Chords for Gil Scott Heron "Don't Give Up"

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Ab] _
_ _ [Fm] _ _ _ _ _ [Ab] _
_ _ _ _ [Eb] I never thought of myself as a [Ab] complex man or as [Eb] someone who was really that hard to
[Ab] understand, but it would hardly take a genius to realize [Eb] that I've always been a lot too
arrogant and a little too [Ab] surprised.
I was a combination that made a lot of folks feel duty-bound to do whatever they could
to try and shoot me down and head off some of the things I [Bb] might possibly say [Ab] to see
if they couldn't take some of my pride away.
[Fm] To bring me disappointment, to teach me to [Ab] fear it.
Obviously, the folks just didn't have no spirit.
_ [Eb] _ Spirits, you don't give up.
_ _ _ Yes, it's time to stop your falling.
_ _ _ You've been down long enough.
_ [Ab] _ _ [Eb] Can't you hear the spirits [G] calling?
_ _ _ [Eb] Yes, it's the spirits.
_ Can't you hear _ it calling your name, calling your name?
Yeah, talking [Abm] about spirits.
[Eb] _ _ _ _ _ [Gm] _
[Db] There _ _ [Eb] _ _ [Ab] _ _
_ _ [Fm] _ _ _ _ [Ab] are people whose lives are so [Eb] far off the track that what they like best about life
is stabbing brothers in the back.
[Bb] I was obviously too blind and probably too weak [Ab] to see who was [Eb] responsible for my losing streak.
_ The best way [Ab] to explain it is to say simply because I was looking around outside and the
truth is that I was the one.
So I got locked into all of the [Eb] analysis and found [Ab] myself locked into a kind of paralysis
and something was calling and I [Eb] almost didn't hear it.
[Ab] So I spent a lot of time being blessed by the spirits.
_ [Db] If you [Eb] say [Ab] don't give up, [Eb] if you say don't give up,
it's time to stop your falling.
_ _ You've been down long enough.
_ [Gm] _ _ [Eb] Can't you hear the spirits calling?
[G] _ _ _ [Cm] Yes, it's [Bb] the spirits.
Can't you hear [Eb] _ it calling your name, calling your name?
Yeah, talking [Abm] about spirits.
_ [Eb] _ _ _ _ _ _
_ [Bbm] _ _ _ _ [Bb] _ [Ab] _ _
_ _ [Fm] _ _ It didn't matter [Ab] whether it was a child or an [Eb] adult, there was absolutely no one I could
not insult so that I could isolate myself somewhere off to the side [G] and continue to
juggle [Ab] all the possible fires.
The warmth I once could [Bb] generate so well had turned into [Ab] a frozen hell and all of the discouraging
injustices I felt had [F] pinned me [Ab] somewhere inside a drug infested cell where those who
[Eb] told didn't know and those who knew [Ab] didn't tell and I could continue to feel sorry for myself.
I could continue to feel sorry for myself.
I could continue to feel sorry for myself.
[Eb] And then I heard, [Abm] don't give [Eb] up.
If you say don't give up, it's time to stop your falling.
_ Yeah, you've been [Gm] down long enough.
_ _ [Eb] Yeah, can't you hear the spirits calling?
_ _ _ Yes, it's the spirits.
[Fm] Can't you hear _ [Eb] it calling your [G] name, calling your name?
[Eb] Yeah, talking [Db] about spirits.
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [Eb] _ _ _ _ _
Ain't no way overnight you turn your life around.
And this ain't the conversation of someone who never falls back down.
But no matter how long you've been on style with the days and the weeks of self-denial,
and no matter how many times you tried to make it and found out that right then you
just couldn't take it, if you're looking for a loser who found strength and success, remember
the spirit of Brother [G] Malcolm X.
_ [Ab] And know that you can leave all [Db] of your mistakes behind the day that you really make up [Eb] your
mind, really make up your mind, really make up your [Gm] mind, really make up your mind.
[Fm] Come on, let's pull on up.
[Eb] Stand on up and say don't give _ [Bb] [Fm] up.
Yeah, [Eb] it's time to stop your falling.
_ _ Calling on you.
[Bb] You've been falling down long enough.
[Fm] Yeah, [Ab] can't you hear the [Eb] spirits calling?
Hear the spirits calling.
Say [Bb] don't [Gm] give _ up.
Yeah, it's time to stop [Eb] your falling.
_ [Bb] Yeah, saying you've been down long enough.
_ _ Yeah, [Gm] can't you hear the spirits calling?
[B] Hear the spirits calling. _ _ _
_ _ _ [Bb] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _