Everybody Has a Story

Everybody has a story
Everybody has a tale to tell
Lies spoken, hearts broken,
Lost in Hell.
All you have to do is listen,
That's the hardest thing to do.
I promise I will try to listen to your troubles
Promise when it's my turn, so will you

Everybody has a story,
Everybody has a tale to tell.
Lost ritches, old ditches,
Rooms that smell.
Your story sounds a lot like mine,
I'd love to listen but I don't have time
It's after midnight and we've drunk the wine
You say buy a little more I 'll try a little more,
Go on and why a little more.

     Your father went to sea when you were born
     Your mother went to Bellevue and your dog died in a storm
     The only friend you had, he said you drove him mad,
     So what do you want of me, a little sympathy,
     Because life hurts you and friends desert you,
     And nobody wants to listen, nor do we.

'Cause everybody has a story,
Everybody has a tale tell.
Doom tasted, hope wasted,
Love to sell.
All you have to do is listen,
There's a nightmare coming true.
Someone's trying to shoal the edges of the nightmare
It ought to make you grateful it's not you.

Everybody has a story,
All you have to do is listen.

Music

Thanks to Bernard Gates!

Intro


Eb l Eb

Verse

Eb l Eb l Eb l Eb Ebb7

Fm l Eb l Bb (bb-bnat)

Cm l Cm l Cm l Cm

Fm/c l G#m/b l Bb l Cm/bb Bb

Chorus

G l G l G l F aug/b

Db l C l Bb l Bb l Fm/ab l Fm/ab

Eb/g l Ab6 l Bb l Bb

Coda

Eb l Eb l Fm/c l Cm

I've Been Loved

They stake out a plane
To a bench on the board-walk
For ninety nine years.
They're old when they get here,
They stay old forever
As time dissapears.
They get lunch everyday
At the Palm Court Cafe
It's better than home
When you're alone.

     And it all seems so lonely
     You just wanna cry,
     It's so lonely.
     You wanna ask, 'Why
     Do they go on?
     How can they survive?'
     And they'll tell you:
     'I've been loved, so I know I'm alive.
     I've been loved alive.'

My grandmother waits
In the depth of her pillows for
God only knows.
To see her you'd say her life's
Not worth the living,
Still onward she goes.
She eats three meals a day
From a porcelain tray
And they all taste same
When you're in pane.

     And it all seems so lonely
     You just wanna cry,
     It's so lonely.
     You wanna ask 'Why
     Does she go on?
     How can she survive?'
     And she'll tell you:
     'I've been loved, so I know I'm alive.
     I've been loved alive.'

You step off the bus
At the usual corner
And walk to your room.
It's silent and empty
Except for a breath
Of her favourite perfume.
You switch on the news,
And you kick off your shoes,
And pour out a drink,
And try not to think.

     'Cause it all seems so lonely,
     You just wanna cry.
     It's so lonely,
     You ask yourself, 'Why
     Do you go on?
     How can you survive?'
     And you answer:
     'I've been loved, so I know I'm alive.
     I've been loved alive.'

Jenna Saves

When Jenna Pearl was ten,
Her daddy told her never again never again, never again.
Will Jenna want for anything,
Uncle George died and left her, left her his brass ring.

'Now you can make the neighbours play the fool
Even send yourself to boarding school.
Buy a chauffeur-driven limousine.
But don't forget your daddy's queen.'

     But Jenna Pearl was noone's girl, she knew even then,
     She said, 'How nice, but your advice, I'll never need again.
     But you can call me anytime, here's a dime.'

When Jenna Pearl was grown,
Guido found her living alone, living alone, living alone.
He said ignore my threadbare clothes,
I'm a man and what I can give, what I can give, a woman knows

I can give you love and love again,
A husband with the strength of ten.
You wanna buy a car and clothes for me,
'Cause what you get is what you see.

     But Jenna Pearl was noone's girl, she understood the score
     She said, 'Poor thing, we live in sin, all love and nothing more.'
     She said, 'You don't like that? Well here's your hat.'

When Jenna Pearl was old, her favourite friends were
Buckets of gold, barrels of gold, all of her gold.
Her doctor told her, 'You won't last,
And everyone goes, and everyone knows you're going fast

Why don't you give it all to charity,
Except a little bag for me.
You'll never live to spend it anyway
So don't forget the AMA.

     But Jenna Pearl was a mean old girl, she kept her golden hoard.
     Then on the day she died she often cried, 'I leave it to the lord,'
     And now she rides a golden horse in Hell of course.

Music

Under construction!

With thanks to Dan Ashton. Capo on IV.

Verse

Am | Am | D7 | D7 |Am | Am
Am | Am | D7 | D7 |Am | Am
Bm | Bm | E7 | Cb7

Chorus

F# | B/ab | Bsus4 | B/ab
F# | B/ab | E7 | - 

Surf's Down

Everything's changing on the surfing scene,
I traded in my Woodie on a new machine
I haven't had a zit since I was seventeen
And I can't find the number of my teenage queen,
Now when I pick up a girl I say as nice as I can,
'Wanna tandem,' but she says, 'You dirty old man.'
Surf's down.

It's getting kind of lonely as a surfer man.
My knots are disappearing and I got no tan.
My wet suit's leaking and they laugh at my jams,
And no-one wants to talk about their high-lift cams.
So well I got a few tricks that I'd like to show,
But you can't hang ten when you've lost your little toe.
Surf's down.

     Hey there Linda babe why won't you respond,
     Don't you know me, I used to be a blonde.

Let's go stomping baby you and me.
I got some Dick Dale records and Sherry.
And then we'll check the waves down at Wind and Sea,
I'll even buy some beer and use my own ID.
I've got a lot more miles til my treads wear through,
So I guess I'll keep surfing 'cause it's all I can do.
Surf's down.

Ride, ride, ride, surfer man.

Music

Verse:

E | - | - | -
A | - | E | -
B | A | B | A

Bridge:

C-G | Am-D
Bm-B | D-D
Notes

There is quite some surfer slang in this song. So for anyone like me who did not grow up in 60s California (thanks to Brian Mathieson and Cara Klieger):

Dick Dale: Ground-breaking surf rock guitarist aka 'the King of the Surf Guitar'.
Hang ten: Placing ten toes over the nose of the surfboard aka 'toes on the nose'.
High-lift cam: A car part (I do not know what the surf connection is here).
Knots: Callouses just below the knee and on the tops of the foot caused by kneeling on the surfboard.
Sherry: Song written by Bob Gaudio and originally performed by The Four Seasons in 1962 - Ackles' singing imitates their melody on this word.
Tandem: Two people riding on a surfboard at the same time, usually a man and woman.
Wet suit: A neoprene rubber suit used by surfers to keep warm.
Wind and Sea: Restaurant on the Southern Californian shore (est. 1972).
Woodie: A station wagon, made in the 40s and 50s, with wood paneling on the sides.
Zit: Pimple.

Berry Tree

There's berry tree, standing by the door-step,
And it stays green all around the year.
It feeds the birds staying through the winter,
And it gives a shade when the summer's here.

     And I thank the Lord for the world I see
     For loving you and living free and thee,
     And the berry tree.

There's a wooden cross, standing on a hill-side,
Where it will stand for us all to see.
It can show us love, it can feed us through a lifetime.
And the fruit it gives, it has given free.

     And I thank the Lord for the world I see,
     For loving you and living free and thee,
     And the berry tree.

There's a girl I love, standing at the window,
With the winter sun shining in her face
And the love she bears will keep me through a lifetime.
Like the tree and the cross, we will stand with grace.

     And I thank the Lord for the world I see.
     The girl I love, the living tree and thee,
     And the berry tree.

Music

This one is in F# - I'd suggest playing it in C with a capo on the sixth fret.

Intro

C | G | F | C

Verse (There's a berry tree...)

C | - | Em/b | -
Am | - | G | -

Refrain (And I thank the Lord...)

Am | Am/g# | Am/g | D7/f#
G | G | C | -

Melody

One Good Woman's Man

This night I'll remember for as long as I can.
This night I was one good woman's man.
I was one good woman's man.

When I said I love you, why do you roll away?
You cried and told me that you could not stay,
And I knew you had no place to stay.

I found a postcard left unsend on the floor.
Unsigned, it says, 'Matthew, all my love and more.'
It says, 'Matthew, all my love and more.'

I guess you're travelling and I guess you're alright.
I hope someone keeps you warm this night.
And I wish I'd been Matthew just this night.

Music
 
This is in Eb again, one of David's favorite keys. It's perhaps best playable on guitar in D with a capo on the first fret. The dominant piano figure begins as a simple sus2 riff, D-E-F# and modulates to D-F#-G and various other variations. This basic harmonic structure is something like this (with a capo on I):

D | D |G | G
Em | Em | Em | A | A
D G-D/f# | Em-Em7 | A | A |
G-D/f# | Em7-A | D | D

The piano part below is not a note-for-note transcription, but it should give a general idea of what he is playing. I have added the hauntingly beautiful vocal melody; the oboe and acoustic guitar play mostly variations of this.

Run Pony Run

Where are you running, pony wild,
On to someone's stable,
Run, run as fast as you can,
As far as your limbs are able.
Cowboys have wings now, they can fly
No place to hide beneath the sky.
Run pony, run, there's not much time,
Before you're served up grade A prime.

Where are you running, pony wild,
Where your spirit leads on,
Men will ride you down to death
For his fool dogs to feed on.
Hunters have wheels now and they drive,
You're not worth a damn while you're alive.
Run, pony, run, there's not much time,
Before you're served up grade A prime.

     Sons of Spanish dreams and Western plains
     Four hundred years and here's a bullet for your pains
     How long can you wander free the canyon and the rim,
     The red man was your only friend, look what we're doing to him.
     You better run, pony, run pony, run pony, run pony, run.

Where are you running pony wild,
Where the butcher's waiting.
If you're lucky, there's a zoo
Will capture you for mating.
Your eagle friend has left the sky,
No wing will bend to say goodbye.
Run, pony, run, there's not much time,
Before you're served up grade A prime.

Music

Intro

E | C#m | A | E |

Verse

E | E
D | E
G | D | E |
G | D | E |
C#m | B7/d# | E
C#m | B7/d# | E

Bridge

G | F | Em
G | F | Em
G | F | Em | Em/d-c-b-a
A7

Aberfan

It was rainy in the morning as the men left for the mine,
Past the schoolyard in the morning.
At the colliery production charts read, 'Men, we're doing fine,'
As the rain fell in the morning.
The coal board said you're number seven tip will stay in line,
It's been two years this morning.
But no one told the children of Aberfan.

One hundred and sixteen caps and shawls
Danced the halls of the school-house,
While the grown-up inspectors drank their tea
In the safe, dry lee of the tool-house.
As the rain fell in the morning on Aberfan.

Did no one hear the stones move when the tip began to fall?
Did no one feel the slag shake? Was no one there at all?
They were on the phone for Swansea taking orders for more,
They were going about their business, minding the store,
And five minutes later, they were asking, 'What for?'

The call for silence hushed the crowd,
Who searched the clouds for answers.
While they listened for life and held their breath,
The sound of death held the dancers.
As the rain fell in the morning on Aberfan.

But no one told the children, but no one told the children.
And it's always the children.

House Above the Strand

Will you come and live here with me,
In my house above the strand?
I'll have pomegranates ready
So they ripen in your hand

Will you be the sun in winter
And a cool breeze when it's warm
Will you light my footsteps homeward
When I get lost in the storm.

Will you set my life to music
Will you make my tunes come true
I will dance away the mornings
If I spend the nights with you.

     Mm, will you marry me?
     Mm, and be my song?

Will you come and live here with me,
In my house above the strand
It's been silent all this winter
And the garden's turned to sand.

It's a sad place when it's empty,
It gets lonely just like me
And it needs you, and I need you
To be all that I can be.

Let me fold the song around us,
That I only sing for you.
I will lay you down in music
That will be forever new.

     Mm, will you marry me?
     Mm, and be my song?

Music

Lots of resolved Sus2s here - as in most of Ackles' love songs (see Love's Enough for another example); on guitar, play around with the open high E string. The bass does mostly descending runs between chords.

Verse

D | - | Bm | - |
G | Em | Asus4 | A

Chords

D | G | Em | -
D | G | Asus4 | D

Photograph of You

All that I have of you is a photograph.
We're in a row-boat,
You're wearing my coat,
You're trying to make me laugh.
It seems like yesterday,
Love was all we knew.
And now a photograph
Is all I have of you.

     It was a wet September Wednesday,
     They were closing down the park.
     I tried to bribe the row-boat man
     For one half hour's lark.
     He smiled and said go right ahead,
     It ain't too cold to spark.
     And we had fun, didn't we hon',
     We stayed out until dark.

     We played a losing game of love forever
     We never learned the rules
     While we made plans and laughed the days out,
     Life played us for fools.
     I found work as a late-night clerk,
     You went away to school.
     Then the letter came, you told me his name,
     He takes you rowing too.

Now all I have of you is a photograph.
We're in a row-boat,
You're wearing my coat.
You're trying to make me laugh.
It seems like yesterday,
Love was all we knew.
And now a photograph
Is all I have of you.

Such a Woman

I haven't got a hope in my pocket.
I haven't got a dream to my name.
But people, people, let me tell you,
I am lucky just the same.

     I got a memory, I got a memory,
     Of a woman, Such a woman,
     God only made one.
     And when I held her, when I held her,
     Well I knew I held a sun.

     'Cause she warmed me,
     Yes, she warmed me, and lighted my way.
     And when she left me,
     That was the end of my day.

I haven't got a woman to hold to.
I haven't had a love for so long.
But people, people, you've got to believe me,
I know I can get along.

     I've got a memory, I've got a memory,
     Of a woman, such a woman,
     God only made one.
     And when I held her, when I held her,
     I knew I held a sun.

     'Cause she warmed me,
     Yes she warmed me, and lighted my way,
     And when she left me,
     That was the end of my day.

Postcards

May I write you from time to time,
A picture postcard from the five and dime?
Nothing fancy, just a simple line,
'I miss you.'

May I telephone now and then?
Nothing dreadful, just, 'Hello, my friend,
How's your mother, is she on the mend?
I miss you.'

     I have to go now, who can say how long?
     You be good while I'm gone
     And don't look behind you.
     I'd like to say more, but there's no need to lie.
     If I come back bye and bye,
     I just hope to find you.
     I'll think of you every warm night,
     Will you think of me if I don't write?

But will you write me, from time to time,
A picture postcard from the five and dime.
Nothing fancy, just a simple line.
I know I'll miss you.