Chords for Molly Johnson - Because Of Billie
Tempo:
95.35 bpm
Chords used:
Bb
Ab
Eb
F
D
Tuning:Standard Tuning (EADGBE)Capo:+0fret
Start Jamming...
The way you wear your hat, [Bbm] [Bm] the way you sip your [E] tea, [Eb] the [Bb] memory of all that.
[Fm] No, no, can't take that away [G] from me.
Oh, you smile to me.
[Dbm] Why a Billie Holiday [Bm] record?
Well, for [B] years, people have said you're just like [Bb] Billie Holiday.
[Eb] And I would say, no, I'm not [F] just like Billie [Ab] Holiday.
I'm because of Billie Holiday.
I'm because [Bbm] of a generation of people that fought [Ab] so hard for civil [G] rights.
I decided to make [A] this record [D] because I felt it was time [Eb] to tell the other [D] Billie Holiday story,
the story about a strong, [Cm] courageous woman [G] in a very difficult [D] time.
Ooh, ooh, [Eb] ooh, what a little [Gm] moonlight can do.
[Bb]
Ooh, ooh, [D] ooh, what a little moonlight can do [Db] to you.
[Cm] [F] I thought this might be the time to [Cm] make a Billie Holiday record and to raise some funds for [G] kids at risk.
[Am] Billie Holiday didn't [A] have a great childhood, so I thought that by recording [Gm] this album,
we might be able to raise some funds for some children's [Am] charities.
I've always wanted to make a Billie Holiday record, [G] but I thought I needed to wait for the right time.
I think this is [Bb] the time.
[Dm] I fell in love with you the first time [F] I looked into them, their eyes.
You [Dm] have a certain way of [Em] flirting with [Dm] them, their eyes.
[A] [C] There are so many [Am] great Billie Holiday [Dm] songs and so many great songs that she sang.
It [G] was a bit daunting to go through [C] all those songs to choose the 14 that we settled on.
I had a lot of help from producer and best friend and bassist, Michael [Bb] Downs.
He really helped [F] choose those songs.
As [Bb] well, I took a couple of suggestions from my big [Cm] brothers because they're [Bb] jazz [F] fans and you always do what your [Gbm] big brother says.
[Dm]
Lady [Bb] sings the blues.
[Dm] She's got them bad.
She [D] feels so [C] sad.
One of the most meaningful songs on the album is a song called Lady Sings the Blues.
Diana Ross, many years ago, made a movie called Lady Sings [Abm] the Blues.
I saw it when I was a kid, [C] but it didn't match up to the stories I heard as a kid from my parents and from others.
Diana Ross, as much as [F] I love her, the story was kind of pathetic in that Billie [D] Holiday was a victim.
All the [E] research I've done and all the [D] stories I've heard, Billie [G] Holiday was no victim.
She may have been a victim [D] of the times, but she was not a victim.
She was strong and courageous.
[F] [D]
[Gm] Lady sings the blues.
[G]
[C] Back [Gm] in the day, [C] women were not given [Bm] a lot of opportunity to write songs.
Women songwriters were few and far [Ab] between.
As I was going through the [Eb] incredible catalog of Billie Holiday materials, I found [Dm] just a few of [Bbm] the songs [Bb] that Billie actually wrote.
One of my [D] favorites, and I'm hoping it's going to be one of yours, is Don't [Cm] Explain.
Just a gorgeous [A] piece of music.
Such a [Gm] simple lyric, but so potent.
[F] [Ab]
[Db] [Ab]
[Db] [Ab] Hey there, daddy, [Gb] make up your mind, cause I've been waiting such a long, [F] long time.
Now, baby, [Ab] or never, cause I [Db] feel so good to you.
I'm hoping [Abm] that my fans [Bb] and music lovers will love this record because [B] it's so historical.
We [Ab] recorded [Fm] it live off the floor.
Nobody takes, often just one [Bb] take, always a clean take.
[C] It's very authentic [Eb] and we meant [Fm] every note of it as we played it.
Hey there, daddy, make up [Eb] your mind.
[Bb] [F] Now, baby, or [Eb] never, it ain't no fault of mine.
[Ab] It's gotta be yes or no.
It's either you [Abm] stay or go.
You can't leave me [Eb] on the shelf.
You gotta [Cm] commit [Fm] yourself.
It's either you will [Eb] or maybe you won't [Bb] fall in love with me.
[Ab]
[Fm] Gonna call you once more on the telephone.
[E] I'll give you till twelve and [Db] I'll be gone.
[Ab] Now, baby, or never, [Gm] cause I feel
[Fm] No, no, can't take that away [G] from me.
Oh, you smile to me.
[Dbm] Why a Billie Holiday [Bm] record?
Well, for [B] years, people have said you're just like [Bb] Billie Holiday.
[Eb] And I would say, no, I'm not [F] just like Billie [Ab] Holiday.
I'm because of Billie Holiday.
I'm because [Bbm] of a generation of people that fought [Ab] so hard for civil [G] rights.
I decided to make [A] this record [D] because I felt it was time [Eb] to tell the other [D] Billie Holiday story,
the story about a strong, [Cm] courageous woman [G] in a very difficult [D] time.
Ooh, ooh, [Eb] ooh, what a little [Gm] moonlight can do.
[Bb]
Ooh, ooh, [D] ooh, what a little moonlight can do [Db] to you.
[Cm] [F] I thought this might be the time to [Cm] make a Billie Holiday record and to raise some funds for [G] kids at risk.
[Am] Billie Holiday didn't [A] have a great childhood, so I thought that by recording [Gm] this album,
we might be able to raise some funds for some children's [Am] charities.
I've always wanted to make a Billie Holiday record, [G] but I thought I needed to wait for the right time.
I think this is [Bb] the time.
[Dm] I fell in love with you the first time [F] I looked into them, their eyes.
You [Dm] have a certain way of [Em] flirting with [Dm] them, their eyes.
[A] [C] There are so many [Am] great Billie Holiday [Dm] songs and so many great songs that she sang.
It [G] was a bit daunting to go through [C] all those songs to choose the 14 that we settled on.
I had a lot of help from producer and best friend and bassist, Michael [Bb] Downs.
He really helped [F] choose those songs.
As [Bb] well, I took a couple of suggestions from my big [Cm] brothers because they're [Bb] jazz [F] fans and you always do what your [Gbm] big brother says.
[Dm]
Lady [Bb] sings the blues.
[Dm] She's got them bad.
She [D] feels so [C] sad.
One of the most meaningful songs on the album is a song called Lady Sings the Blues.
Diana Ross, many years ago, made a movie called Lady Sings [Abm] the Blues.
I saw it when I was a kid, [C] but it didn't match up to the stories I heard as a kid from my parents and from others.
Diana Ross, as much as [F] I love her, the story was kind of pathetic in that Billie [D] Holiday was a victim.
All the [E] research I've done and all the [D] stories I've heard, Billie [G] Holiday was no victim.
She may have been a victim [D] of the times, but she was not a victim.
She was strong and courageous.
[F] [D]
[Gm] Lady sings the blues.
[G]
[C] Back [Gm] in the day, [C] women were not given [Bm] a lot of opportunity to write songs.
Women songwriters were few and far [Ab] between.
As I was going through the [Eb] incredible catalog of Billie Holiday materials, I found [Dm] just a few of [Bbm] the songs [Bb] that Billie actually wrote.
One of my [D] favorites, and I'm hoping it's going to be one of yours, is Don't [Cm] Explain.
Just a gorgeous [A] piece of music.
Such a [Gm] simple lyric, but so potent.
[F] [Ab]
[Db] [Ab]
[Db] [Ab] Hey there, daddy, [Gb] make up your mind, cause I've been waiting such a long, [F] long time.
Now, baby, [Ab] or never, cause I [Db] feel so good to you.
I'm hoping [Abm] that my fans [Bb] and music lovers will love this record because [B] it's so historical.
We [Ab] recorded [Fm] it live off the floor.
Nobody takes, often just one [Bb] take, always a clean take.
[C] It's very authentic [Eb] and we meant [Fm] every note of it as we played it.
Hey there, daddy, make up [Eb] your mind.
[Bb] [F] Now, baby, or [Eb] never, it ain't no fault of mine.
[Ab] It's gotta be yes or no.
It's either you [Abm] stay or go.
You can't leave me [Eb] on the shelf.
You gotta [Cm] commit [Fm] yourself.
It's either you will [Eb] or maybe you won't [Bb] fall in love with me.
[Ab]
[Fm] Gonna call you once more on the telephone.
[E] I'll give you till twelve and [Db] I'll be gone.
[Ab] Now, baby, or never, [Gm] cause I feel
Key:
Bb
Ab
Eb
F
D
Bb
Ab
Eb
The way you wear your hat, [Bbm] _ _ [Bm] the way you sip your [E] tea, _ [Eb] the [Bb] memory of all that.
_ [Fm] No, no, can't take that away [G] from me.
Oh, you smile to me.
[Dbm] Why a Billie Holiday [Bm] record?
Well, for [B] years, people have said you're just like [Bb] Billie Holiday.
[Eb] And I would say, no, I'm not [F] just like Billie [Ab] Holiday.
I'm because of Billie Holiday.
I'm because [Bbm] of a generation of people that fought [Ab] so hard for civil [G] rights.
I decided to make [A] this record [D] because I felt it was time [Eb] to tell the other [D] Billie Holiday story,
the story about a strong, [Cm] courageous woman [G] in a very difficult [D] time.
Ooh, ooh, [Eb] ooh, what a little [Gm] moonlight can do.
[Bb] _ _
_ Ooh, ooh, [D] ooh, what a little moonlight can do [Db] to you.
[Cm] _ [F] I thought this might be the time to [Cm] make a Billie Holiday record and to raise some funds for [G] kids at risk.
[Am] Billie Holiday didn't [A] have a great childhood, so I thought that by recording [Gm] this album,
we might be able to raise some funds for some children's [Am] charities.
I've always wanted to make a Billie Holiday record, [G] but I thought I needed to wait for the right time.
I think this is [Bb] the time.
[Dm] I fell in love with you the first time [F] I looked into them, their eyes.
You [Dm] have a certain way of [Em] flirting with [Dm] them, their eyes.
[A] [C] There are so many [Am] great Billie Holiday [Dm] songs and so many great songs that she sang.
It [G] was a bit daunting to go through [C] all those songs to choose the 14 that we settled on.
I had a lot of help from producer and best friend and bassist, Michael [Bb] Downs.
He really helped [F] choose those songs.
As [Bb] well, I took a couple of suggestions from my big [Cm] brothers because they're [Bb] jazz [F] fans and you always do what your [Gbm] big brother says.
_ [Dm] _ _ _ _
Lady [Bb] sings the blues.
_ _ [Dm] She's got them bad.
_ She [D] feels so [C] sad.
One of the most meaningful songs on the album is a song called Lady Sings the Blues.
Diana Ross, many years ago, made a movie called Lady Sings [Abm] the Blues.
I saw it when I was a kid, [C] but it didn't match up to the stories I heard as a kid from my parents and from others.
Diana Ross, as much as [F] I love her, the story was kind of pathetic in that Billie [D] Holiday was a victim.
All the [E] research I've done and all the [D] stories I've heard, Billie [G] Holiday was no victim.
She may have been a victim [D] of the times, but she was not a victim.
She was strong and courageous. _ _ _
[F] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _
[Gm] Lady sings the blues.
_ _ [G] _ _
_ _ [C] Back [Gm] in the day, [C] women were not given [Bm] a lot of opportunity to write songs.
Women songwriters were few and far [Ab] between.
As I was going through the [Eb] incredible catalog of Billie Holiday materials, I found [Dm] just a few of [Bbm] the songs [Bb] that Billie actually wrote.
One of my [D] favorites, and I'm hoping it's going to be one of yours, is Don't [Cm] Explain.
Just a gorgeous [A] piece of music.
Such a [Gm] simple lyric, but so potent.
[F] _ _ _ _ [Ab] _ _ _ _
_ [Db] _ _ _ [Ab] _ _ _ _
[Db] _ [Ab] Hey there, daddy, [Gb] make up your mind, cause I've been waiting such a long, [F] long time.
Now, baby, [Ab] or never, cause I [Db] feel so good to you.
I'm hoping [Abm] that my fans [Bb] and music lovers will love this record because [B] it's so historical.
We [Ab] recorded [Fm] it live off the floor.
Nobody takes, often just one [Bb] take, always a clean take.
[C] It's very authentic [Eb] and we meant [Fm] every note of it as we played it.
Hey there, daddy, make up [Eb] your mind.
[Bb] [F] Now, baby, or [Eb] never, it ain't no fault of mine.
[Ab] It's gotta be yes or no.
It's either you [Abm] stay or go.
You can't leave me [Eb] on the shelf.
You gotta [Cm] commit [Fm] yourself.
It's either you will [Eb] or maybe you won't [Bb] fall in love with me.
[Ab] _ _
[Fm] Gonna call you once more on the telephone.
[E] I'll give you till twelve and [Db] I'll be gone.
[Ab] Now, baby, or never, [Gm] cause I feel
_ [Fm] No, no, can't take that away [G] from me.
Oh, you smile to me.
[Dbm] Why a Billie Holiday [Bm] record?
Well, for [B] years, people have said you're just like [Bb] Billie Holiday.
[Eb] And I would say, no, I'm not [F] just like Billie [Ab] Holiday.
I'm because of Billie Holiday.
I'm because [Bbm] of a generation of people that fought [Ab] so hard for civil [G] rights.
I decided to make [A] this record [D] because I felt it was time [Eb] to tell the other [D] Billie Holiday story,
the story about a strong, [Cm] courageous woman [G] in a very difficult [D] time.
Ooh, ooh, [Eb] ooh, what a little [Gm] moonlight can do.
[Bb] _ _
_ Ooh, ooh, [D] ooh, what a little moonlight can do [Db] to you.
[Cm] _ [F] I thought this might be the time to [Cm] make a Billie Holiday record and to raise some funds for [G] kids at risk.
[Am] Billie Holiday didn't [A] have a great childhood, so I thought that by recording [Gm] this album,
we might be able to raise some funds for some children's [Am] charities.
I've always wanted to make a Billie Holiday record, [G] but I thought I needed to wait for the right time.
I think this is [Bb] the time.
[Dm] I fell in love with you the first time [F] I looked into them, their eyes.
You [Dm] have a certain way of [Em] flirting with [Dm] them, their eyes.
[A] [C] There are so many [Am] great Billie Holiday [Dm] songs and so many great songs that she sang.
It [G] was a bit daunting to go through [C] all those songs to choose the 14 that we settled on.
I had a lot of help from producer and best friend and bassist, Michael [Bb] Downs.
He really helped [F] choose those songs.
As [Bb] well, I took a couple of suggestions from my big [Cm] brothers because they're [Bb] jazz [F] fans and you always do what your [Gbm] big brother says.
_ [Dm] _ _ _ _
Lady [Bb] sings the blues.
_ _ [Dm] She's got them bad.
_ She [D] feels so [C] sad.
One of the most meaningful songs on the album is a song called Lady Sings the Blues.
Diana Ross, many years ago, made a movie called Lady Sings [Abm] the Blues.
I saw it when I was a kid, [C] but it didn't match up to the stories I heard as a kid from my parents and from others.
Diana Ross, as much as [F] I love her, the story was kind of pathetic in that Billie [D] Holiday was a victim.
All the [E] research I've done and all the [D] stories I've heard, Billie [G] Holiday was no victim.
She may have been a victim [D] of the times, but she was not a victim.
She was strong and courageous. _ _ _
[F] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _ _
[Gm] Lady sings the blues.
_ _ [G] _ _
_ _ [C] Back [Gm] in the day, [C] women were not given [Bm] a lot of opportunity to write songs.
Women songwriters were few and far [Ab] between.
As I was going through the [Eb] incredible catalog of Billie Holiday materials, I found [Dm] just a few of [Bbm] the songs [Bb] that Billie actually wrote.
One of my [D] favorites, and I'm hoping it's going to be one of yours, is Don't [Cm] Explain.
Just a gorgeous [A] piece of music.
Such a [Gm] simple lyric, but so potent.
[F] _ _ _ _ [Ab] _ _ _ _
_ [Db] _ _ _ [Ab] _ _ _ _
[Db] _ [Ab] Hey there, daddy, [Gb] make up your mind, cause I've been waiting such a long, [F] long time.
Now, baby, [Ab] or never, cause I [Db] feel so good to you.
I'm hoping [Abm] that my fans [Bb] and music lovers will love this record because [B] it's so historical.
We [Ab] recorded [Fm] it live off the floor.
Nobody takes, often just one [Bb] take, always a clean take.
[C] It's very authentic [Eb] and we meant [Fm] every note of it as we played it.
Hey there, daddy, make up [Eb] your mind.
[Bb] [F] Now, baby, or [Eb] never, it ain't no fault of mine.
[Ab] It's gotta be yes or no.
It's either you [Abm] stay or go.
You can't leave me [Eb] on the shelf.
You gotta [Cm] commit [Fm] yourself.
It's either you will [Eb] or maybe you won't [Bb] fall in love with me.
[Ab] _ _
[Fm] Gonna call you once more on the telephone.
[E] I'll give you till twelve and [Db] I'll be gone.
[Ab] Now, baby, or never, [Gm] cause I feel