Ballad Of Devils Backbone Tavern chords by Todd Snider

Capo 2nd Fret (Optional)

C             A                  D         G      C
Old Miss Virgy tended bar at this shack out in the hills
 C                    A              D7              G
It never made her any money boys but paid of all her bills
 C                     C7                   F
Now she must have been 80 years old but her heart was warm
        D7
And her beer was cold
      C                     A
She gave away more than she ever sold
D       G       C
Smiling all the time
-----------------------------------------------------------
 C                  A            D     G      C
I used to sing off in the corner every Friday night
  C                A        D7                  G
To a loud crowd of cowboys, bikers and bar room fights
 C                       C7
They were drinking beer, carrying on,
      F                        D7
not a one of them listening to one of my songs
    C                  A
But old Miss Virgy was singing along
             D        G      C
She said she knew 'em all by heart
-------------------------------------------------------------
  C                A             D             G       C
And then one night after closing she poured me another beer
  C                        A
She said "Come on over and sit down you little shit
  D7                        G
I got something you need to hear"
C                         C7
She said "Life ain't easy getting through
F                             D7
everybody's gonna make things tough on you
          C                         A
But I can tell you right now if you dig what you do,
          D     G       C
they will never get you down"
-----------------------------------------------------------
         C                   A
She said life's too short to worry
D          G       C
Life's too long to wait
 C               A
Too short not to love everybody
 D7                G
Life's too long to hate
         C                         C7
I meet a lot of men who haggle and finagle all the time
F                             D7
Trying to save a nickel maybe make a dime
 C         A                   D       G       C
Not me boy no sireee, you know I ain't got the time
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  C                  A                       D      G        C
Now I ain't seen Ol' Virgy I guess it's been almost eighteen years.
 C                            A                  D7                 G
I've been bumming around this country singing my songs for tips and beers
        C
Now the nights are long
    C7
The travelin's tough
F                     D7
Hotels stink, and the pay sucks
C                      A                D     G       C
But I can't dig what I do enough, so it never gets me down
--------------------------------------------------------------
  C                       A
I say life's too short to worry
 D         G       C
Life's too long to wait
C                     A
Too short not to love everybody
D7                G
Life's too long to hate
         C                         C7
I meet a lot of men who haggle and finagle all the time
F                             D7
Trying to save a nickel maybe make a dime
C       A          D       G       C
Not me, no sireee, I ain't got the time