Chords with lyrics
*This is all my own work and I've not gotten it from
anyone else*
Album: The Notorious Byrd Brothers (1968)
Writers: David Crosby/Roger McGuinn/Chris Hillman
Tabbed by a little soul
A augmentedA Crosby tune with supposedly unauthorized lyric
variations by McGuinn and Hillman, this is one of
Crosby's best songs, a stark and delicate evocation of
the horrors of Vietnam. Conversely, it's one of the
most requested Byrds songs ever that hasn't been
tabbed, which I find incessantly curious because it's
remarkably simple. What confuses some people, I
suspect, is the vocal drone, but I don't see why,
because it doesn't really change the character of the
chords.
Tuning: Standard (EADGBE)
Time: 4/4
Chords:
D MajorD - XX0232
C majorC - X32010 or C/DC/D - X30010*
G+G - 320003 or G/DG/D - XX0003*
Dm- XX0231
*One can use these chords instead if one is weary or
unable to sustain the vocal drone!
Okay, let's start!
Intro: Cymbal. Then:
D MajorD (4 bars)
Then the verse begins. The vocal drone kicks in - a
Byrd (Hillman, I think) proceeds to hum a low D MajorD note.
The note is the same as an open D MajorD string on your
guitar, assuming it's tuned properly. He hums this
note, pausing for breath occasionally, all through the
verses. It's a lovely effect - it makes the C majorC chord
really move - but the chords remain static.
D MajorD (8 bars)
C majorC (4 bars)
G+G (4 bars)
D MajorD (4 bars)
Now if you don't want to do a vocal drone, replace C majorC
with C/DC/D and G+G with G/D.
That is the verse progression, done twice and the only
thing left is the noisy bit in the middle. That is
just a rapidly arpeggiated version of this:
DmDm (4 bars)
G+G (4 bars)
and ends with many bars of a D MajorD chord (Hillman's little
bass solo).
Then there's another verse. And that's all, till the
ending, which is just a D MajorD chord with McGuinn playing
taps on top of it:
e --------2---2-5--5-2-------
BB ---3---3---3--------------3
G+G 2-2---2-------------2--2-2-
D MajorD ---------------------------
A augmentedA ---------------------------
E MajorE ---------------------------
And that's all there is. I hope y'all enjoyed that :)