lot of it,
but it was really informative and inspiring to watch.
Anyway, this is, just do a verse here.
[Am] Take me to [C] Rivertown, where [G] you can't tell night [Am] from day.
And everything is [C] forgiven [D] that [G] did not wash [Am] away.
Where dreaming [B] comes too [E] easy, yeah, but living is [Am] twice as hard.
And everything is [C] buried beneath the [D] water and the [Am]
star.
[A] Now here I am from [C] Corsican,
[G] wayward on the storm.
[Am]
I've been rolling [B] empty [C] sevens [Gm] since the day that I was [Am] born.
Got no rings upon my [C]
fingers, got [G] no ink [D] beneath my [Am] skin.
[F#] I'd be as clean [C] going out [G] as I [Gm] was coming [A] in.
[F#] [Am] And I'm gonna [F] wash [G] my sins in the Angelina [A] River.
[F] And all that she could [C] take from me [E] was all that I could [E] give her.
[F] And time will take you [C] back, [G] and time will bring you [Am] home.
[F] I turned my back some [C] time ago, [G] and now I'm [D] going.
[F#]
[Am] [E] I forgot the lyrics [F#] to my own song, but anyway, it was really cool.
It was an amazing experience to walk out of that day and
have written a song with Guy Clark.
There was this mysterious underworld of beatnik, hippie,
intellectual, redneck poets that I was so fascinated with.
Because you had this mainstream country stuff, and you had the faces of that,
the Willie Nelsons and the Johnny Cashes.
And you hear them talking about the people that they admired.
And so that was kind of my next phase of exploring this stuff.
It's okay, I've got the guys I love, and this music that means a lot to me.
But now I'm discovering there's this whole world of people that are not as
well known, that are maybe behind the scenes, but are really admired.
[Am]
And maybe don't fit inside [G#] of this kind of,
[A] they're a little too rough around the edges for
the mainstream success that some of these other guys had enjoyed.
And, or for whatever reason.
And Guy fit into that, and Outlaw Poet Intellectual
group really appealed to me.
And the fact that they were writing stuff like they were writing.
They were pushing the boundaries of that and
referencing poets and literature.
And these were well read, in many cases deep thinking people,
who at the same time looked like a cast of easy rider.
And just had a coolness about them that I thought,
yeah, that was something I aspired to, certainly.
[N]
100% ➙ 163BPM
Am
C
G
E
F#
Am
C
G
I met Guy at a _ _ _ _ _ little festival in Spring, _ Texas _ many years ago.
I think I was the first act of the day at 11 or something.
_ _ _ And Guy was the headliner.
And afterwards we went out to this sort of ranch house to have a party.
Anyway, we all sat around and Guy, he had just released that record, The Dark.
_ _ And at some point, like three in the morning, he sits on a stool out in the backyard and
the rest of us all sit around in a circle like school children.
_ _ And he played the entire record, just solo acoustic.
Well, Merlin Thompson was there with him.
And so they just played.
We got this concert, 15 people of a Guy Clark record that had just been released.
And I remember him, _ he's got that song, The Dark, and
there's a sort of a _ _ repeating phrase.
It was, how dark is it? _ _ _
And it [E] was like we were all sitting around the campfire and
he was regaling us with this, how dark is it? _
And we're just sitting there like this unbelievable experience.
And _ _ _ _ so _ _ _ _ _ that _ record was a _ big one for me and
then I kind of parlayed that into getting to write with him.
I just called him up.
I said, you don't remember me probably, but
you bummed a bunch of my cigarettes a couple months ago.
And I'm gonna be in Nashville.
Can I come over and write a song with you?
He said, well, come on over.
_ So I did and we wrote a tune. _ _
_ _ _ _ [Am] _ And I played just a _ _ clip of [Em] it, sort of go to my own.
There's a million [F#] guy songs, but this was just really special to me because _ I was
sitting in his basement with that big picture of Townes over the workshop where
he builds his guitars and _ _ watching him write down my words into graph paper,
one letter at a time, and just the _ intensity and _
_ _ discipline with which he worked, _ and it was shed all fat. _
I had never seen that.
I hadn't done much co-writing.
You just kind of figure it out on your own as a songwriter.
Like, well, I guess I'll rhyme this with that.
And to watch him _ _ _ and the approach that he had and
the lines he would _ _ pretty _ unceremoniously shut down of mine and say, no, that's crap.
This _ is what we're going for.
And that discipline and focus was, _ _ _ I _ _ wish I could say I adopted a lot of it,
but _ _ _ _ it was really informative and _ _ inspiring to watch. _
Anyway, this is, _ _ _ just do a verse here.
_ _ [Am] Take me to _ [C] _ Rivertown, where [G] you can't tell night [Am] from day.
_ And _ everything is [C] forgiven [D] _ that [G] did not wash [Am] away. _ _
Where dreaming [B] comes too [E] easy, yeah, but living is [Am] twice as hard. _
And everything is [C] buried beneath the [D] water and the [Am]
star.
[A] _ _ _ _ _ Now here I am from [C] Corsican, _ _
_ [G] wayward on the storm.
[Am] _ _
I've been rolling [B] empty _ [C] sevens [Gm] since the day that I was [Am] born. _
Got no rings upon my [C]
fingers, got [G] no ink [D] beneath my [Am] skin.
[F#] _ I'd be as clean [C] _ going out [G] as I [Gm] was coming [A] in.
[F#] _ _ _ [Am] And I'm gonna [F] _ wash [G] my sins _ in the _ Angelina [A] River.
_ _ [F] And all that she could [C] take from me [E] was all that I could [E] give her.
[F] And time will take you [C] back, _ _ [G] and time will bring you [Am] home.
_ [F] I turned my back some [C] time ago, _ [G] and now I'm [D] going.
_ _ [F#] _ _
_ [Am] _ _ [E] I forgot the lyrics [F#] to my own song, but anyway, it was really cool.
It was an amazing experience to walk out of that day _ and
have written a song with Guy Clark. _
There was this mysterious underworld _ _ of _ _ beatnik, hippie,
intellectual, redneck poets _ that I was so fascinated with.
Because you had this mainstream country stuff, and you had the faces of that,
the Willie Nelsons and the Johnny Cashes. _
And you hear them talking about the people that they admired.
And so that was kind of my next phase _ _ of exploring this stuff.
It's okay, I've got the guys I love, and this music that means a lot to me.
But now I'm discovering there's this whole world of people that are not as
well known, that are maybe behind the scenes, but are really admired.
_ [Am] _ _ _
_ And maybe don't fit inside [G#] of this kind of,
_ [A] _ _ they're a little too rough around the edges for
the mainstream _ _ _ success that some of these other guys had enjoyed.
And, or for whatever reason. _ _
And Guy fit into that, and _ Outlaw Poet Intellectual _ _ _
_ group really appealed to me.
And the fact that they were writing stuff _ like they were writing.
They were pushing the boundaries of that and
_ _ _ referencing poets and literature.
And these were well read, _ _ _ _ in many cases deep thinking people,
who at the same time looked like a cast of easy rider.
_ _ And just had a _ coolness about them that I thought,
yeah, that was something I aspired to, certainly.
_ _ [N] _ _
I think I was the first act of the day at 11 or something.
_ _ _ And Guy was the headliner.
And afterwards we went out to this sort of ranch house to have a party.
Anyway, we all sat around and Guy, he had just released that record, The Dark.
_ _ And at some point, like three in the morning, he sits on a stool out in the backyard and
the rest of us all sit around in a circle like school children.
_ _ And he played the entire record, just solo acoustic.
Well, Merlin Thompson was there with him.
And so they just played.
We got this concert, 15 people of a Guy Clark record that had just been released.
And I remember him, _ he's got that song, The Dark, and
there's a sort of a _ _ repeating phrase.
It was, how dark is it? _ _ _
And it [E] was like we were all sitting around the campfire and
he was regaling us with this, how dark is it? _
And we're just sitting there like this unbelievable experience.
And _ _ _ _ so _ _ _ _ _ that _ record was a _ big one for me and
then I kind of parlayed that into getting to write with him.
I just called him up.
I said, you don't remember me probably, but
you bummed a bunch of my cigarettes a couple months ago.
And I'm gonna be in Nashville.
Can I come over and write a song with you?
He said, well, come on over.
_ So I did and we wrote a tune. _ _
_ _ _ _ [Am] _ And I played just a _ _ clip of [Em] it, sort of go to my own.
There's a million [F#] guy songs, but this was just really special to me because _ I was
sitting in his basement with that big picture of Townes over the workshop where
he builds his guitars and _ _ watching him write down my words into graph paper,
one letter at a time, and just the _ intensity and _
_ _ discipline with which he worked, _ and it was shed all fat. _
I had never seen that.
I hadn't done much co-writing.
You just kind of figure it out on your own as a songwriter.
Like, well, I guess I'll rhyme this with that.
And to watch him _ _ _ and the approach that he had and
the lines he would _ _ pretty _ unceremoniously shut down of mine and say, no, that's crap.
This _ is what we're going for.
And that discipline and focus was, _ _ _ I _ _ wish I could say I adopted a lot of it,
but _ _ _ _ it was really informative and _ _ inspiring to watch. _
Anyway, this is, _ _ _ just do a verse here.
_ _ [Am] Take me to _ [C] _ Rivertown, where [G] you can't tell night [Am] from day.
_ And _ everything is [C] forgiven [D] _ that [G] did not wash [Am] away. _ _
Where dreaming [B] comes too [E] easy, yeah, but living is [Am] twice as hard. _
And everything is [C] buried beneath the [D] water and the [Am]
star.
[A] _ _ _ _ _ Now here I am from [C] Corsican, _ _
_ [G] wayward on the storm.
[Am] _ _
I've been rolling [B] empty _ [C] sevens [Gm] since the day that I was [Am] born. _
Got no rings upon my [C]
fingers, got [G] no ink [D] beneath my [Am] skin.
[F#] _ I'd be as clean [C] _ going out [G] as I [Gm] was coming [A] in.
[F#] _ _ _ [Am] And I'm gonna [F] _ wash [G] my sins _ in the _ Angelina [A] River.
_ _ [F] And all that she could [C] take from me [E] was all that I could [E] give her.
[F] And time will take you [C] back, _ _ [G] and time will bring you [Am] home.
_ [F] I turned my back some [C] time ago, _ [G] and now I'm [D] going.
_ _ [F#] _ _
_ [Am] _ _ [E] I forgot the lyrics [F#] to my own song, but anyway, it was really cool.
It was an amazing experience to walk out of that day _ and
have written a song with Guy Clark. _
There was this mysterious underworld _ _ of _ _ beatnik, hippie,
intellectual, redneck poets _ that I was so fascinated with.
Because you had this mainstream country stuff, and you had the faces of that,
the Willie Nelsons and the Johnny Cashes. _
And you hear them talking about the people that they admired.
And so that was kind of my next phase _ _ of exploring this stuff.
It's okay, I've got the guys I love, and this music that means a lot to me.
But now I'm discovering there's this whole world of people that are not as
well known, that are maybe behind the scenes, but are really admired.
_ [Am] _ _ _
_ And maybe don't fit inside [G#] of this kind of,
_ [A] _ _ they're a little too rough around the edges for
the mainstream _ _ _ success that some of these other guys had enjoyed.
And, or for whatever reason. _ _
And Guy fit into that, and _ Outlaw Poet Intellectual _ _ _
_ group really appealed to me.
And the fact that they were writing stuff _ like they were writing.
They were pushing the boundaries of that and
_ _ _ referencing poets and literature.
And these were well read, _ _ _ _ in many cases deep thinking people,
who at the same time looked like a cast of easy rider.
_ _ And just had a _ coolness about them that I thought,
yeah, that was something I aspired to, certainly.
_ _ [N] _ _