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Mexicali Blues Grateful Dead
[A]Layin' back in an old saloon with a [G]peso [B]in my [Em]hand
[A]Watchin' flies and children on the [D]street
And I [A]catch a glimpse of black-eyed girls who [G]giggle [B]when I [Em]smile
There's a [A]little boy who wants to shine my [D]feet
And it's [G]three days ride from [B]Bakersfield and I [Em]don't know why I came
I [A]guess I came to keep from payin' [D]dues
But [G]instead I've got a [B]bottle and a [Em]girl who's just fourteen
And a [A]damn good case of the Mexicali Blues, yeah
[D]Is there anything a man don't stand to lose
When the devil wants to [A]take it all away?
Cherish well your thoughts, keep a tight grip on your booze
G(open) A
'Cuz thinkin' and drinkin' are all I have today.
[A]She said her name was Billie Jean; [G]she was [B]fresh in [Em]town
I [A]didn't know a stage line ran from [D]hell
She had [A]raven hair, a ruffled dress, a [G]necklace [B]made of gold
[A]All the french perfume you'd care to [D]smell
She [G]took me up in[B]to her room and [Em]whispered in my ear
Go [A]on my friend do anything you [D]choose.
Now I'm [G]paying for those [B]happy hours I [Em]spent there in her arms
With a [A]lifetime case of the Mexicali Blues, [D]yeah.
[D]Is there anything a man don't stand to lose
When the devil wants to [A]take it all away?
Cherish well your thoughts, keep a tight grip on your booze
G(open) A
'Cuz thinkin' and drinkin' are all I have today.
[A]Then a man rode into town; some [G]thought he [B]was the [Em]law
[A]Billie Jean was waiting when he [D]came
She [A]told me he would take her if I [G]didn't [B]use my [Em]gun
And [A]I'd have no one but myself to [D]blame
I [G]went down to those [B]dusty streets; [Em]blood was on my mind
I [A]guess that stranger hadn't heard the [D]news.
"Cuz [G]I shot first and [B]killed him. Lord he [Em]didn't even draw.
And he [A]made me trade the gallows for the Mexicali Blues.[D]
[D]Is there anything a man don't stand to lose
When he lets a woman [A]hold him in her hand?
You just might find yourself out there on horseback in the dark
G(open) A
Just ridin' and runnin' across those desert sands.
Notes:
I use a strum with a lot of alternating bass - usually 4th and 5th strings -
for the A and D chords. However, I find that the strumming patterns
vary greatly throughout the song. Play along with the record to get
the right feel.
I fake the trumpet intro with D chord forms using D, Dsus4 and D9.
The G-B-Em chord progression in some verses sounds best as single emphasized
strums synchronized to the words (e.g. some THOUGHT he WAS the LAW).
D Dsus4 D9 G(open)
EADGBe EADGBe EADGBe EADGBe
xxx232 xxx233 xxx23x 32xxx3
EA[A]DGBe EA[G]DGBe EA[B]DGBe EA[Em]DGBe
xx222x 355433 224442 x22xxx
[--]Steve Comeau
scomeau@cnct.com
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