Chords for Merle Haggard - The Roots Of My Raising (1976)

_ _ _ _ [Ab] _ _ [Gm] _ _
_ _ [Ab] _ _ _ _ [Eb] _ _
I left the four-lane highway, [Ab] took a blacktop [Eb] seven miles
_ Down by the old country school [F] I went to as [Bb] a child
_ [Eb] Two miles down a gravel road I [Ab] could see the proud [Eb] old home _
A tribute to a way of life [Bb] that's almost come and [Eb] gone _
_ [Ab] The roots of my raising [Eb] run deep
_ _ _ I've come back for [F] the strength that [Bb] I need
_ [Ab] And hope comes no matter [Eb] how far [Bb] down I sink
[Ab] The roots [Bb] of my raising [Eb] run deep
_ _ _ I pulled into the driveway, [Ab] boy it sure [Eb] was good to be there
_ And I could see through the open door that [F] Dad was asleep in his [Bb] favorite chair _
[Eb] In his hand was a picture of Mom and [Ab] I remembered how [Eb] close they were _
_ So I just turned away, I didn't want to [Bb] wake him and spoil his [Eb] dreams of her
_ A Christian mom who had the [Ab] strength for life the way she [Eb] did
_ Then to pull [Cm] that apron off [F] and do the Charleston [Bb] for us kids _
[Eb] Dad, a quiet man whose [Ab] gentle voice was [Eb] seldom heard
_ Who could borrow money at the [Bb] bank simply [Eb] on his word
_ [Ab] The roots of my raising [Eb] run deep
_ _ _ I've come back for [F] the strength that [Bb] I need
_ [Ab] And hope comes no matter [Eb] how far down [Bb] I sink
[Ab] The roots of [Bb] my raising [Eb] run deep
_ The [Ab] roots of my raising run [Eb] deep _ _ _ _ _