David Bowie - Amsterdam (1972)
(Cover, original written by Jacques Brel in French)
(In the first verse each chord indicated is swept once)
Am
In the port of Amsterdam
Em/G
There's a sailor who sings
F
Of the dreams that he brings
Em/G E
From the wide open sea
Am
In the port of Amsterdam
Em/G
There's a sailor who sleeps
F E
While the river bank weeps
Am
To the old willow tree
C
In the port of Amsterdam
G E/F
There's a sailor who dies
Am
Full of beer, full of cries
Em/G E
In a drunken town fight
F
In the port of Amsterdam
Em/G
There's a sailor who's born
F Em/G
On a hot muggy morn
Am
By the dawn's early light
(The rest of the song is strummed in 3/4 time)
Am
In the port of Amsterdam
Em/G
Where the sailors all meet
F
There's a sailor who eats
Em/G
Only fish heads and tails
Am
And he'll show you his teeth
Em/G
That have rotted too soon
F
That can haul up the sails
E Am
That can swallow the moon
[ Tab from: http://www.guitaretab.com/d/david-bowie/136068.html ]
C
And he yells to the cook
G E/F
With his arms open wide
Am
"Hey, bring me more fish
Em/G
Throw it down by my side"
F
And he wants so to belch
Em/G
But he's too full to try
F
So he stands up and laughs
Em/G Am
And he zips up his fly
Am
In the port of Amsterdam
Em/G
You can see sailors dance
F
Paunches bursting their pants
Em/G
Grinding women to porch
Am
They've forgotten the tune
Em/G
That their whiskey voice croaked
F
Splitting the night
E Am
With the roar of their jokes
C
And they turn and they dance
G E/F
And they laugh and they lust
Am Em/G
Till the rancid sound of the accordion bursts
F
And then out of the night
Em/G
With their pride in their pants
F
And the sluts that they tow
Em/G Am
Underneath the street lamps
Am
In the port of Amsterdam
Em/G
There's a sailor who drinks
F
And he drinks and he drinks
Em/G
And he drinks once again
Am
He'll drink to the health
Em/G
Of the whores of Amsterdam
F
Who've given their bodies
E Am
To a thousand other men
C
Yeah, they've bargained their virtue
G E/F
Their goodness all gone
Am
For a few dirty coins
Em/G
Well he just can't go on
F
Throws his nose to the sky
Em/G
And he aims it up above
F
And he pisses like I cry
Em/G Am
On the unfaithful love
Am
In the port of Amsterdam
E
In the port of Amsterdam
F E Am. E. Am.
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Em/G = 322000, E/F = X4X454
Tab converted by Cbswe (cbswe@bredband.net)
