The River - with harmonica intro

If you're new to harmonicas the basic, cheap harmonica is all you need for this. A D harmonica and a diatonic one, which most are anyway, as opposed to the chromatic. The diatonic is your typical blues-harp used by Bob Dylan etc. The chromatic has a button on the side that lets you add half-notes to the scale. More for Jazz. Stevie Wonder uses one of these. You'll not be needing that.  This is in The Boss's original key.

I just read a great article about him here.

The way to read this is d = draw in breath, b = blow. 4 means the fourth hole from the left, which is the low notes end. Bend all the 4's. To learn how bend a note, it's just trial and error, but there are videos on youtube for this.



Em         G        D       C    
4d    5b  5d  6d 6b 5d 4d,
Em    G       C
6d 6b 5d 6b 4d


  Em                                 G                      D                             C
I come from down in the valley   Where mister, when you're young
       Em                       G  C                        G
They bring you up to do like your daddy done
  C                                                                   G                D    Em
Me and Mary we met in high school  When she was just seventeen
         Am                                G                                              C
We'd drive out of this valley down to where the fields were green

               Em               C             D                           G
We'd go down to the river And into the river we'd dive
      Em                C             D   C
Oh down to the river we’d ride

       Em                G                     D                               C
Then I got Mary pregnant  And man, that was all she wrote
       Em                G                      C                                       G
And for my 19th birthday I got a union card and a wedding coat
       C                                                            G              D       Em
We went down to the courthouse  And the judge put it all to rest
    Am
No wedding day smiles, no walk down the aisle
     G                                 C
No flowers, no wedding dress

                                     Em          C
That night we went down to the river
        D                           G
And into the river we'd dive
       Em              C                   D   C
Oh down to the river we did ride

{Harmonica}
Em         G        D       C  
4d    5b  5d  6d 6b 5d 4d,
Em    G       C
6d 6b 5d 6b 4d   (Just the same as intro, but not 100% accurate, if I work it out, I'll put it here)

          Em                     G                        D               C
I got a job working construction for the Johnstown Company
      Em                              G                      C                    G
But lately there ain't been much work on account of the economy
    C
Now all them things that seemed so important
              G                 D            Em
Well mister they vanished right into the air
           Am                                                     G                           C
Now I just act like I don't remember   Mary acts like she don't care

         Em                                      G                           D
But I remember us riding in my brother's car   Her body tan and wet down at
     C               Em                                       G
the reservoir    At night on them banks I'd lie awake
                       C                      G
And pull her close just to feel each breath she'd take
           C
Now those memories come back to haunt me
           G           D      Em
They haunt me like a curse
       Am                                                    G                     C
Is a dream a lie if it don't come true    Or is it something worse

                         Em             C                         D                        G
That sends me down to the river   Though I know the river is dry
                         Em              C       D   C
That sends me down to the river tonight
 Em          C        D       G
Down to the river my baby and I
    Em          C                  D  C
Oh down to the river we ride     Ooh..
Em  C  D  G       Em  C

AC/DC Back In Black for ukulele

With Malcolm young of AC/DC potentially no longer able to play in the band, it may be the end of the road for the favourite group of teenage rockers everywhere.

Back in Black is one of my favourites. Rock on Malcolm, rock on.

[Opening riff:
These chords: A G D
Then hammer off 3rd fret on A, 3rd on E 2nd on C.

Then A G D
Then play open E, 1st fret on C, then 2nd, 3rd 4th.

Keep that up through verse.]

Back in black
I hit the sack
It's been too long I'm glad to be back
Yes I'm, let loose
From the noose
That's kept me hanging around
I keep looking at the sky
'Cause it's gettin' me high
Forget the hearse 'cause I'll never die
I got nine lives
Cats eyes
Usin' every one of them and running wild

[Play these chords over next bit.]

D  A  E  D-E, D  A  E  D-E, C  G  D  C-D, C  G  D  C-D
    D  A  E  D-E, D  A  E  D-E, C  G G G
   
'Cause I'm back
Yes, I'm back
Well, I'm back
Yes, I'm back
Well, I'm back, back
(Well) I'm back in black
Yes, I'm back in black

Back in the back
Of a Cadillac
Number one with a bullet, I'm a power pack
Yes, I'm in a bang
With a gang
They've got to catch me if they want me to hang
Cause I'm back on the track
And I'm beating the flack
Nobody's gonna get me on another rap
So look at me now
I'm just makin' my play
Don't try to push your luck, just get out of my way

'Cause I'm back
Yes, I'm back
Well, I'm back
Yes, I'm back
Well, I'm back, back
(Well) I'm back in black
Yes, I'm back in black
Well, I'm back, Yes I'm back
Well, I'm back, Yes I'm back
Well, I'm back, back
Well I'm back in black
Yes I'm back in black
Hooo yeah
Ohh yeah
Yes I am
Oooh yeah, yeah Oh yeah
Back in now
Well I'm back, I'm back
Back, I'm back
Back, I'm back
Back, I'm back
Back, I'm back
Back
Back in black
Yes I'm back in black
Outta sight

The Ring of the Lords

The Lord of the Rings, but from the Orcs point of view...


Dm
We were strong, we were free,
we had skills, liberty,
F                           Am
we had no lords, no need to work,
Dm
Night and day.

Dm
Our orclings went to schools
Learned knowledge,
Not just rules,
          F
We could hope,
        Am
And holiday,
     G
And live.

A7 (0100 and 0200 and 0110)
Then the evil elves came.
They took our power,
made us slaves
to their beauty and their art,
              0110 A7
but just for them.

Dm
Now we were ignorant and in debt,
trapped and yet,
    F            Am
to them we were nothing.
                    Dm
They called us beasts.

A7 0200 0100
Free to work, In ignorance,
Free to smoke and drink and dance,
just as long as we know our place, under them.

Dm
Then the revolution came,
lead by one, who gave us hope,
F               Am
Sauron shone like the sun,
           Dm
We fought back!

Dm
We build machines,
Learned to craft,
We had music, we had art
               F
These were no longer,
           Am           Dm
Just controlled by the elves.

A7
But one dressed in white,
with a staff, some called  Gandalf,
he sent us back,
to the dark ages,
again.

Dm
Now we're trapped, no longer free,
We've no power or industry,
F                           Am
Pretty elves look down on us,
Dm
Every day.

A7
No Elf insurance,
On a back to Orc scheme,
I have drug hobbit,
One of the squeezed middle Earth, middle class.

Dm
But we still dance, in a ring
to remember, one precious thing,
          F
that one day,
          Am
we'll be free,
Dm
of the lords.

(Sing twice)

The Rains of Castamere (Game of Thrones) - Dedicated to King Joffrey...

From Game of Thrones, the fantasy book series and the television series. This song is sung by the Lannisters, one of the pre-eminent royal houses of this fictional kingdom. In it, they are rich, arrogant and ruthless.

Interestingly, there are parallels with the real house of Lancaster who fought the War of the Roses in 15th century England. In that, the Lancasters fought the Yorks. In this fictional world, the Yorks resemble the Starks.

This song is a cautionary tale, sung from the point of view of Lord Reyne: the "proud lord". His hall was called Castamere. The Lannisters were the leige lords to the Reynes. In it, Lord Reyne taunts the Lannister's lord and says he will no longer pay homage to him, thinking him weak.

The coat of arms of both houses is a lion rampant and sinister. By which I mean up on their back paws and looking to the left. But the difference is the Lannister lion is gold and the Reyne one red. So Lord Reyne says that his cat's claws are just as sharp, and one cat is as good as another.

Big mistake. The Lannisters wiped out the Reynes. So now it rains over their hall, but all the Reynes are gone. A pun of course. But with a sinister message. Don't cross the Lannisters.

In the books and television series, the song is sung at crucial moments. It is played just before a large number of the Stark clan are murdered at a wedding. The lord of that hall Lord Frey was bribed to turn on the Starks.

By killing them after they had eaten in his hall was a serious taboo. The Guest Right is very important. I feel it will not auger well for the Freys or the Lannisters.

The Sigur Rós version is interesting...


Dm

And who are you, the proud lord said,
C
that I must bow so low?
F
Only a cat of a different coat,
       Gm A7
that's all the truth I know.
Dm
In a coat of gold or a coat of red,
C
a lion still has claws,
F
And mine are long and sharp, my lord,
    Gm Dm
as long and sharp as yours
      Dm                  Am
And so he spoke, and so he spoke,
      Dm             Am
that lord of Castamere,
       Bb Gm
But now the rains weep o'er his hall,
       Bb       A7     Dm
with no one there to hear.
       Bb Gm
Yes now the rains weep o'er his hall,
      Bb     A7      Dm
and not a soul to hear.

Sing twice, slow then fast. Or the other way around if that takes your fancy.

Occupy Dame Street ended 2 years ago

Wow, two years ago Occupy Dame Street and most of the Occupy movement died. It was exciting, burned fast and bright, then burned out. It's purpose was to give people a voice for their frustration and and anger at what was happening to most of the western world due to greed, lax regulation and downright criminality. It showed people would not just sit back and do nothing. It showed me that if people get pissed off enough, they will organise, and in the past two years we've seen real change all over the world, most recently in Ukraine.

I've a lot of good memories of it.

Yes, More Ukulele Jokes

What's the difference between a dead chicken in the road, and a dead ukulele player in the road?
There's a remote chance the chicken was on its way to a gig.

What do you call someone who hangs around with musicians?
A ukulele player.

How do you make ukulele players complain?
Pay them.

How many ukulele players does it take to screw in a light bulb?
No one knows, no one ever looks at them.

What's the difference between a ukulele player and god?
god doesn't think he's a ukulele player

How many ukulele players does it take to change a light bulb?
"Oops, i broke it!"

What did the ukulele player get on his I.Q. Test?
Saliva.

What's the similarity between a ukulele player and a philosopher?
They both perceive time as an abstract concept.

Why was the ukulele player arrested?
He was in treble

What is the difference between a ukulele and a hoover?
You have to plug one of them in before it sucks.

What's the difference between a SCUD missile and a bad ukulele player?
A bad ukulele player can kill you.

How many ukulele players does it take to pave a driveway?
Seven - if you lay them out correctly.

Perfect Pitch: When you throw a ukulele  into the toilet and it doesn't hit the sides.

What's the perfect weight of a ukulele player?
Three and one-half pounds, including the urn.

What do all great ukulele players have in common?
They're all dead

What do you do if you run over a ukulele player?
Back up.

How do you reduce wind-drag on a ukulele player's car?
Take the Domino's Pizza sign off the roof

How do you get a ukulele player out of a tree?
Cut the noose

What do you throw a drowning ukulele player?
His amp.

How do you get a three piece ukulele group to play in time?
Shoot two of therm.

What do you call a ukulele player with a college degree?
Night manager at McDonalds