Green Island chords by Christy Moore

Verse 1:

  F   C      Am      F
The island lies like a leaf upon the sea
   F   C        Am       F
Green island like a leaf new fallen from the tree
G       Am
Green turns to gold
  Dm       C        G
As morning breezes gently shake the barley
Em     G   Am
Bending the yellow corn
G       Am
Green turns to gold,
    Dm       C       G
There´s purple shadows on the distant mountains
    Em     G   Am
And the sun in the yellow corn

Verse 2:

   F       C       Am        F
They came in their longships from lands beyond the sea
   F       C        Am        F
They came in their longships, they saw the land was green
G      Am
Wind in the barley,
Dm        C       G
Trout and salmon leaping in the rivers
Em     G   Am
Sun in the yellow corn
G    Am
Leaping a shore
   Dm          C        G
They slaughtered those who laboured in the barley
Em      G     Am
Scything them down like corn


Verse 3:

  F     C        Am      F
The longships sailed away and new invaders came
   F      C       Am         F
With long bow and lance bringing death in England´s name
   G       Am
With sword and with mace
     Dm         C     G
They went reaping through the fields of barley
   Em      G   Am
They plundered the yellow corn
G       Am
Crop followed crop
  Dm        C         G
And prospered in the killing fields of barley
    Em     G     Am
In the harvest of new young corn


Verse 4:

F    C         Am       F
Marching down the years the men of war they came
   F    C         Am     F
With bombs, assassin´s bullets, c.s gas and guns
G        Am
Ghosts from the past
  Dm       C           G
Are chasing shadows through the fields of barley
Em      G   Am
Hiding in the yellow corn
G      Am
Nine hundred years
    Dm        C          G
They´ve tried to trap the wind that shakes the barley
    Em     G   Am
And the sun in the yellow corn


Verse 5:

  F   C      Am      F
The island lies like a leaf upon the sea
   F   C        Am       F
Green island like a leaf new fallen from the tree
G       Am
Green turns to gold
  Dm       C        G
As morning breezes gently shake the barley
Em     G   Am
Bending the yellow corn
G      Am
No force on earth
  Dm      C          G
Can ever trap the wind that shakes the barley
    Em     G   Am
Or the sun in the yellow corn