ACTIVITY
Lay It Down
#----------------------------------PLEASE NOTE---------------------------------#
#This file is the author's own work and represents their interpretation of the #
#song. You may only use this file for private study, scholarship, or research. #
#------------------------------------------------------------------------------##
#
Welcome to my ever-expanding transcription of the Cowboy Junkies album
"Lay It Down". I started this in honor of my first Cowboy Junkies
concert at the Riviera in '96, and posted 5 songs and 2 fragments the
day of the show. It has slowly grown to include 8 complete songs and
3 fragments. The latest improvements are Gabriel Simonet's much
appreciated chords to Bea's Song and a correction on Hold On To Me.
My annotations are in {braces}.
- Brian
LAY IT DOWN
THE COWBOY JUNKIES
Transcriptions by Brian Davies
Comments & corrections to [email protected]
For the latest versions of my transcriptions, check my home page:
http://www.ils.nwu.edu/~davies/
SOMETHING MORE BESIDES YOU by the Cowboy Junkies
{The verses are all G and C chords, though the fingerings are a bit out of
the ordinary and there are a lot of odd little runs. The chorus is easy
-- here it is.}
D
I guess I believe that there's a point
C
to what we do.
Am
But I ask myself is there
G
something more be sides you?
A COMMON DISASTER by the Cowboy Junkies
{This is arranged for a single guitar -- they play the first bit of the
riff on the bass, and have the guitar playing the synchopated chords. For
Bb
the lines I've marked , the guitar actually stays on Cm, with the
second and fourth notes of the main bass line reversed, so that there's a
Bb bass note under the chord, but that sounds a bit weird if you're
playing it solo.}
(e) |-----------------|-----3-----3---3-|
(B) |-----------------|-----4-----4---4-| Let the last chord ring.
(G) |-----------------|-----5-----5---5-| Play twice for intro.
(D) |-----------------|-----5-----5---5-|
(A) |-----------------|-3---3-----3---3-|
(E) |-----------3-6-3-|-----------------|
1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &
Cm
A candle burning for everything I've ever wanted.
Cm
A tattoo burned for everything I've ever wanted and lost.
Bb
I had a long list of names that I kept in my back pocket,
Cm
but I've cut it down to one and your name's at the top.
F Eb Cm
Won't you share a common dis aster
Eb F Bb
Share with me a common dis aster
Dm Eb Cm
Oh oh, common dis aster
Cm
I found myself a friend, but he's crooked as a stick in water.
Cm
So now I'm writing fairy tales to catch the spirit of revenge.
Bb
He's got a plan to steal my little sister,
Cm
but I'm not too concerned 'cause I will get him in the end.
Chorus
Solo on First Half Of Verse, First Line of Chorus
Cm
Going to find me someone to share a common disaster.
Cm
Run away with me from a life so cramped and dull.
Bb
Not worry too much about the happily-ever-after.
Cm
Just keep the Caddy moving 'til we're well beyond that hill.
Chorus
LAY IT DOWN by the Cowboy Junkies
{Play around with your chord voicings on this. I've been getting a good
sound playing D as x077x5 and just sliding that form up and down, so C is
x055x3, etc. You can play the second string open on the E chord, but the
rest of the time it sounds better muted. Also worth a try is playing D
x/0/0/14/10/0. I've written the chorus as D's on the fifth and tenth
frets, but play around with that as well.}
DCBmD
DCBmDFED
D C
He left his dead in the cottonwood trees
Bm D
the ground grown too hard with the years.
D C
Falling down was not what it used to be
Bm D FED
the ground grown too hard with the years.
DCBmD
D C
He told his children those little white lies
Bm D FED
the truth would only para lyze them.
D C
He told himself those little white lies
Bm D
the truth would only para lyze him.
[Dv] [Dx]
Lay it down,
[Dx] [Dv]
lay it down.
DCBA
DBAD
D C
He sold most of what he cherished,
Bm D FED
the rest he let them steal.
D C
Shot his dog out in the open field
Bm D
the rest he let them steal.
DCBmDFED
D C
He broke all of his promises,
Bm D
under a sea green sky.
D C
They never thought to ask him why,
Bm D
under a sea green sky.
Chorus
Solo over a drone in D
D C
Please bury me in the cottonwood trees
Bm D
the ground grown too cold for me.
D C
Going to sleep tonight in a warm feather bed
Bm D
the ground grown too cold for me.
Chorus
HOLD ON TO ME by the Cowboy Junkies
EA
One thing more: In HOLD ON TO ME it isn't how you said,
or at least i heard sometingh else, it sounded, for me, more like
022100 022200 022100 022200
E E4? E E4?
{The lyric sheet has two repetitions of "Hold on to me" at the end,
but drag the ending out as long as you'd like. The coda keeps repeating
E[Es4]E[Es4]
the pattern.}
E[Es4]E[Es4]E[Es4]
E [Es4] E [Es4]
If you offered me a shade of blue
E [Es4] E [Es4]
would I re turn it saying that it was too
G#m
dark or light?
B G#m
Or would I see it for the precious thing
F#m G#m A
that it might one day be?
E [Es4]E[Es4]
Hold on to me.
E [Es4] E [Es4]
If you offered me a point of view
E [Es4] E [Es4]
would I dis miss it saying that it was too
G#m
black and white?
B G#m
Or would I see it as the special thing
F#m G#m A
That it would no doubt be?
E [Es4]E[Es4]
Hold on to me.
B A
I'll hold on to this gift we share
B C#m
it is as slippery as it is rare.
B A
I'll hold on to that feeling
G#m C#m
of waking and finding you there.
F#m G#mA E [Es4]E[Es4]
I'll hold on to you and you hold on to me.
E [Es4] E [Es4]
If I asked you for a simple thing
E [Es4] E [Es4] G#m
would you do it without too much thinking or fuss?
B G#m
Would you see it for the precious thing
F#m G#m A
that it would sure ly be?
E [Es4]E[Es4]
Hold on to me.
Hold on to me.
Hold on to me.
COME CALLING by the Cowboy Junkies
C#mAB B
C#mBA A
C#m
The stillness here,
A B B
like what he sometimes finds in side her,
C#m B A A
hits so hard it can steal your breath for ever.
C#m
He sometimes wonders
A B B
is the sum of their lives to gether
C#m B A A
him on the floor and her lost to a mind in tatters.
F# A
These days he's drinking for the pleasure of falling
F# A
and he's falling for the pleasure of pre tending
F# A
that she's sitting by the window waiting
C#m ABB
for him to come calling.
C#mBA A
C#m A B B
If I could fix me up a week of twilight hours
C#m
we'd sit on the point
B A A
and watch the sun continually flounder.
C#m A B B
Bathed in gold we'd plug into some kind of power
C#m
and con nect with those days
B A A
back be fore all of this went sour.
F# A
'Cause I'm drinking for the pleasure of falling
F# A
and I'm falling for the pleasure of pre tending
F# A
that you're sitting by the window waiting
C#m ABB
for me to come calling.
C#mBA A
C#m A B B
Odd how the darkness always makes us whisper
C#m
and with the last of the sun
B A A
you can feel the approach of the winter.
C#m A
Now is the time of each day that I
B B
desperately miss her.
C#m B A A
I sup pose I will learn how to live my life with out her.
F# A
So you're drinking for the pleasure of falling
F# A
and you're falling for the pleasure of pre tending
F# A
that I'm sitting by the window waiting
C#m AC#mA
for you to come calling.
C#m AC#mA
for you to come calling.
C#m AC#mA
for you to come calling.
C#m AC#mA
for you to come calling.
JUST WANT TO SEE by the Cowboy Junkies
{This is fragment number two. Marking where the chord changes occur is a
D
bit of a pain, since there are two vocal tracks -- the on "guilt" and
the following "just" mean that the vocals overlap, not that you should
play two bars of D. The chords for the chorus are real sketchy.}
EEDC
EEDC
EEDC
EEDC
E
I don't want to be no patch on no quilt
D C
(I just want to see...)
E D
Tear-stained stitching linking memories to guilt
D C
(I just want to see...)
E
I don't want to be no hair on no wall
D C
(I just want to see...)
E
Blood-stained note saying fuck you all
D C E DC
(I just want to see what kills me)
[D?] Tommy, are you ready we [G?] better head to town
[Am?] J.D.'s box is waiting to be [Am?]lowered down
Am G
and you [Dm?] know how he [G?] hates to be kept waiting 'round
EEDC
EEDC
E D
I don't want to be no chalk line drawing
D C
(I just want to see...)
E D
Toe-tagged question mark, until identi fying
D C
(I just want to see...)
E
I don't want to fuse with no economy seat
D C
(I just want to see...)
E
fuel some fireball at 30,000 feet
D C E DC
(I just want to see what kills me)
[] Tommy, did you catch his face
[] before they closed the lid?
I [] swear I saw him wink once and [] flash me that old grin.
Oh, you [] know, that would [] be just like [] him. []
Solo
EEDC
EEDC
E D
I don't want to face no hollow-eyed ending
D C
(I just want to see...)
E
Loved ones buried, empty days of waiting
D C E DC
(I just want to see what kills me)
Tommy, darling, come to bed
we'll try and sleep away this sadness.
These memories, too, are bound to die
so our dreams will have to serve us.
Tomorrow may be the day that our love betrays us.
LONELY SINKING FEELING by the Cowboy Junkies
{Fragment number three, though this time I've included all the lyrics.
These chords work, but are oversimplified -- there's a lot more going on
than this. I also haven't done the bridge yet.}
C F
She says, "I'm getting that lonely sinking feeling,
G G
you know what I mean?"
G F
With his hand on her back he's thinking,
C C
"Where does that leave me?"
C C
"Just when I think I've un covered the secret
F G
to peace and tranquili ty
G F C
that lonely sinking feeling creeps up on me."
He says, "I'm seeing those [] doubt filled
questioning [] eyes
and I can't be[]lieve it's true."
With her [] head in her hands she [] sighs,
"It's [] me, not you."
[] "Just when I thought that I'd dis[]covered the joy
of [] loving one so com[]pletely
that [] lonely sinking [] feeling creeps [] up on me."
Here in this silent room we wait on ancient ritual.
Staring at our hearts
as if they were two caged animals.
If I am the first to unlock those rusty doors
will I be the first found bleeding on the floor?
She says, "I'm getting that lonely sinking feeling,
you know what I mean?"
With his hand on her back he's thinking,
"Where does that leave me?"
"Just when I think I've uncovered the secret
to peace and tranquility
that lonely sinking feeling creeps up on me.
Just when I thought that I'd discovered the joy
of loving one so completely
that lonely sinking feeling creeps up on me.
that lonely sinking feeling creeps up on me."
ANGEL MINE by the Cowboy Junkies
Introduction on Verse Twice
C Am
He searched for those wings that he knew
Em Em
that this angel should have at her back.
F
And al though he can't find them
C
he really don't mind
G G
because he knows they'll grow back.
C Am
And he reached for that halo that he knows
Em Em
that she had when she first caught his eye.
F
Although his hand came back empty
C
he's really not worried
G G
because he knows it still shines.
F G
I can't promise that I'll grow those wings
C G F
or keep this tarnished halo shined
F G
but I'll never betray your trust
C C
angel mine.
C Am
I search all the time on the ground
Em Em
for our shadows cast side by side.
F C
Just to remind me that I haven't gone crazy
G G
that you ex ist and are mine.
C Am
And I know that your skin is as warm and as real
Em Em
as that smile in your eyes.
F C
But I have to keep touching and smelling
G G
and tasting for fear it's all lies.
Chorus
Solo on Verse
C Am
Last night I awoke from the deepest of sleeps
Em Em
with your voice in my head.
F
And I could tell by your breathing
C
that you were still sleeping
G G
I re peated those words that you had said.
Chorus
Chorus
Solo on Verse Twice and Fade
BEA'S SONG (RIVER SONG TRILOGY: PART II)
{The guitar part here is mostly arpeggios; the intro is the middle
four strings on a C chord.}
C
Speed River at my feet running low and flat
Am
I'm sitting here burning daylight,
thinking about the past
F
and that distance out there
C
where the earth meets the sky.
G
The slightest move and this river mud
F
pulls me further down.
G F C
John's at my side, but he's sitting on firmer ground.
C
John says I look at the moon and the stars
Am
these days more often than I look into his eyes
F C
and I can't disagree so I don't say nothing.
G F
I just stare on past his face at Venus rising,
G F C
like a shining speck of hope hanging over the ho rizon.
C
With each passing year that I sit here
Am
that ho rizon seems to inch just that much nearer
F C
and all that appears on it seems as clear as spit.
G
But if there's one thing in my life
F
that these years have taught
G F
it's that you can always see it coming
C
but you can never stop it.
Solo on Verse
C
Speed River at my feet running low and flat
Am
I'm sitting here burning daylight,
thinking about the past
F
and that distance out there
C
where the earth meets the sky.
G
The slightest move and this river mud
F
pulls me further down.
G
John's at my side,
F C
but he's not noticing that I'm drowning.
G
The slightest move and this river mud
F
pulls me further down.
G
John's at my side,
F C
but he's not noticing that I'm drowning.
SPEAKING CONFIDENTIALLY by the Cowboy Junkies
{Each chord in the main riff gets two beats except for the last pair,
where the A and the G#m combined get two beats, and the G#m is really just
a grace note back into the riff.}
C#mABG#mAF#mG#mAG#m
C#mABG#mAF#mG#mAG#m
C#m A B G#m
Speaking confi dentially
A F#m G#m A G#m
the fire that burnt in side of me
C#m A B G#m
has turned to ash the tortured tree
A F#m G#m A G#m
that grows be side the anguished sea.
C#mABG#mA F#m G#m AG#m
Speaking confi dentially.
C#m A B G#m
Speaking meta phorical ly
A F#m G#m A G#m
the earth I trust be neath my feet
C#m A B G#m
is moving now ever so slight ly
A F#m G#m A G#m
I shift my feet but feel no re lief.
C#mABG#mA F#m G#m AG#m
Speaking meta phorically.
C#mABG#mAF#mAG#m
<-- {the violin line is slightly
C#mABG#mAF#mAG#m
different from the intro riff}
C#mABG#mAF#mG#mAG#m
C#m A B G#m
Speaking hypo thetically
A F#m G#m A G#m
if the air you breathed was so u nique
C#m A B G#m
would you use it up to idly speak
A F#m G#m A G#m
or horde it for a rainy week.
C#mABG#mA F#m G#m AG#m
Speaking hypo thetically.
C#m A B G#m
Speaking kind of cryptically
A F#m G#m A G#m
the sea that raged be side the tree
C#m A B G#m
burning bright for all to see
A F#m G#m A G#m
it just might mean the most to me.
C#mABG#mA F#m G#m AG#m
Speaking kind of cryptically.
C#mABG#mAF#mAG#m
C#mABG#mAF#mAG#m
C#mABG#mAF#mG#mAG#m
C#mABG#mAF#mG#mAG#m
C#mABG#mAF#mG#mAG#m
NOW I KNOW by the Cowboy Junkies
C G F F
Now I know, now I know what it means to be broken.
C G F F
Now I know, now I know what it means to be bared.
C G F F
You in the chair perceptibly sinking.
C G F F
I'm on my knees once a gain made aware of the world out there.
C G F F
Grief is a word to de scribe the absense of feeling.
C G C C
Now I know, now I know what it means to be broken.
C G F F
Now I know, now I know, now I know what it means to be broken.
C G F F
Now I know, now I know, now I know what it means to be bared.
C G F F
You in the chair systematically sinking.
C G F F
I'm on my knees once a gain made aware of the world out there.
C G F F
Grief is a word to de scribe the absense of feeling.
C G C C
Now I know, now I know, now I know what it means to be broken.
CGFF
CGC
***************************************************************************
* Brian Davies ([email protected]) * There are three kinds of lies: *
* http://www.ils.nwu.edu/~davies/ * Lies, damned lies, and release *
* Institute For The Learning Sciences * dates. *
* 1890 Maple Ave, Evanston, IL, 60201 * - guess who *
***************************************************************************
0