Rhythm of the Blues Tabs & Lyrics by Mary Chapin Carpenter

Rhythm of the Blues

guitar tabs lyrics

Mary Chapin Carpenter

RHYTHM OF THE BLUES (Mary-Chapin Carpenter)
-------------------------------------------
[This song is actually in F. These chords with the lyrics are the chords
that Mary-Chapin Carpenter plays; she has a capo on the 3rd fret and plays
it in D. John Jennings plays it in C with a capo at the fifth fret.]

D A Em7 Em7 D A Em7 Em7
[intro]

D A Em7 Em7
I can hear the rain come down, I can listen with my heart
D A Em7 Em7
I can see with both eyes closed in the dark
G G (D) G G
Sleep will come in just a while but till it does I choose
D Bm G G
To listen to the rain, it's the rhythm of the blues

I walk along these streets of home that once belonged to us
And now baby I walk alone and I am lost
In the sound of my own footsteps on the avenues
I guess I'm only walking to rhythm of the blues

F#m Bm G A F#m Bm G A
I don't wanna hear another word spoken, I don't wanna see another tear shed
F#m Bm G A C C G G G G
I can't seem to fix what's broken, like this record baby in my head

D A Em7 Em7 D A Em7 Em7
[instrumental]

Lonely looks as bad on me as lonely looks on you
And still we keep on moving to the rhythm of the blues

I want a place to call my own, where you have never been
I wanna look around and know you won't be coming back again
On some pretense paper-thin that I can see right through
You come and go baby, like the rhythm of the blues
You come and go baby, like the rhythm of the blues
You come and go baby, like the rhythm of the blues...

[end on G]

TABLATURE
---------
[Note that the tab parts are written as if there is a capo at the fifth
fret, since this is how John Jennings plays the song. I'm not sure that
these are the _exact_ fingerings that Jennings uses, but they work.]


INTRO:

[This is played twice, more or less. The notes in parentheses are probably
played by the other guitar. The "strum" markers note places where there's
a noticable strum, but I don't know on which notes.]

C G Dm7 Dm7
E ------s---------|----------------|----------------|----------s-----|
B ------t---------|----------------|----------------|------1---t-----|
G ------r-----O---|----------------|----------------|----O-----r-----|
D ------u---O2--O-|----------------|----------------|--3-------u-----|
A 3-----m---------|----------3-2-O-|-----(O)--------|----------m-O-2-|
E ----------------|----------------|-----------(3=5)|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .

GUITAR SOLO:

[If you're using a pick, play the double-stops with a slow sweep for that
arpeggio effect. Doesn't work as well with bare fingers.]
[A variation: at the end of the second C measure, instead of 3-2-0, play
it like the end of the second G measure (but on the D & G strings).]

C G Dm7 Dm7
E ----|----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
B ---6|6-5------------1|1-O-----3--1--O-|O1O-------------|----------------|
G --7-|7-5-----------2-|2-O-----0triplet|---2------------|------------O---|
D ----|----------------|--------0-------|----------------|--------------3-|
A ----|----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
E ----|----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .

C G Dm7 Dm7 (C)
E ----------------|----------------|------s-------s-|------------s---|
B ----------------|----------------|------t-------t-|------------t---|
G ----------------|----------------|------r-------r-|------------r---|
D 2---------3-2-O-|------------O---|------u-------u-|------------u---|
A ----------------|--------2=3---O-|------m-------m-|------------m---|
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .

- Adam Schneider, [email protected]