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Imagination Elvis Costello

[Em] [-] [D] [G] [-] [D]

e---12-12-12-12-12-10------------7-7-7-7-7-10-|
B---12-12-12-12-12-10------------8-8-8-8-8-10-|
G---12-12-12-12-12-11------------7-7-7-7-7-11-|

So you're [D]trying to make connection, you heard whispers in the[G] hall

She'll be [D]out ag[F#m]ain this [Bm]evening, when you c[D]ome ar[D7]ound to [G]call

So, you [D]dodge th[F#m]e lady-ki[Bm]ller, who came cre[D]epin' 'cross the f[Bb]loor

The you ca[D]ught u[F#m]p in a w[Bm]hirlwind, you got bl[D]own right [D7]out the [G]door

Oh, [D]yes it wa[F#m]s a whi[Bm]rlwind, sweet romanc[D]e was on your side [Bb]

[D]If you wanna [G]dance on my face, you must tell me why you lied

[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a pow[G]erful dec[D]eiver

When you [F#m]try to be[Bm]lieve her just[C] a little t[G]oo much

[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a po[G]werful dec[D]eiver

I'll go o[G]ut of my m[D]ind, if I'm l[G]osing your [D]touch

I see a[D] look of recognition, so well hidden in your[G] eye

And your [D]peepshow regula[F#m]tions, t[Bm]hey just don't seem to a[D]pply, [D7] [G]

Well, did I see [D]you in the[F#m] circus, [Bm]in the ring without a[D] hand [Bb]

Now you thi[D]nk that you ca[F#m]n curse us[Bm], steal the show and stop the[D] band [D7] [G]

Oh, you [D]can foll[F#m]ow your d[Bm]reams, oh but please don't lead[D] me on, [Bb]

[D]If you wanna blee[G]d in my face, you were here and now you're gone

[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a pow[G]erful dec[D]eiver

When you [F#m]try to b[Bm]elieve her just[C] a little t[G]oo much

[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a pow[G]erful dec[D]eiver

I'll go o[G]ut of my m[D]ind, if I'm l[G]osing your [D]touch

(repeat intro and end on D)

From: schnitzi@east.isx.com (Mark J. Schnitzius)

Imagination (Is A Powerful Deceiver)

from the Rykodisc rerelease of My Aim Is True

tabbed by yarlas@cognet.ucla.edu (Aaron Yarlas)

Note: This is the way I play the song; his chords might actually be

different, but the basic sound and changes are the same.

Instr. Intro.:

[A] [E]

So you're [E]trying to make connection, you heard whispers in the [A]hall

She'll be [E]out again this evening, when you come around to [A]call

So, [E]you dodge the lady-killer, who came creepin' 'cross the [C]floor

Then you [E]caught up in a whirlwind, you got blown right out the [A]door

Oh, yes it was a whirlwind, sweet romance was on your [A]side

[E]If you wanna [A]dance on my face, [D]you must tell me [A]why you lied

[E]Imagi[A]nation is a powerful dec[E]eiver

When you try to bel[A]ieve her just a [D]little too [A]much

[E]Imagination is a powerful dec[E]eiver

I'll go out of my m[A]ind, if I'm [D]losing your [E]touch

I see a [E]look of recognition, so well hidden in your [A]eye

And your [E]peepshow regulations, they just don't seem to ap[A]ply,

Well, [E]did I see you in the circus, in the ring without a [C]hand

Now you [E]think that you can curse us, steal the show and stop the [A]band

Oh, [E]you can follow your dreams, oh but please don't lead me [A]on,

[E]If you wanna [A]bleed in my face, [D]you were here and [A]now you're gone

[E]Imagin[A]ation is a [D]powerful dece[E]iver

When you try to be[A]lieve her just a l[D]ittle too [A]much

[E]Imagi[A]nation is a [D]powerful dec[E]eiver

I'll go out of my [A]mind, if I'm [D]losing your [E]touch

Note2: Some of the accents on the chords might be a little off; when I

converted

the document, it messed up the format, and I don't have my guitar handy.

Enjoy!

>From owner-costello@gnu.ai.mit.edu Sun Jan 30 00:36:14 1994

<199401300508.AA06969@cheetah.csl.uiuc.edu>

Subject: "Imagination" chords

To: costello@gnu.ai.mit.edu

Date: Sat, 29 Jan 1994 23:08:31 -0600 (CST)

X-Mailer: ELM (version 2.4 PL5)

Mime-Version: 1.0

Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII

Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Content-Length: 1792

Status: R

I hate to say this, and I don't want to sound ungrateful for someone's

efforts, but the chords listed for the song "Imagination..." are way, WAY

oversimplified. If you had to play this song with just E, A, D, G, and C

chords, I suppose these versions would do...but the progressions are far more

involved than that.

***Example, posted version:

Well, [E]did I see you in the circus, in the ring without a [C]hand

Now you [E]think that you can curse us, steal the show and stop the [A]band

***The way I hear it:

We[A]ll, did I see you in the [E]circus, in the ring without a [C]hand

Now you t[G#m]hink that you can c[C#m]urse us, steal the s[Bm]how and s[E7]top the b[A]and

***Posted version:

[E]Imagin[A]ation is a [D]powerful dece[E]iver

When you try to be[A]lieve her just a l[D]ittle too [A]much

[E]Imagi[A]nation is a [D]powerful dec[E]eiver

I'll go out of my [A]mind, if I'm [D]losing your [E]touch

***The way I hear it:

[E]Im[B]agi[C#m]nation[E/B] is a p[A]owerful dec[E]eiver

When you [G#m]try to be[C#m]lieve her just a [D]little too m[A]uch

[G#m]Imagina[C#m]tion is a p[A]owerful de[E]ceiver

I'll go o[A]ut of my m[E]ind, if I'm lo[A]sing your to[E]uch

There are far too many D chords in the posted version -- the only

time there's actually a D chord is in the chorus ("...a little too much"),

and I can't find a G chord in the whole song to save me.

>From owner-costello@gnu.ai.mit.edu Sat Feb 5 02:10:44 1994

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Date: Fri, 04 Feb 94 22:37 PST

To: *Emotional Toothpaste*

From: Paul AndersEn

Subject: "real" chords to Imagination

Status: R

After seeing a couple of posting regarding the chords to Imagination

I decided to try my hand at figuring them out because neither of the

versions I saw worked. I don't know if the writers guitars were out

of tune or what, but they definately are not the chords that EC is

playing on the recording. So at the risk of being severly flamed I

will post my version of the chords. I don't think they are perfect

by any means, but if you play these chords along with the recording

at least it will sound like the same song.

So you're [D]trying to make connection, you heard whispers in the[G] hall

She'll be [D]out ag[F#m]ain this [Bm]evening, when you c[D]ome ar[Dm]ound to [G]call

So, you [D]dodge th[F#m]e lady-ki[Bm]ller, who came cre[D]epin' 'cross the f[A#]loor

The you ca[D]ught u[F#m]p in a w[Bm]hirlwind, you got bl[D]own right [Dm]out the [G]door

Oh, yes it was a wh[D]irlwind, sweet romance was on your s[A#]ide

[D]If you wanna dance on my face[G], you must tell me why you lied

[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a pow[G]erful dec[D]eiver

When you [F#m]try to bel[Bm]ieve her just a [C]little too [G]much

[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a po[G]werful dec[D]eiver

I'll go o[G]ut of my m[D]ind, if I'm l[G]osing your [D]touch

Then the second part is the same as the first, except for the ending.

The weird thing about this song is that while it sounds like it doesn't

flow right on the recording, when you are playing and singing the tune

it sounds perfect, and it's tons of fun to play. If these chords work

for you, experiment with adding in the bass line, you will find that

much of the bass line can be played without having to use alternate

fingerings for the chords.

Enjoy

Paul Andersen

Important: The song above is NOT stored on the Chordie server. The original song is hosted at www.guitaretab.com. Chordie works as a search engine and provides on-the-fly formatting. Chordie does not index songs against artists'/composers' will. To remove this song please click here.

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Imagination

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{t:Imagination}
{st:Elvis Costello}

#
#                                                                                       
{sot}
#----------------------------------PLEASE NOTE---------------------------------#

{eot}
##This file is the author's own work and represents their interpretation of the #
##song. You may only use this file for private study, scholarship, or research. #
#                                                                                       
{sot}
#------------------------------------------------------------------------------##

{eot}
#This is just an update I did over the summer.
#The original tab came from Aaron Yarlas, and thanks
#is owed to J. Cooper and Paul Andersen as well.
#Any corrections are welcomed, and if someone was
#inclined to do a bass-tab, well that would be swell.
#N-joy,    will.
#
#Imagination (Is a Powerful Deceiver)
#words & music by Elvis Costello
#from the Rykodisc rerelease of ?My Aim Is True?
#Cleaned up by Will Lipchitz <wsl6174@is.nyu.edu>
#
#Intro (2x):
#
    [Em]         [-]       [D]             [G]   [-][D]
                                                                                      
{sot}
e---12-12-12-12-12-10------------7-7-7-7-7-10-|

{eot}
                                                                                      
{sot}
B---12-12-12-12-12-10------------8-8-8-8-8-10-|

{eot}
                                                                                      
{sot}
G---12-12-12-12-12-11------------7-7-7-7-7-11-|

{eot}

So you're [D]trying to make connection, you heard whispers in the[G] hall
She'll be [D]out ag[F#m]ain this [Bm]evening, when you c[D]ome ar[D7]ound to [G]call
So, you [D]dodge th[F#m]e lady-ki[Bm]ller, who came cre[D]epin' 'cross the f[Bb]loor
The you ca[D]ught u[F#m]p in a w[Bm]hirlwind, you got bl[D]own right [D7]out the [G]door
Oh, [D]yes it wa[F#m]s a whi[Bm]rlwind, sweet romanc[D]e was on your side      [Bb]
[D]If you wanna [G]dance on my face, you must tell me why you lied
[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a pow[G]erful dec[D]eiver
When you [F#m]try to be[Bm]lieve her just[C] a little t[G]oo much
[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a po[G]werful dec[D]eiver
I'll go o[G]ut of my m[D]ind, if I'm l[G]osing your [D]touch
I see a[D] look of recognition, so well hidden in your[G] eye
And your [D]peepshow regula[F#m]tions, t[Bm]hey just don't seem to a[D]pply,       [D7]     [G]
Well, did I see [D]you in the[F#m] circus, [Bm]in the ring without a[D] hand              [Bb]
Now you thi[D]nk that you ca[F#m]n curse us[Bm], steal the show and stop the[D] band     [D7]              [G]
Oh, you [D]can foll[F#m]ow your d[Bm]reams, oh but please don't lead[D] me on,                 [Bb]
[D]If you wanna blee[G]d in my face, you were here and now you're gone
[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a pow[G]erful dec[D]eiver
When you [F#m]try to b[Bm]elieve her just[C] a little t[G]oo much
[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a pow[G]erful dec[D]eiver
I'll go o[G]ut of my m[D]ind, if I'm l[G]osing your [D]touch

(repeat intro and end on D)

From: schnitzi@east.isx.com (Mark J. Schnitzius)

Imagination (Is A Powerful Deceiver)
from the Rykodisc rerelease of My Aim Is True
tabbed by yarlas@cognet.ucla.edu (Aaron Yarlas)

Note: This is the way I play the song; his chords might actually be
different, but the basic sound and changes are the same.

Instr. Intro.:
[A]  [E]                                  
So you're [E]trying to make connection, you heard whispers in the [A]hall
She'll be [E]out again this evening, when you come around to [A]call
So, [E]you dodge the lady-killer, who came creepin' 'cross the [C]floor
Then you [E]caught up in a whirlwind, you got blown right out the [A]door
Oh, yes it was a whirlwind, sweet romance was on your [A]side
[E]If you wanna [A]dance on my face, [D]you must tell me [A]why you lied
[E]Imagi[A]nation is a powerful dec[E]eiver
When you try to bel[A]ieve her just a [D]little too [A]much
[E]Imagination is a powerful dec[E]eiver
I'll go out of my m[A]ind, if I'm [D]losing your [E]touch

I see a [E]look of recognition, so well hidden in your [A]eye
And your [E]peepshow regulations, they just don't seem to ap[A]ply,
Well, [E]did I see you in the circus, in the ring without a [C]hand
Now you [E]think that you can curse us, steal the show and stop the [A]band
Oh, [E]you can follow your dreams, oh but please don't lead me [A]on,
[E]If you wanna [A]bleed in my face, [D]you were here and [A]now you're gone
[E]Imagin[A]ation is a [D]powerful dece[E]iver
When you try to be[A]lieve her just a l[D]ittle too [A]much

[E]Imagi[A]nation is a [D]powerful dec[E]eiver
I'll go out of my [A]mind, if I'm [D]losing your [E]touch
I'll go out of my [A]mind, if I'm [D]losing your [E]touch
I'll go out of my [A]mind, if I'm [D]losing your [E]touch

Note2: Some of the accents on the chords might be a little off; when I
converted
       the document, it messed up the format, and I don't have my guitar handy.

Enjoy!

>From owner-costello@gnu.ai.mit.edu Sun Jan 30 00:36:14 1994
 <199401300508.AA06969@cheetah.csl.uiuc.edu>
Subject: "Imagination" chords
To: costello@gnu.ai.mit.edu
Date: Sat, 29 Jan 1994 23:08:31 -0600 (CST)
X-Mailer: ELM (version 2.4 PL5)
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Length: 1792
Status: R

I hate to say this, and I don't want to sound ungrateful for someone's
efforts, but the chords listed for the song "Imagination..." are way, WAY
oversimplified.  If you had to play this song with just E, A, D, G, and C
chords, I suppose these versions would do...but the progressions are far more
involved than that.

***Example, posted version:

Well, [E]did I see you in the circus, in the ring without a [C]hand
Now you [E]think that you can curse us, steal the show and stop the [A]band

***The way I hear it:

We[A]ll, did I see you in the [E]circus, in the ring without a [C]hand
Now you t[G#m]hink that you can c[C#m]urse us, steal the s[Bm]how and s[E7]top the b[A]and

***Posted version:

[E]Imagin[A]ation is a [D]powerful dece[E]iver
When you try to be[A]lieve her just a l[D]ittle too [A]much

[E]Imagi[A]nation is a [D]powerful dec[E]eiver
I'll go out of my [A]mind, if I'm [D]losing your [E]touch

***The way I hear it:

[E]Im[B]agi[C#m]nation[E/B] is a p[A]owerful dec[E]eiver
When you [G#m]try to be[C#m]lieve her just a [D]little too m[A]uch
[G#m]Imagina[C#m]tion is a p[A]owerful de[E]ceiver
I'll go o[A]ut of my m[E]ind, if I'm lo[A]sing your to[E]uch

There are far too many D chords in the posted version -- the only
time there's actually a D chord is in the chorus ("...a little too much"),
and I can't find a G chord in the whole song to save me.

>From owner-costello@gnu.ai.mit.edu Sat Feb  5 02:10:44 1994
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Date:    Fri, 04 Feb 94 22:37 PST
To: *Emotional Toothpaste*               <costello@gnu.ai.mit.edu>
From: Paul AndersEn                        <ECZ5PGA@mvs.oac.ucla.edu>
Subject: "real" chords to Imagination
Status: R

After seeing a couple of posting regarding the chords to Imagination
I decided to try my hand at figuring them out because neither of the
versions I saw worked.  I don't know if the writers guitars were out
of tune or what, but they definately are not the chords that EC is
playing on the recording.  So at the risk of being severly flamed I
will post my version of the chords.  I don't think they are perfect
by any means, but if you play these chords along with the recording
at least it will sound like the same song.

So you're [D]trying to make connection, you heard whispers in the[G] hall
She'll be [D]out ag[F#m]ain this [Bm]evening, when you c[D]ome ar[Dm]ound to [G]call
So, you [D]dodge th[F#m]e lady-ki[Bm]ller, who came cre[D]epin' 'cross the f[A#]loor
The you ca[D]ught u[F#m]p in a w[Bm]hirlwind, you got bl[D]own right [Dm]out the [G]door
Oh, yes it was a wh[D]irlwind, sweet romance was on your s[A#]ide
[D]If you wanna dance on my face[G], you must tell me why you lied
[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a pow[G]erful dec[D]eiver
When you [F#m]try to bel[Bm]ieve her just a [C]little too [G]much
[D]Ima[F#m]ginat[Bm]ion is a po[G]werful dec[D]eiver
I'll go o[G]ut of my m[D]ind, if I'm l[G]osing your [D]touch

Then the second part is the same as the first, except for the ending.
The weird thing about this song is that while it sounds like it doesn't
flow right on the recording, when you are playing and singing the tune
it sounds perfect, and it's tons of fun to play.  If these chords work
for you, experiment with adding in the bass line, you will find that
much of the bass line can be played without having to use alternate
fingerings for the chords.

Enjoy

Paul Andersen

Imagination Elvis Costello

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