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- Newsgroups: rec.music.phish
- Path: sparky!uunet!microsoft!hexnut!ericbe
- From: ericbe@microsoft.com (Eric Berman)
- Subject: Chords to Esther
- Message-ID: <1992Dec28.180929.16269@microsoft.com>
- Date: 28 Dec 92 18:09:29 GMT
- Organization: Microsoft Corp.
- Lines: 273
-
- It's me again.
-
- Thought I'd also share with everyone the chords to one of my all-time
- favorite Phish tunes (and the song that got my girlfriend hooked...)
-
- (Chordmeister: please add this to the chord file)
-
- This time it isn't strictly for guitar players. In fact, I've left out
- most of the guitar stuff because the song is better played on keys. So,
- no funky tab notation this time, just a bunch of chord names...
-
- It's a fun tune to play, so have fun!
-
- --Eric
-
- ------------------------------------------------
- (Music and Lyrics - Trey Anastasio)
-
- Here's how to play the main riff chords in the song. The chords are shown in
- the inversion that you should use, top note on top and bottom note on bottom:
- F/C F+/C# Dm F7/Eb BbMaj7/D BbmMaj7/Db Am7 Gm7 C7
- --- --- --- ---- --- --- --- --- ---
- A A A A A A G Bb Bb
- F F F F F F E G G
- C C# D Eb D Db C F E
- D
-
- (Notice that in the BbMaj7 and BbmMaj7/Db, the Bb is implied. When Mike
- comes in on the bass, the bass plays the Bb, but the organ doesn't.
- Likewise, the A isn't stated in the Am7 until Mike plays it on the bass.)
-
- There are other chords in the song, but the fingering on them isn't as
- important as for these, so you can use whatever is comfortable.
-
- Most of the song, especially at the start, has an "oom-pah-pah" feel (which
- kind of makes sense, since the song is in 3/4.) To play the chords
- correctly, play the bass note, then the other two notes twice. For example,
- the intro starts like this:
-
- F/C F+/C# Dm F+/C#
- ----- ------ ----- ------
- A A A A A A A A
- F F F F F F F F
- C C# D C# ....
-
- Find a good Hammond patch to play it with and your all set...
-
-
- "Circus theme" Intro:
- F E Eb E Eb D C# C B C
-
- Intro:
- F/C F+/C# Dm F+/C# F/C F+/C# Dm F+/C#
-
- F/C F+/C# Dm F7/Eb
- It was late one fall night at a fairground near town
-
- BbMaj7/D BbmMaj7/Db F/A
- When Esther first saw the Armenian man
-
- Am7 Dm
- Who grovelled toward her and stood by her side
-
- Gm7 C7
- With a bucket that swung in his hand (Bass joins in here)
-
-
- F/C F+/C# Dm F7/Eb
- His grin stretched the folds of his pasty white cheeks
-
- BbMaj7 BbmMaj7 F/A
- And his lips hurled a dollop of murk on the curb
-
- Am7 Dm
- And the lights from the rides showed a mischievous sparkle
-
- Gm7 C7
- That flashed in his hollow eyed stare
-
- (same)
- He said "Little girl, you can chop off my legs
- And then peel off my socks if you want to.
- But I'd rather you took this old puppet from me
- That I hold in my pail as we speak."
-
- (same except transition chords at end of verse)
- And he stood looking down at the innocent girl
- And she stared at the bucket bewildered
- Til he lifted the doll for the young girl to see
-
- Gm7b5/Db Eb <--transition chords
- And a giant smile grew on his face
-
-
-
- Ab Adim Bbm Eb
- She saw the doll's eyes and she couldn't resist
-
- Ddim Db Bbm Eb
- And she thanked the man quickly and ran to the church
-
- Ab Adim Bbm Eb
- And she burst through the door with puppet held high
-
- Ddim Db Bbm
- And a hush filled the chapel, and the people looked mean
-
-
- C C C C C C C C C C C C C C C C
- Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab Ab
- F E Eb E F E Eb E
-
-
- B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B
- G G G G G G G G G G G G G G G G
- E Eb D Eb E Eb D Eb
-
-
-
- D A/C# C G/B
- Esther tried in vain to pacify the mob
-
- Bb D/A E7/G# Gm
- Quibble grew to spat, to wrangle, then to brawl
-
- D/F# G E7/G# A
- The frenzied congregation struggled desperately to fetch
-
- A7 A6 A Dm7
- The pretty puppet snugly nestled deep in Esther's leather sack
-
- (Dm7 arpegiation on guitar/piano:)
- F D F A C F A C D A C D F C D F A D F A C F A C D
-
- (same chords as earlier verses)
- Through the window of the church a storm began to rage
- And Esther knew the time had come to flee
-
- She scurried down the aisle toward the doorway in the distance
- And out into the rainstorm where she felt she would be free
- But the wind was blowing harder
- And her skirt began to billow
- Until finally her feet began to lift
-
- And she rose above the people and the houses
- and the chimneys
- Gm7b5/Db Eb
- And Esther and the doll were set adrift
-
-
-
- Ab Adim Bbm Eb Ddim Db
- Floating higher over the hills, and the valleys and treetops
-
- Bbm Eb
- they'd flutter and glide
-
- Ab Adim Bbm Eb
- Soaring and turning suspended on air
-
- Ddim Db Bbm
- With the earth far below them they'd tumble
-
- Eb E
- And dive through the clouds
-
- "Flying jam" chord progression:
- E->Em->F#m7->F#->B
-
- C7 transition to guitar solo, then chords from the verses under the solo,
- then back to the flying jam chords. At the end of this, hold the B chord
- and play the following B arpeggio on the guitar:
- B D# F# D# (repeat)
-
- (B arpeggiation)
- And she began to plummet earthward till she
- Landed in the nasty part of town
-
- Em (Bass goes E->Eb->D->Eb and repeats)
- She glanced about the village sure to find the evil men
-
- Fm
- Who rob and pillage in the darkest hour of night
-
- Ebm
- Nervously she fumbled for the pouch that held the
-
- Em
- Puppet on her rump.
-
- (Same)
- Feeling quite outnumbered Esther hid behind
- A nearby pile of lumber, where she waited
- Till the dawn
- Cause it would have been a blunder to
- Succumb to a hoodlum on the prowl
-
-
-
- D A/C# C G/B
- When the morning came, she wandered through the streets
-
- Bb D/A E7/G# Gm
- Along the chilly lake that lay beside the town
-
- D/F# erses)
- As Esther stood and shook her head
- The joggers were approaching
- And she knew she had no choice left but to swim
- As the frosty water sank its bitter teeth into her hide
- She tried to slide the heavy clothing from her skin
-
- Naked now she made her way toward the shore
- When suddenly she felt a tiny tugging at her toe.
- And the puppet she'd fogotten wrapped its tiny
- Gm7b5/Db Eb
- Little arms around her ankle and wouldn't let her go.
-
- Ab etc...
- The waves seemed to open and swallow her whole
- As the doll pulled her down through the eerie green deep
- And the sound of the laughing old man filled her ears
- As she drifted away to a tranquil
- E (flying jam)
- And motionless sleep.
-
- Cool guitar solo over flying jam:
- E Em
-
- E|-------------|-15-12-12----------------|
- B|-12-14-------|----------12-12-------12-|
- G|-------13-13-|----------------12-14----|
- D|-------------|-------------------------|
- A|-------------|-------------------------|
- E|-------------|-------------------------|
-
-
- F#m F#
- /2
- E|-17-14-14--17-(17)-14-14--------|-18-14-14---18-14-14--|
- B|--------------------------------|----------------------|
- G|--------------------------------|----------------------|
- D|--------------------------------|----------------------|
- A|--------------------------------|----------------------|
- E|--------------------------------|----------------------|
-
- B E Em
-
- E|-19-|-------------|-15-12-12----------------|
- B|----|-12-14-------|----------12-12-------12-|
- G|----|-------13-13-|----------------12-14----|
- D|----|-------------|-------------------------|
- A|----|-------------|-------------------------|
- E|----|-------------|-------------------------|
-
- F#m F#
- /2
- E|-17-14-14--17-(17)-14-14--------|-18-14-14---18-14-14--|
- B|--------------------------------|----------------------|
- G|--------------------------------|----------------------|
- D|--------------------------------|----------------------|
- A|--------------------------------|----------------------|
- E|--------------------------------|----------------------|
-
- B E
-
- E|-19--|-21-23--|-12-|
- B|-----|--------|----|
- G|-----|--------|----|
- D|-----|--------|----| Strike and hold an E chord to end.
- A|-----|--------|----|
- E|-----|--------|----|
-
-