Calypso Suzanne Vega
To: jamesb@nevada.edu
Subject: /v/Suzanne.Vega/Calypso.tab
CALYPSO (Suzanne Vega)
----------------------
I learned this from the book _The_Authentic_Guitar_Style_of_Suzanne_Vega_,
published by Cherry Lane Music. No guitar-playing Suzanne Vega fan should
be without it. Buy it; it's only $12.95, and it has very good transcriptions
of eleven songs from Suzanne's first two albums. If your local music store
doesn't have it, do a special order or call Hal Leonard (Cherry Lane's
distributor) directly; that's how I got it.
TAB FOR INTRO AND FIRST VERSE:
[The second and third verses are slightly different; if you want to get it
exactly right, just listen to the recording.]
[An equal sign (=) is a bammer-on; *2 means quickly bammer-on from 0 to 2.]
[Accents are on the 1st, 4th, and 7th eighth notes of each measure; those are
usually played by the thumb. (In the recording, you can barely even hear
the non-accented notes.)]
[Actually in G; capo at tbe 3rd fret.]
[E7] [E7sus4] [E7] [E7sus4]
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------| B --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-------|--0-----0-----0-| G ----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----| D ----------------|------0---------|2-----------0=2-|0-----------0---| A ------2---------|2-----------2---|------2---------|------2---------| E 0-----------0---|----------------|----------------|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
[E7] [E7sus4] [E7] [E7sus4]
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------| B --------------0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-| G ------1---1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----| D 0=2--------*2---|0-----------0---|----------------|------0---------| A ----------------|------2---------|------2---------|2-----------2---| E ----------------|----------------|0-----------0---|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
[E7] [E7sus4] [E7] [E7sus4]
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------| B --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-------|--0-----0-----0-| G ----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----| D ----------------|------0---------|2-----------0=2-|0-----------0---| A ------2---------|2-----------2---|------2---------|------2---------| E 0-----------0---|----------------|----------------|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
My name is Calypso and I have lived alone
[E7] [E7sus4] [E7] [E7sus4]
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------| B ----0-----0-----|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-| G ------1---------|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----| D 0=2---------0=2-|0-----------0---|----------------|------0---------| A ----------------|------2---------|------2---------|2-----------2---| E ----------------|----------------|0-----------0---|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
I live on an island and I 'waken to the dawn
[A] [A7/6sus4] [A] [A7/6sus4]
E --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-| B ----2-----2-----|----3-----3-----|----2-----2-----|----3-----3-----| G ------------2---|------0---------|------------2---|------0---------| D ------2---------|4-----------4---|------2---------|4-----------4---| A 0---------------|----------------|0---------------|----------------| E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
A long time ago, I watched him struggle with the sea
[E7] [E7sus4] [E7] [E7sus4]
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------| B --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-------|--0-----0-----0-| G ----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----| D ----------------|------0---------|2-----------0=2-|0-----------0---| A ------2---------|2-----------2---|------2---------|------2---------| E 0-----------0---|----------------|----------------|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
I knew that he was drowning and I brought him in to me
[Asus4] [Asus4] [A(4)] [A(4)]
E --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--------0-------| B ----3-----3-----|----3-----3-----|----2-----2-----|----2-----2-----| G ----------------|------2---------|------------2---|------2---------| D ------0-----2---|0-----------0---|------0---------|0=2---------2---| A 0---------------|----------------|0---------------|----------------| E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
Now today come mor - ning light,
[C] [Cmaj7] [F#m7(4)] [F#m7(4)]
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------| B --1-----1-----1-|--0-----0-------|----------------|----------------| G ----0-----0-----|----0-----0-----|----2-----2-----|----------2-----| D ------2-----2---|------2---------|----------------|------2---------| A 3---------------|3---------------|-----*2---------|0=2---------2---| E ----------------|------------0---|2-----------0=2-|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
he sails away; Af - ter one last
[E] [E7sus4] [E] [E7sus4]
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------| B --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-| G ----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----| D ------------2---|------0---------|------------2---|------0---------| A ------2---------|2-----------2---|------2---------|2-----------2---| E 0---------------|----------------|0---------------|----------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
night, I let him go.
LYRICS AND CHORDS:
[It's a judgement call as to whether the E7's are actually E's or E7's.
And it doesn't really matter.]
[For the "I let him go" parts at the ends of the verses, play as many
E - E7sus4 sequences as is necessary, using the picking pattern from
the last two measures of the first verse.]
[Capo 3.]
[E7] [intE7sus4]ro] [E7] [E7sus4] [E7] [E7sus4] [E7] [E7sus4]
[E7] My name i[E7sus4]s Calypso, and [E7]I have lived al[E7sus4]one
[E7] I live on an i[E7sus4]sland, and [E7]I 'waken t[E7sus4]o the dawn
[A]Long time ag[A7/6sus4]o, I [A]watched him struggle[A7/6sus4] with the sea
[E7] I knew that h[E7sus4]e was drowning,[E7] and I brought him [E7sus4]in to me
[Asus4] Now tod[Asus4]ay, come [A(4)]morning [A(4)]light
[C]He sails a[Cmaj7]way; after[F#m7(4)] one[F#m7(4)] last[E] night,[E7sus4] I [E]let him go[E7sus4]
My name is Calypso; my garden overflows
Thick and wild and hidden is the sweetness there that grows
My hair, it blows long as I sing into the wind
I tell of nights where I could taste the salt on his skin
Salt of the waves and of tears
And though he pulled away, I kept him here for years
Now I let him go
[Guitar solo: same chords as one verse, but for all the E - E7sus4 parts,
just play it like the "I let him go" parts at the end of the verses.]
My name is Calypso; I have let him go
In the dawn he sails away to be gone forever more
And the waves will take him in again, but he'll know their ways know
I will stand upon the shore with a clean heart and my song in the wind
The sand will sting my feet and the sky will burn
It's a lonely time ahead; I do not ask him to return; I let him go
I let him go
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