It's just another new years eve...

F  Gm F Gm

Gm7               0101  A7     Dm7          Dbm7 Cm7    
Don't look so sad, it's not so bad you know.
F9 2333           2211   0101   A7     Dm7  Dbm7 Cm7
It's just another night, that's all it is,
2333  2211  C7             Am7
It's not the first, it's not the worst you know,
Dm7   G7+ C9 0201
We've come through all the rest, we'll get through this.

Gm7               0101  A7     Dm7          Dbm7 Cm7    
We've made mistakes, but we've made good friends too.
F9 2333           2211   0101   A7     Dm7  Dbm7 Cm7
Remember all the nights we spent with them?
2333   2211  C7             Am7
And all our plans, who says they can't come true?
Dm7   G7+ C9 0201
Tonight's another chance to start again.

REFRAIN
B7         2211          C7
It's just another New Year's Eve,
Am7            D7
Another night like all the rest.
Gm7               C7
It's just another New Year's Eve,
2413
Let's make it the best.
B9 2324 Bb9   C7
It's just another New Year's Eve,
  Am D7
It's just another Auld Lang Syne,
    Gm7    Am7  F
But when we're through this New Year
2211 C7 F
You'll see, we'll be just fine.

Gm7               0101  A7     Dm7          Dbm7 Cm7    
We're not alone, we've got the world you know.
F9 2333             2211   0101 A7      Dm7  Dbm7 Cm7
And it won't let us down, just wait and see.
2333   2211  C7             Am7
And we'll grow old, but think how wise we'll grow.
Dm7   G7+ C9 0201
There's more you know, it's only New Year's Eve.

REPEAT REFRAIN

F Fsus4 Dm7 Gm7 C9

All of Me

Emadd9 = 0422

Em           Cmaj7                  G
What would I do without your smart mouth?
            D                  Em
Drawing me in, and kicking me out.
          C            G               D          Em
Got my head spinning, no kidding, I can't pin you down.
             Cmaj7                G
What's going on in that beautiful mind?
               D             Em
I'm on your magical mystery ride
        C              G                     D         Am
and I'm so dizzy, don't know what hit me, but I'll be alright.

Am              G
My heads under water
    D             Am
But I'm breathing fine
                G             D
You're crazy and I'm out of my mind

       G
'Cause all of me
       Emadd9  Em
Loves all of you
            C
Love your curves and all your edges
                   D
All your perfect imperfections
           G
Give your all to me
            Emadd9   Em
I'll give my all to you
         C
You're my end and my beginning
          D
Even when I lose I'm winning
                  Em   C      G   D
Cause I give you all, all of me
                 Em   C      G    D
And you give me all, all of you, oh


Em       C                       G
How many times do I have to tell you
                  D                     Em
Even when you're crying you’re beautiful too
              C           G         D                  Em
The world is beating you down, I'm around through every move
            C                G
You're my downfall, you're my muse
             D                        Em
My worst distraction, my rhythm and blues
               C            G        D            Am
I can't stop singing, its ringing, in my head for you

Am              G
My heads under water
    D             Am
But I'm breathing fine
                G             D
You're crazy and I'm out of my mind

       G
Cause all of me
       Emadd9  Em
Loves all of you
            C
Love your curves and all your edges
           C/D        D
All your perfect imperfections
           G
Give your all to me
            Emadd9   Em
I'll give my all to you
         C
You're my end and my beginning
            D
Even when I lose I'm winning
                  Em   C      G   D
Cause I give you all, all of me
                 Em   C      G    D
And you give me all, all of you, oh

Am            G
Cards on the table
       D             Am
We're both showing hearts
Am          G               D
Risking it all, though its hard

       G
Cause all of me
       Emadd9  Em
Loves all of you
            C
Love your curves and all your edges
           C/D        D
All your perfect imperfections
           G
Give your all to me
            Emadd9    Em
I'll give my all to you
         C
You're my end and my beginning
             D
Even when I lose I'm winning
                  Em   C      G   D
Cause I give you all, all of me
                 Em   C      G    D
And you give me all, all of you, oh

(repeat last 2 lines)

Wake Me Up When September Ends

Had to do the Ukulele chords for this one this of all months :-) I suggest playing Dsus4 as 0220 rather than 2230. Watch this guy for the riff: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cdhvi9hgMx4

Riff: Open G and 3 and 5 on E and A
Open G 2 and 5
Open G open E and 5
Open G 2 on C and 5
Open G open C, 8 and 7 together
Open G open C, 8 and 6 together



G           0222
Summer has come and passed
    0202           0235
The innocent can never last
C          Cm             G      G
Wake me up when September ends
G           0222
Like my fathers come to pass
    0202           0235
Seven years has gone so fast
C          Cm             G    G  -  G/F#  -
Wake me up when September ends


Bridge :
Em             Bm
Here comes the rain again
C                 G  -    G/F#  -
Falling from the stars
Em             Bm
Drenched in my pain again
  C             D
Becoming who we are


2nd verse/chorus :
G         Bm
As my memory rests
    Em           Dsus4
But never forget what I lost
C          Cm             G      G
Wake me up when September ends


Main riff x6
3rd verse/chorus :
G          Bm
Summer has come and passed
Em               Dsus4
The innocent can never last
C          Cm             G      G
Wake me up when September ends
G            Bm
Ring out the bells again
Em               Dsus4
Like we did when spring began
C          Cm             G     G  -    G/F#  -
Wake me up when september ends


Bridge :
Em             Bm
Here comes the rain again
C                 G  -    G/F#  -
Falling from the stars
Em             Bm
Drenched in my pain again
  C             Dsus4 D
Becoming who we are


4th verse/chorus :
G         Bm
As my memory rests
    Em           Dsus4
But never forget what I lost
C          Cm             G      G  -    G/F#  -
Wake me up when September ends


Solo :
[Em][B][C][G-G/F#]
[Em][B][C][D]
[D][D][D]

Main riff x4


5th verse/chorus :
G          Bm
Summer has come and passed
    Em           Dsus4
The innocent can never last
C          Cm             G      G
Wake me up when September ends
G               Bm
Like my fathers come to pass
Em              Dsus4
Seven years has gone so fast

Outro :
C          Cm             G    G
Wake me up when September ends
C          Cm             G    G
Wake me up when September ends
C          Cm             G    G>let ring
Wake me up when September ends

Mistakes

Mistakes, lyrics by Edgar Leslie & music Everett Lynton was a big hit of the 1920s. Here's a lovely ukulele version I've worked out by watching this and the help of ukulele underground. The uke is a Martin 5K.


Am/C Cmaj7 F C 1213 1203 0213 G7

C       Cmaj7                          B7    2320
we make mistakes when we worry
G        0222 G7      C
All over nothing at all
1203      1202                       Am/C
we make mistakes that bring heart
Am
aches and the
D7 (2223) 4223 5223
tear drops fall like
G7sus4  G7   0332
rain drops


C       Cmaj7
we make mistakes and feel
B7   2320
sorry
C                 C7
when we've made somebody
F    A7 0101  A7
blue          but
F
I made the
1313
greatest mis-
C
take
E7
of
A7 Am
all   when
D7
I said good
1313
bye
0012
to
5333  D7 1113  C
you

0007  harmonic top fret

Jolene cover by Sophie Ellis-Bextor

This is rather good I think :-)

Riff: hammer on from Am to Dm

Dm       F       C       Dm
Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene
     C                                   Dm
I`m begging of you please dont`t take my man
  Dm      F       C      Dm
Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene
   C                   Am               Dm
Please don`t take him just because you can

       Dm        F
Your beauty is beyond compare
       C                Dm
With flaming locks of auburn hair
       C             Am              Dm
With ivory skin and eyes of emerald green
       Dm             F
Your smile is like a breath of spring
       C                  Dm
Your voice is soft like summer rain
       C         Am             Dm
And i cannot compete with you, Jolene

    Dm             F
He talks about you in his sleep
     C                Dm
There`s nothing i can do to keep
     C               Am               Dm
From crying when he calls your name, Jolene
    Dm            F
And i can easily understand
    C                 Dm
How you could easily take my man
    C               Am                   Dm
But you don`t know what he means to me, Jolene

  Dm      F       C       Dm
Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene
      C                                Dm
I`m begging of you please don`t take my man
  Dm      F       C       Dm
Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene
  C                    Am             Dm
Please don`t take him just because you can

   Dm              F
you could have your choice of men
    C              Dm
But i could never love again
    C           Am          Dm
He`s the only one for me, Jolene
   Dm               F
I had to have this talk with you
   C            Dm
My happines depends on you
   C            Am           Dm
Whatever you decide to do, Jolene


Jolene, Jolene ,Jolene, Jolene
I`m begging of you please don`t take my man
Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene
Please don`t take him even though you can

Chelsea Hotel No.1 and No.2

Chelsea Hotel No.2 by Leonard Cohen is pretty well known, and covered recently by Lana Del Rey.

My favourite version is by Rufus Wainwright III who is a friend of Leonard's son I believe.

Whatever became of Chelsea Hotel No.1? It's here.

   C                     G              F           C
I remember you well in the Chelsea Hotel,
                  C            G                  Am
You were talking so brave and so sweet.
C                G                    F      C
Giving me head on the unmade bed
                  F                                 G
While the limousines wait in the street
Am                                         F
Those were the reasons and that was New York,
                  C                    E                     Am
We were running for the money and the flesh
         F                                         C
And that was called love for the workers in song,
                  F                                   G
Probably still is for those of them left.

               Am                     F
And then you got away, didn't you, baby?
         C                      Em             Am
You just turned your back on the crowd.
         F                           C
You got away, I never once heard you say,
   F                            C               F                C
"I need you, I don't need you, I need you, I don't need you,"
       F                  Am        G
And all of that jiving around.

     C                       G           F             C
I remember you well in the Chelsea Hotel,
         C            G           Am
You were famous, your heart was a legend.
C         G           F      C
You told me again you preferred handsome men,
           F                     G
But for me you would make an exception.
Am                         F
And clenching your fist for the ones like us
        C               Em             Am
Who are oppressed by the figures of beauty,
    F                       C
You fixed yourself, you said, "Well, never mind,
         F                      G
We are ugly but we have the music."

CHORUS

        C       G               F         C
I don't mean to suggest that I loved you the best
        C             G           Am
I can't keep track of each fallen robin.
    C          G           F       C
I remember you well in the Chelsea Hotel,
     F                          G (Not Played)
That all, I don't think of you that often.

Orange Is The New Black Theme - Regina Spektor, The Second Time Around

Originally in Bbm, by Regina Ilyinichna Spektor (No relation to Phil). I've done it in Dm, better for my voice.

Dm
The animals, the animals
C                                  Dm
Trapped, trapped, trapped 'till the cage is full
The cage is full, Stay awake
C                Dm
In the dark, count mistakes
The light was off but now it's on
C                         Dm
Searching the ground for a bitter song
The sun is out, the day is new
C
And everyone is waiting, waiting on you

        Gm           F   Am  Gm  Dm
And you've got ti                   me
    Gm    F   Am  Gm  Dm
And you've got ti       me

Bb               F
Think of all the roads
Bb                 F
Think of all their crossings
Bb              F
Taking steps is easy
                  Dm
Standing still is hard
Bb                 F
Remember all their faces
Bb                 F
Remember all their voices
Bb            F
Everything is different
                 Dm
The second time around

Bb Am Gm F Dm
Bb Am Gm F Dm
Bb Am Gm F Dm

Dm
The animals, the animals
C                                  Dm
Trapped, trapped, trapped 'till the cage is full
The cage is full, Stay awake
C           Dm
In the dark, count mistakes
The light was off but now it's on
C                         Dm
Searching the ground for a bitter song
The sun is out, the day is new
C
And everyone is waiting, waiting on you

    Gm    F   Am  Gm  Dm
And you've got ti       me
    Gm    F   Am  Gm  Dm
And you've got ti       me
    Bb     Am  Gm  Fm  Dm
And you've got ti       me

Time in a Bottle on Ukulele: X-Men and Quicksilver

For me the best bit in the latest X-Men movie was when Quicksilver runs around a room so fast that time appears to stop. The music played over this sequence is the poignant "Time In A Bottle". Which is the perfect choice since the singer Jim Croce had died in the 1973, the year the movie is set, aged only 30 in a plane crash. This song was Number One that year. The movie all about changing the past and so the song is perfect.

The sequence is also visually stunning. See the movie, it's worth is for just this. 

Anyhow, here are the chords. 

I don't strum these but kind of pluck them all at once in a kind of waltz (ONE two three) time. 

It's hard to transcribe, I hope it makes sense. 

By the way, the song also featured in the Muppet Show. Watch the age of the Muppet.

Intro:

7550 6550  5550 0232 0231 on e: 0-1-3-1-3-1

open g,  c and a together 4-5-7-8/10-8-7  

    2210        2110          2010   4210

If I could save time in a bottle

    0201                          A7  1-2-4-7-5-4 on c and a

The first thing that I'd like to do

      2210        2110    32xx     02xx    2210

Is to save every day till eternity passes away

        Gm              A7

Just to spend them with you.

    2210        2110          2010   4210

If I could make days last forever

    0201                          A7  1-2-4-7-5-4

If words could make wishes come true

      2210        2110    32xx     02xx    2210

I'd save every day like a treasure and then

        Gm              A7

Again, I would spend them with you.

          D              Dmaj7

But there never seems to be enough time

4220                 D                    G       Gmaj7 Em7 A7

To do the things you want to do Once you find them

      D             Dmaj7

I've looked around enough to know

    4220               D  G         Gmaj7 Em7 A7

That you're the one I want to go through time with.

    2210        2110          2010   4210

If I had a box just for wishes

    0201                          A7  1-2-4-7-5-4 on c and a

And dreams that had never come true

      2210        2110    32xx     02xx   

The box would be empty except for the memory

   2210          Gm            A7

Of how they were answered by you

          D              Dmaj7

But there never seems to be enough time

4220                 D                    G       Gmaj7 Em7 A7

To do the things you want to do Once you find them

      D             Dmaj7

I've looked around enough to know

    4220               D  G         Gmaj7 Em7 A7

That you're the one I want to go through time with.

2 on C with hammer on 1 E 

2 on C with 5th on E and A

Finish on 7555

La Vie En Rose

This was recently in the US TV show How I Met Your Mother. The version there is in G and English. The show, if you've never heard of it, is the long version of a father telling his children how he met their mother. The story is so long you never see her or get any closer to finding how he actually met her until many episodes in. Here, he doesn't even meet her, but hears her singing on the next balcony in a hotel. The singer is Cristin Milioti who appeared in the Broadway version of Once, the Irish romantic movie, full or lovely music too.

Translation is a tricky thing. Strictly the title means "The Life in Pink". Edith Piaf's 1946 version is of course definitive. She wrote the words to convey something like "I see life through rose-coloured glasses" but it is more about love and passion that just simple optimism. It is life and love itself.

I think it's best to try and sing it in French, the most romantic language of all. Except for Klingon.

My versions below are in C, so here's Andrea Bocelli singing it in that key. He happens to be blind and it's fascinating to see how he can so effortlessly sing and manoeuvre around the stage. Bravo.

I also like Jack Nicholson's version.

Here's three versions. The original, the most common version in English, which is not a translation at all and then my own effort which tried to capture the meaning of the words, and doesn't bother with the rhyme. I've also written it with a male voice, rather than female.


0112 C               A7  
Des yeux qui font baisser les miens,
 Dm7                          G7
Un rire qui se perd sur sa bouche,
             C      Gm  
Voila le portrait sans retouche
      A7         Dm7 G7
De la femme, auquel j'appartiens

CHORUS

C                Cmaj7
Quand elle me prend dans ses bras
                    C6
elle me parle tout bas,
  2323 Dm7 G7
Je vois la vie en rose.
Dm7                      G7
Elle me dit des mots d'amour,
                     Dm7
Des mots de tous les jours,
   G7 G7+           C   Dm7  G7
Et ça me fait quelque chos
C             Cmaj7
Elle est entre dans mon coeur
                C6
Une  part de bonheur
        C7        F
Dont je connais la cause.


1213                     C
C'est lui (toi) pour moi, Moi pour lui (toi) Dans la vie,
2323 or D7     Dm7      G7    1212
Elle me l'a dit, l'a jure pour la vie.
C                    Cmaj7
Et des que je l'apercois
       Dm7
Alors je sens en moi
G7         C 0101  Dm7 G7
Mon coeur qui bat


0112 C                A7             Dm7                    G7
Des nuits d'amour a ne plus en finir, Un grand bonheur qui prend sa place
    C                   Gm       A7                Dm7  G7
Des enuis, des chagrins s'effacent, Heureux, heureux a en mourir.

CHORUS

0112 C                A7  
With eyes which lower mine,
 Dm7                          G7
A smile's lost on her lips,
             C       Gm   
That's the untouched portrait
      A7          Dm7 G7
Of the girl I belong to.

C            Cmaj7
When I take her in my arms
                    C6
and she whispers soft to me,
   2323 Dm7  G7
I see la vie en rose.

Dm7                       G7
She declares her love to me
                     Dm7
just everyday words of love
   G7  G7+            C   Dm7  G7
And they do something to me.

C              Cmaj7
She has placed into my heart
                C6
A tiny speck of joy
        C7        F
of which I know the cause.

1213                      C
It's her for me, me for her, all my life
2323 or D7      Dm7       G7    1212
She said to me, swore to me, "forever".

C                Cmaj7
And as soon as I see her
        Dm7
Then I feel in me
G7         C  0101  Dm7 G7
my beating heart


0112       C                              A7  
May the nights of loving never end,
 Dm7                          G7
A great joy which takes the place
             C       Gm   
of trouble, grief, they are removed
      A7                   Dm7 G7
I could die, could die of it


0112    C                            A7            Dm7                                  G7
I thought that love was just a word They sang about in love songs I heard
                    C          Gm                     A7                       Dm7 G7
It took your kisses to reveal that I was wrong and love is real.

C                                      Cmaj7
Hold me close and hold me fast,
                                 C6
The magic spell you cast,
           2323     Dm7 G7
This is la vie en rose.            
Dm7                      G7
When you kiss me heaven sighs,
                     Dm7
And though I close my eyes
         G7+ C   2323  Dm7  G7
I see la vie en rose.

C                                      Cmaj7
When you press me to your heart,
                   C6
I'm in a world apart.
    C7                            F
A world where roses bloom;
1213                                                     C
And when you speak angels sing from above;
2323 or D7                     Dm7         G7    1212
Every day words seem to turn into love songs.

C                                   Cmaj7
Give your heart and soul to me,
C6             Dm7
And life will always be
G7            C 2323  Dm7 G7
La Vie en Rose.

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

One Day Like This - Elbow

The trick with this song is to let it build, and avoid every verse sounding like the last. build slowly, like Hey Jude.
 

Nice version from the West Cork Ukulele Orchestra as well

(Single strums)
F 2010
Drinking in the morning sun
F/A# 2011
Blinking in the morning sun
F/C 2013
Shaking off the heavy one
F/A# 2011
Heavy like a loaded gun

F
What made me behave that way?
F/A#
Using words I never say
F/C
I can only think it must be love
F/A#
Oh, anyway
F/A#                           F
It's looking like a beautiful day

(strum with more energy, still light)

F
Someone tell me how I feel
F/A#
It's silly wrong but vivid right
F/C
Oh, kiss me like the final meal
F/A#
Yeah, kiss me like we die tonight

F
Cause holy cow I love your eyes
F/A#
And only now I see the light
F
Yeah Lying with me half-awake
F/A#
Oh, anyway
F/A#                           F
It's looking like a beautiful day

(more energy)

(Same as 1st verse)
When my face
Is chamois-creased
If you think
I'll wink, I did
Laugh politely
At repeats
Yeah, kiss me
When my lips are thin

(lots more energy)
Cause holy cow
I love your eyes
And only now
I see you like
Yeah, lying with me
Half-awake
Stumbling over
What to say
Well, anyway
It's looking
Like a beautiful day

5553                     3331
So throw those curtains wide
     x565
One day like this
                5553
A year'd see me right

The way you make me feel (groovy version)

I was sent this by a twitter friend, and it is a cool groove daddy-o! Thanks Tabitha. The lyrics below are closer to MJs original, but season to taste as they say.

 Eb = 3331 G# = x343 Bb = 3211

F          Eb             F          Eb
Pretty baby with those high heels on
F           Eb               F      Eb
You give me fever like [STOP] I've never, ever known
F             Eb          F     Eb
You're just a product of loveliness
F          Eb              F          Eb
I like the groove of your [STOP] walk, your talk, your dress
Bb           G#          Bb      G#
I feel your fever from miles around
Bb             G#        Bb             C
I'll pick you up in my car and we'll paint the town
F            Eb        F       Eb
Just kiss me baby and tell me twice
F               Eb       F
That you're the one for me

Chorus:
                    F                 Eb       F
The way you make me feel
           Eb       F              Eb       F
You really turn me on
             Eb         F                  Eb         F
You knock me off of my feet
          Eb        F               Eb        F      Eb
My lonely days are gone


F          Eb              F      Eb
I like the feelin' you're givin' me
F            Eb        F      Eb
Just hold me baby and I'm in ecstasy
F          Eb            F       Eb
Oh I'll be workin' from nine to five
F          Eb         F        Eb
To buy you things to keep you by my side
Bb       G#          Bb      G#
I never felt so in love before
Bb            G#            Bb          C
Just promise baby, you'll love me forevermore
F           Eb           F    Eb
I swear I'm keepin' you satisfied
F                Eb       F
Cause you're the one for me

Chorus

Bb       G#          Bb      G#
I never felt so in love before
Bb           G#          Bb      G#
I feel your fever from miles around
Bb            G#            Bb          C
Just promise baby, you'll love me forevermore
F           Eb          F    Eb
I swear I'm keepin' you satisfied
F                Eb       F
Cause you're the one for me

Chorus x2

Eb              F         Eb              F
Ain't nobody's business, ain't nobody's business
Eb              F         Eb              F            Eb        F
Ain't nobody's business, ain't nobody's business but mine and my baby
        Eb  F  Eb             F
hee hee!      hee hee! ooh!

Eb          F   Eb            F
Give it to me, give me some time
Eb             F     Eb                     F
Come on be my girl, I want you to be with mine
Eb              F         Eb              F            Eb        F
Ain't nobody's business, ain't nobody's business but mine and my baby's
Eb  F            Eb
    Go on girl!   aaow!

St. Patrick's Day: Danny Boy

Another sad song of longing and death, but beautiful all the same.

It was used in a fantastic scene in Miller's Crossing by the Coen Brothers.
This isn't exactly as I remember it...
C             C7                        F      Fm
Oh Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling
C                       Am                D7  G
From glen to glen and down the mountain side
C                    Cmaj7               F    Fm
The summer’s gone and all the roses dying
C          Am           Dm     G      C
‘Tis you, ’tis you must go and I must bide

G            Am       C         F         C
But come ye back when summer’s in the meadow
G            Am   G  Am          F         D7   G
Or when the valley’s hushed and white with snow
            C        F              C Em Am Fm
And I’ll be here in sunshine or in shadow
C        Am            Dm      G        C
Oh Danny boy, oh Danny boy I love you so

C               C7                   F    Fm
But if he come and all the roses dying
          C        Am             D7 G
And I am dead, as dead I well may be
C                Cmaj7                     F    Fm
You’ll come and find the place where I am lying
C              Am     F   G         C
And kneel and say an Ave there for me
G           Am           C        F      C
And I shall feel, though soft you tread above me
G           Am          F            D7 G
And then my grave will richer, sweeter be
              C         F                C Em Am Fm
For you will bend and tell me that you love me
C            Am            Dm      G        C
And I shall rest in peace until you come to me

St Patrick's Day: Carrickfergus

Carrickfergus, like many Irish songs, has English words overlaid on an older Gaelic song. In this case, it's likely a few hundred years old, but the modern version only dates form the 19th century and the Industrial revolution. Songs have a long life, like trees.

It is interesting that the original Irish song was a baudy happy one about wanting to shag a noblewoman, but the modern English one is one of sad longing, nostalgia and alcoholism.

I'd sing it myself but I've a cold, so here's my favourite version:


D      Em  A          D      Bm
I wish I was  in Carrickfergus,
         Em       A        D    Dsus4
only for nights, nights in Ballygran
             Em  A            D     Bm
I would swim over the deepest ocean,
         Em    A          D   Dsus4
the deepest ocean, for my love to find

                D   Bm                   A                
But the sea is wide, and I cannot swim over
                Bm  D             A
And neither have I the wings to fly
             Em  A            D     Bm
I wish I could find me a handy boatman
         Em    A       D   Dsus4
To ferry me over, to my love and die.

 D      Em    A                        D      Bm
My childhood days, bring back sad reflections
         Em       A           D    Dsus4
of happy times, spent so long ago
             Em  A            D     Bm
my boyhood friends, and my own relations
         Em    A                  D   Dsus4
have all passed on now, like the melting snow

        D      Bm                     A                
but I'll spend my days, in endless roaming
              Bm   D            A
soft is the grass, my bed is free
               Em  A              D  
oh to be back now, in Carrickfergus
               Em      A              D
on that long road down, to the salty sea


    D     Em   A               D      Bm
and in Kilkenny, there it is reported,
                     Em     A                D   Dsus4
there are marble stones there, as black as any  ink
              Em      A           D        Bm
With gold and silver, I would support her,
                 Em   A                  D     G D
But I'll sing no more now, 'till I get a drink.


        D       Bm           G      A                
For I'm drunk today, and I'm seldom sober,
           Bm D       G       A
A handsome rover from town to town
            Em       A            D        Dsus4
Ah, but I'm sick now, my days are numbered,
             Em    A       G      D
Come all you young men and lay me down.
             Em    A       G      D
Come all you young men and lay me down.

Far From Any Road (True Detective HBO Theme)

A great theme for a great show, thanks to T Bone Burnett's choices and of course the Handsome Family who wrote/perform it. Incidentally, it is about a cactus that only blooms for a few hours one night of the year. Creosote bushes are indeed poisonous. My Strum here is strum down fast, then down slow then up fast, then up down up fast. It is hard to write a strum! I think it sounds like Tick Burrr tock, tock tick tock. Where tick is down and tock is up. Make sense? Nope. That's why it is better to learn these things from someone directly or just keep playing around until you get something you like that fits.

I've done it in Cm, the original is Am, but I can't sing that low. Now thinking I should have done it in Dm...


I play Cm as 0333 and D# as 3331. with G# I play x343, it is the easiest way.

Cm              G
From the dusty mesa
Fm                    Cm
Her looming shadow grows
Cm              G
Hidden in the branches
Fm                 Cm
of the poison creosote

         D#
She twines her spines up slowly
    A#
Towards the boiling sun
     Fm
And when I touched her skin
      G#             Cm
My fingers ran with blood

 Cm              G
In the hushing dusk
          Fm              Cm
Under a swollen silver moon
    Cm           G
I came walking with the wind
    Fm                 Cm
To watch the cactus bloom

       D#
A strange hunger haunted me,
       A#
The looming shadows danced
    Fm
I fell down to the thorny brush
     G#              Cm
And felt a trembling hand

  Cm                   G
When the last light warms the rocks
          Fm         Cm
And the rattlesnakes unfold
  Cm               G
Mountain cats will come
    Fm             Cm
to drag away your bones

      D#
And rise with me forever
   A#
Across the silent sand
         Fm
And the stars will be your eyes
         G#                 Cm
And the wind will be my hands

Big Yellow Lorry, or Taxi

Yep, I know you were expecting Big Yellow Taxi, but this song is about the same thing: destroying something precious that can't be replaced. In this case, it is Moore Street in Dublin and the Paris Bakery there. The plan is to build another shopping mall and destroy an historic, cosmopolitan and thriving part of Dublin. More details here.

Well, here are the lyrics in case your interested. Feel free to put Joni's version in instead!


C hammer on 2 on G, D hammer on 2 on A, G hammer on 5 on G

C                                  G
NAMA paved Moore Street, put in a parking lot,
               C         D              G
Shut down the bakery, so some guy could buy himself a yacht

CHORUS

 G (7775)
Don't it always seem to go
          C (5543)                            G
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
       C                 D                G
NAMA paved Moore Street, put in a parking lot
  G 7775
(Choo     bop bop bop bop, choo     bop bop bop bop)

C                                           G
They took all the buildings, put 'em in a big museum
               C                    D             G
Then they charged all the people €19.16 just to see 'em

 G (7775)
Don't it always seem to go
          C (5543)                            G
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
       C                 D                G
NAMA paved Moore Street, put in a parking lot
  G 7775
(Choo     bop bop bop bop, choo     bop bop bop bop)

C                                               G
Hey Dublin City Council, put away those Bored Pleanalas now,
               C                    D                   G
Give me stalls full of apples and leave the Paris Bakery,
Please,

 G (7775)
Don't it always seem to go
          C (5543)                            G
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
       C                 D                G
NAMA paved Moore Street, put in a parking lot
  G 7775
(Choo     bop bop bop bop, choo     bop bop bop bop)

C                                  G
Late last night, I heard a wrecking ball,
               C         D                   G
and a big yellow lorry, took away the market stalls

 G (7775)
Don't it always seem to go
          C (5543)                            G
That you don't know what you had till it's gone
       C                 D                G
NAMA paved Moore Street, put in a parking lot
       C                 D                G
NAMA paved Moore Street, put in a parking lot
       C                 D                G
NAMA paved Moore Street, put in a parking lot