Chords for Tom Paxton - Beau John (Pete Seeger Rainbow quest TV show, 1965)
Tempo:
135.05 bpm
Chords used:
E
B
A
C#m
C#
Tuning:Standard Tuning (EADGBE)Capo:+0fret
Start Jamming...
Oh, John was a king in his own native land He ruled for [B] a thousand days
Till [E] the slave traders came and they locked him in irons
And they told him that he'd have [C#m] to go away [E] They told him that [B] he'd have to [E] go away
Oh, John got sick [A] on the long [E] ocean voyage All around him people [B]
died
[E] They took his friends [A] and they threw them [E] overboard John hung down his head and [C#m] he cried
[E] John hung down [B] his head and [E] he cried
They sold Bo John [A] down in New [E] Orleans To a man with a whip [B] in his hand
[Em] He said farewell to [A] his wife and [E] his child And they took him to a strange [C#] new land
And they took him to [B] a strange [E] new land
Bo John worked hard [A] for thirty-seven [E] years He worked with a woman by [B] his side
[E] And on the morning that [A] his last [E] son was born Bo John laid down [C#m] and he died
[E] Bo John [B] laid down and [E] he died
His son grew up just [A] as big as [E] his dad And they called him Bo [B] John too
And [E] for one hundred years [A] Bo John and [E] his sons Did just what the master made [C#m] them do
They [B] did just what the master made [E] them do
Until one day when [A] the cannon [E] fire roared And the master's wife and children [B] did flee
[E] Some men in blue [A] coats rode into [E] the yard And they told Bo John that he [C#] was free
And [E] they told [B] Bo John he was free
When the night riders came [A] for old [E] Bo John Little Bo John hid [B] behind a tree
[E] He saw what they did [A] and he hit the [E] northern trail Singing maybe up there they'll [C#m] let me be
Saying maybe [B] up there they'll let [E] me be
But they pushed Bo John [A] and they shoved him [E] around Till he didn't know where [B] to turn
[E] Some folks up in Harlem [A] took him into [E] their home And Bo John started [C#m] in to learn
[E] And Bo [B] John started [E] in to learn
He fought for his country in World War I His son fought in World [B] War II
[E] And they learned no matter [A] what [E] price they paid There were certain things they weren't [C#m] allowed to do
[E] There were certain [B] things they weren't [E] allowed to do
And then one night [A] on the [E] television screen He saw that Medgar [B] Evers was dead
[E] He took his wife [A] in his [E] arms in the night And these are the [B] words that he [C#] said Bo John
These [B] are the words that he [E] said
Well they made me a slave [A] and I worked in [E] their fields They made me fight [B] in their war
[E]
They kept me down [A] for [E] 400 years But I ain't gonna take it [C#m] anymore
[E] Oh I ain't [B] gonna take it [E] anymore
His wife got a letter [A] from a Georgia [E] jail From a town called [B] Albany
[E] Saying I am proud to be [A] your own [E] Bo John And I ain't coming home till we [C#] are free
[E] No I ain't [B] coming home till [E] we are free
Till [E] the slave traders came and they locked him in irons
And they told him that he'd have [C#m] to go away [E] They told him that [B] he'd have to [E] go away
Oh, John got sick [A] on the long [E] ocean voyage All around him people [B]
died
[E] They took his friends [A] and they threw them [E] overboard John hung down his head and [C#m] he cried
[E] John hung down [B] his head and [E] he cried
They sold Bo John [A] down in New [E] Orleans To a man with a whip [B] in his hand
[Em] He said farewell to [A] his wife and [E] his child And they took him to a strange [C#] new land
And they took him to [B] a strange [E] new land
Bo John worked hard [A] for thirty-seven [E] years He worked with a woman by [B] his side
[E] And on the morning that [A] his last [E] son was born Bo John laid down [C#m] and he died
[E] Bo John [B] laid down and [E] he died
His son grew up just [A] as big as [E] his dad And they called him Bo [B] John too
And [E] for one hundred years [A] Bo John and [E] his sons Did just what the master made [C#m] them do
They [B] did just what the master made [E] them do
Until one day when [A] the cannon [E] fire roared And the master's wife and children [B] did flee
[E] Some men in blue [A] coats rode into [E] the yard And they told Bo John that he [C#] was free
And [E] they told [B] Bo John he was free
When the night riders came [A] for old [E] Bo John Little Bo John hid [B] behind a tree
[E] He saw what they did [A] and he hit the [E] northern trail Singing maybe up there they'll [C#m] let me be
Saying maybe [B] up there they'll let [E] me be
But they pushed Bo John [A] and they shoved him [E] around Till he didn't know where [B] to turn
[E] Some folks up in Harlem [A] took him into [E] their home And Bo John started [C#m] in to learn
[E] And Bo [B] John started [E] in to learn
He fought for his country in World War I His son fought in World [B] War II
[E] And they learned no matter [A] what [E] price they paid There were certain things they weren't [C#m] allowed to do
[E] There were certain [B] things they weren't [E] allowed to do
And then one night [A] on the [E] television screen He saw that Medgar [B] Evers was dead
[E] He took his wife [A] in his [E] arms in the night And these are the [B] words that he [C#] said Bo John
These [B] are the words that he [E] said
Well they made me a slave [A] and I worked in [E] their fields They made me fight [B] in their war
[E]
They kept me down [A] for [E] 400 years But I ain't gonna take it [C#m] anymore
[E] Oh I ain't [B] gonna take it [E] anymore
His wife got a letter [A] from a Georgia [E] jail From a town called [B] Albany
[E] Saying I am proud to be [A] your own [E] Bo John And I ain't coming home till we [C#] are free
[E] No I ain't [B] coming home till [E] we are free
Key:
E
B
A
C#m
C#
E
B
A
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ Oh, John was a king in his own native land He ruled for [B] a thousand _ days
Till [E] the slave traders came and they locked him in irons
And they told him that he'd have [C#m] to go away _ [E] They told him that [B] he'd have to [E] go away
_ Oh, John got sick [A] on the long [E] ocean voyage All around him people [B] _
died
[E] They took his friends [A] and they threw them [E] overboard John hung down his head and [C#m] he cried
_ [E] John hung down [B] his head and [E] he cried
_ They sold Bo John [A] down in New [E] Orleans To a man with a whip [B] in his hand
_ [Em] He said farewell to [A] his wife and [E] his child And they took him to a strange [C#] new land
And they took him to [B] a strange [E] new land
Bo John worked hard [A] for thirty-seven [E] years He worked with a woman by [B] his _ side
[E] And on the morning that [A] his last [E] son was born Bo John laid down [C#m] and he died
[E] Bo John [B] laid down and [E] he died
His son grew up just [A] as big as [E] his dad And they called him Bo [B] John too
And [E] for one hundred years [A] Bo John and [E] his sons Did just what the master made [C#m] them do
They [B] did just what the master made [E] them do
_ Until one day when [A] the cannon [E] fire roared And the master's wife and children [B] did flee
[E] Some men in blue [A] coats rode into [E] the yard And they told Bo John that he [C#] was free
And [E] they told [B] Bo John he was free
_ _ _ _ When the night riders came [A] for old [E] Bo John Little Bo John hid [B] behind a tree
_ [E] He saw what they did [A] and he hit the [E] northern trail Singing maybe up there they'll [C#m] let me be
Saying maybe [B] up there they'll let [E] me be
But they pushed Bo John [A] and they shoved him [E] around Till he didn't know where [B] to turn
[E] Some folks up in Harlem [A] took him into [E] their home And Bo John started [C#m] in to learn
[E] And Bo [B] John started [E] in to learn
He fought for his country in World War I His son fought in World [B] War II
_ [E] And they learned no matter [A] what [E] price they paid There were certain things they weren't [C#m] allowed to do
[E] There were certain [B] things they weren't [E] allowed to do
And then one night [A] on the [E] television screen He saw that Medgar [B] Evers was dead _
[E] He took his wife [A] in his [E] arms in the night And these are the [B] words that he [C#] said Bo John
These [B] are the words that he [E] said
Well they made me a slave [A] and I worked in [E] their fields They made me fight [B] in their war
_ [E]
They kept me down [A] for [E] 400 years But I ain't gonna take it [C#m] anymore
_ [E] Oh I ain't [B] gonna take it [E] anymore
_ His wife got a letter [A] from a Georgia [E] jail From a town called _ [B] Albany
_ [E] Saying I am proud to be [A] your own [E] Bo John And I ain't coming home till we [C#] are free
_ [E] No I ain't [B] coming home till [E] we are free _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ Oh, John was a king in his own native land He ruled for [B] a thousand _ days
Till [E] the slave traders came and they locked him in irons
And they told him that he'd have [C#m] to go away _ [E] They told him that [B] he'd have to [E] go away
_ Oh, John got sick [A] on the long [E] ocean voyage All around him people [B] _
died
[E] They took his friends [A] and they threw them [E] overboard John hung down his head and [C#m] he cried
_ [E] John hung down [B] his head and [E] he cried
_ They sold Bo John [A] down in New [E] Orleans To a man with a whip [B] in his hand
_ [Em] He said farewell to [A] his wife and [E] his child And they took him to a strange [C#] new land
And they took him to [B] a strange [E] new land
Bo John worked hard [A] for thirty-seven [E] years He worked with a woman by [B] his _ side
[E] And on the morning that [A] his last [E] son was born Bo John laid down [C#m] and he died
[E] Bo John [B] laid down and [E] he died
His son grew up just [A] as big as [E] his dad And they called him Bo [B] John too
And [E] for one hundred years [A] Bo John and [E] his sons Did just what the master made [C#m] them do
They [B] did just what the master made [E] them do
_ Until one day when [A] the cannon [E] fire roared And the master's wife and children [B] did flee
[E] Some men in blue [A] coats rode into [E] the yard And they told Bo John that he [C#] was free
And [E] they told [B] Bo John he was free
_ _ _ _ When the night riders came [A] for old [E] Bo John Little Bo John hid [B] behind a tree
_ [E] He saw what they did [A] and he hit the [E] northern trail Singing maybe up there they'll [C#m] let me be
Saying maybe [B] up there they'll let [E] me be
But they pushed Bo John [A] and they shoved him [E] around Till he didn't know where [B] to turn
[E] Some folks up in Harlem [A] took him into [E] their home And Bo John started [C#m] in to learn
[E] And Bo [B] John started [E] in to learn
He fought for his country in World War I His son fought in World [B] War II
_ [E] And they learned no matter [A] what [E] price they paid There were certain things they weren't [C#m] allowed to do
[E] There were certain [B] things they weren't [E] allowed to do
And then one night [A] on the [E] television screen He saw that Medgar [B] Evers was dead _
[E] He took his wife [A] in his [E] arms in the night And these are the [B] words that he [C#] said Bo John
These [B] are the words that he [E] said
Well they made me a slave [A] and I worked in [E] their fields They made me fight [B] in their war
_ [E]
They kept me down [A] for [E] 400 years But I ain't gonna take it [C#m] anymore
_ [E] Oh I ain't [B] gonna take it [E] anymore
_ His wife got a letter [A] from a Georgia [E] jail From a town called _ [B] Albany
_ [E] Saying I am proud to be [A] your own [E] Bo John And I ain't coming home till we [C#] are free
_ [E] No I ain't [B] coming home till [E] we are free _ _ _