Chords for Emmylou Harris - Talks About Townes Van Zandt
Tempo:
100.5 bpm
Chords used:
Bb
Ab
F
C
Eb
Tuning:Standard Tuning (EADGBE)Capo:+0fret
Start Jamming...
It was probably 1967 or 1968.
I had [Bb] just come to New York to make it as a folk singer.
And I saw Towns at a little club that I actually did some playing at called Gertie's Folk City,
which had been the place where Dylan had played, but all of that had been a few years earlier.
It kind of subsided, the folk scene had kind of subsided.
[G]
[Ab] I would just go down there just to see who was playing, and this guy stood up there and sang.
He had something about Hank Williams in [Bb] him, a certain high, lonesome sound in his voice,
but his lyrics had a poetry and evoked a kind of landscape that I'd never heard anything like it before.
[N]
And so the first time I ever saw Towns was actually on stage.
It's very hard to write a love song that doesn't [F] get cloying [Bb] or isn't too perky.
It's very hard to [Bb] find a song that is positive without going into those areas.
And If I Needed You I think is one of the most beautiful [Gb] love songs.
[C] It's pledging something, it's a leap of faith, [Bb]
and it's just totally disarming.
And you can believe [F] in it.
And I love the idea of it being sung as a [Eb] conversation between a man and a woman.
[Bb]
[Abm] So I brought it to [C] Don and he loved it.
But he did [Bb] change [Cm] one line because I [Ab] guess Towns could be very literal when he wrote,
and there were two parakeets in his life named Loop and Lil.
And so he said, Loop and Lil agree.
And Don Williams said, Loop and [D] Lil?
What [Bb] is that?
So he changed it to Who Could Ill Agree, which, hey, a great song, you know,
it just takes one little tweak to make it a perfect [Eb] fit for somebody else.
So it worked beautifully.
I had [Bb] just come to New York to make it as a folk singer.
And I saw Towns at a little club that I actually did some playing at called Gertie's Folk City,
which had been the place where Dylan had played, but all of that had been a few years earlier.
It kind of subsided, the folk scene had kind of subsided.
[G]
[Ab] I would just go down there just to see who was playing, and this guy stood up there and sang.
He had something about Hank Williams in [Bb] him, a certain high, lonesome sound in his voice,
but his lyrics had a poetry and evoked a kind of landscape that I'd never heard anything like it before.
[N]
And so the first time I ever saw Towns was actually on stage.
It's very hard to write a love song that doesn't [F] get cloying [Bb] or isn't too perky.
It's very hard to [Bb] find a song that is positive without going into those areas.
And If I Needed You I think is one of the most beautiful [Gb] love songs.
[C] It's pledging something, it's a leap of faith, [Bb]
and it's just totally disarming.
And you can believe [F] in it.
And I love the idea of it being sung as a [Eb] conversation between a man and a woman.
[Bb]
[Abm] So I brought it to [C] Don and he loved it.
But he did [Bb] change [Cm] one line because I [Ab] guess Towns could be very literal when he wrote,
and there were two parakeets in his life named Loop and Lil.
And so he said, Loop and Lil agree.
And Don Williams said, Loop and [D] Lil?
What [Bb] is that?
So he changed it to Who Could Ill Agree, which, hey, a great song, you know,
it just takes one little tweak to make it a perfect [Eb] fit for somebody else.
So it worked beautifully.
Key:
Bb
Ab
F
C
Eb
Bb
Ab
F
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ It was probably _ 1967 or 1968.
_ I had [Bb] just come to New York to make it as a folk singer. _ _ _ _ _
And I saw Towns at a little club that I actually did some playing at called Gertie's Folk City,
which had been the place where Dylan had played, but all of that had been a few years earlier.
It kind of subsided, the folk scene had kind of subsided.
_ [G] _
_ [Ab] I would just go down there just to see who was playing, and this guy _ stood up there and sang.
He had something about Hank Williams in [Bb] him, a certain high, lonesome sound in his voice,
but his lyrics _ had a poetry and evoked a kind of landscape that I'd never heard anything like it before.
_ _ [N]
And so the first time I ever saw Towns was actually on stage. _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
It's very hard to write a love song that doesn't [F] get cloying [Bb] or isn't too perky.
_ _ It's very hard to [Bb] find a song that is positive without going into those areas.
And If I Needed You I think is one of the most beautiful [Gb] love songs.
[C] It's pledging something, it's a leap of faith, [Bb] _ _
and it's just totally disarming.
And you can believe [F] in it.
_ _ _ And I love the idea of it being sung as a [Eb] conversation between a man and a woman.
_ [Bb] _
[Abm] So I brought it to [C] Don and he loved it.
But he did [Bb] change [Cm] one line because I [Ab] guess Towns could be very literal when he wrote,
and there were two parakeets in his life named Loop and Lil.
And so he said, Loop and Lil agree.
_ And Don Williams said, Loop and [D] Lil?
What [Bb] is that?
So he changed it to Who Could Ill Agree, which, hey, a great song, you know,
it just takes one little tweak to make it a perfect [Eb] fit for somebody else.
So it worked beautifully.
_ It was probably _ 1967 or 1968.
_ I had [Bb] just come to New York to make it as a folk singer. _ _ _ _ _
And I saw Towns at a little club that I actually did some playing at called Gertie's Folk City,
which had been the place where Dylan had played, but all of that had been a few years earlier.
It kind of subsided, the folk scene had kind of subsided.
_ [G] _
_ [Ab] I would just go down there just to see who was playing, and this guy _ stood up there and sang.
He had something about Hank Williams in [Bb] him, a certain high, lonesome sound in his voice,
but his lyrics _ had a poetry and evoked a kind of landscape that I'd never heard anything like it before.
_ _ [N]
And so the first time I ever saw Towns was actually on stage. _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _
It's very hard to write a love song that doesn't [F] get cloying [Bb] or isn't too perky.
_ _ It's very hard to [Bb] find a song that is positive without going into those areas.
And If I Needed You I think is one of the most beautiful [Gb] love songs.
[C] It's pledging something, it's a leap of faith, [Bb] _ _
and it's just totally disarming.
And you can believe [F] in it.
_ _ _ And I love the idea of it being sung as a [Eb] conversation between a man and a woman.
_ [Bb] _
[Abm] So I brought it to [C] Don and he loved it.
But he did [Bb] change [Cm] one line because I [Ab] guess Towns could be very literal when he wrote,
and there were two parakeets in his life named Loop and Lil.
And so he said, Loop and Lil agree.
_ And Don Williams said, Loop and [D] Lil?
What [Bb] is that?
So he changed it to Who Could Ill Agree, which, hey, a great song, you know,
it just takes one little tweak to make it a perfect [Eb] fit for somebody else.
So it worked beautifully.