Night Riders Lament chords by Jerry Jeff Walker

• Difficulty: Intermediate

Key: D

🎸 Intro:

D




🎸 Verse 1:
      D           G
While I was out a-ridin'
    D                               A
The grave yard shift, midnight 'til dawn
    G                    D
The moon was bright as a readin' light
      A                              D
For a letter from an old friend back home

🎸 Chorus 1:
                G          A             D
And he asked me why do you ride for your money
        G          A              D
Tell me why do you rope for short pay
          G         A
You ain't gettin' nowhere
           D           G   G/F# Em
And you're losin' your sha-a----are
         A                      D
Boy, you must've gone crazy out there


🎸 Verse 2:
        D                     G
He said last night I ran onto Jenny
      D                      A
She's married and has a good life
         G
Boy, you sure missed the track
         D
When you never come back
          A                      D
She's the perfect professional's wife


🎸 Chorus 1:
                 G           A            D
And she asked me why does he ride for his money
            G           A              D
And tell me why does he rope for short pay
         G         A
He ain't gettin' nowhere
         D          G   G/F# Em
And he's losin' his sha-a----are
   A                      D
He must've gone crazy out there


🎸 Chorus 2:
                G     A        D
B' then they've never seen the Northern Lights
     G            A           D
They never seen a hawk on the wing
        G            A              D       G  G/F# Em
They've never seen a spring hit the Great Divi-i----ide
            A                           D
And they've never heard old camp cookie sing


🎸 Instrumental:
G  A  D
G  A  D
G  A  D  G G/F# Em
A  D


🎸 Verse 3:
        D                      G
Well
I read up the last of my letter
  D                            A
I tore off the stamp for Black Jim
     G                  D
When Billy rode up to relieve me
        A                       D
He just looked at my letter and grinned


🎸 Chorus 1:
             G           A              D
He said, now why do they ride for their money
        G           A              D
Tell me why do they rope for short pay
           G         A
They ain't gettin' nowhere
            D            G   G/F# Em
And they're losin' their sha-a----are
          A                     D
Son, they all must be crazy out there


🎸 Chorus 2:
               G     A        D
'Cause they've never seen the Northern Lights
        G            A           D
They've never seen a hawk on the wing
        G          A              D       G  G/F# Em
They've never seen spring hit the Great Divi-i----ide
            A                           D
No, they've never heard old camp cookie sing


🎸 Outro:
    G              D
Yodelayee odelo-oh layee tee oh
     A              D
Deedalayee o--oh  dalayee
    G                D
Yodelayee-oh delo-oh layee tee oh
  A                 D
Delayee tee ay oh dalayee
         E7         G      A     D
Eye tee olayee  old-layee-olayee-oo