00_misc/railroad_bill.htm

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   7 <title>Railroad Bill</title>
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  12
  13 <h1 class="songtitle">Railroad Bill</h1>
  14
  15
  16 <p>Trad.<br />
  17 As sung by Bob Dylan on the &ldquo;Minnesota Party Tape&rdquo; (May 1961)<br />
  18 Tabbed by Eyolf &Oslash;strem</p>
  19
  20 <hr />
  21
  22 <p>The accompainment here is fingerpicking, but not in its more common,
  23 steady-thumbed version. The alternating thumb is there, but played
  24 quite irregularly: lots of thumbstrokes are left out, and the accent
  25 pattern is reversed, so that the accented strokes are placed on
  26 usually unaccented beats, which gives the syncopated feel to the
  27 piece. The ground pattern is what is found in the second and third
  28 C-major chords in the first line. It's a very neat way of combining a
  29 melody in the upper voice, with a syncopated rhythm in the lower
  30 (including the index-finger stroke on the 3rd string in the bass
  31 line).</p>
  32
  33 <p>Anoter unusual feature is the mixture of fingerpicking and strumming,
  34 especially in the F chord parts. The tab here is just an
  35 approximation.</p>
  36
  37 <hr />
  38
  39 <pre class="tab">
  40                 C
  41   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .
  42 --------------|-----3-----------|-3---------3-----|-3---------1-----|-0---------------|
  43 --------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|
  44 --------------|-----------0-----|-------0---------|-------0---------|-----------------|
  45 --------------|--------(2)------|-------------2---|-------------2---|-----------------|
  46 ------0---2---|-3---3-------3---|-3---3-----------|-3---3-----------|-----------------|
  47 -[3]----------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----3---2---1---|
  48 </pre>
  49 <pre class="tab">
  50   E                                   F
  51   :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .
  52 |-----0-0---------|-------0---------|-----1-1---------|-------1---------|
  53 |-----0-0---------|-----------0-----|-----1-1---1-----|-----------1-----|
  54 |-----------1-----|-0h1-------------|-----2-2-----2---|-0h2-------------|
  55 |-----------------|-------------2---|-0h3-------------|-----3-------3---|
  56 |-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|
  57 |-0-----------0---|-----0---0-------|-----------------|-----------------|
  58 </pre>
  59 <pre class="tab">
  60   C                 G                 C
  61   :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .
  62 |-------0---------|-------3---------|-0---------0-----|-0---------0-----||
  63 |-----------1-----|-----------0-----|-----------------|-----------------||
  64 |-0---------------|-----------------|-------0---------|-------0---------||
  65 |-----------------|-----------------|-------------2---|-------------2---||
  66 |-----3-------3---|-------------0---|-3---3-----------|-3---3-----------||
  67 |-----------------|-3---3-----------|-----------------|-----------------||
  68 </pre>
  69 <pre class="tab">
  70   C
  71   :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .
  72 |-3---------3-----|-3---------3-----|/5-----5---------|-3-----0---------|
  73 |-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------1-----|
  74 |-------0---------|-------0---------|(0)--------0-----|-----------------|
  75 |-------------2---|-------------2---|(4)----------4---|-----------------|
  76 |-3---3-----------|-3---3-----------|/5---5-----------|-3---3-----------|
  77 |-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|-------------0---|
  78 </pre>
  79 <pre class="tab">
  80   E                                   F
  81   :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .
  82 |-------0---------|-------0---------|-----1-1---------|-----1-1---------|
  83 |-----------------|-----------0-----|-----1-1---1-----|-1---1-1---1(1)--|
  84 |-0h1-------1-----|-0h1-------------|-----2-2---------|(0h2)2-2--(2-2)--|
  85 |-----------------|-------------2---|-0---------------|----------(3)3---|
  86 |-----------------|-----------------|-----3-------0---|-----------------|
  87 |-----0---0---0---|-----0---0-------|-----------------|-----------------|
  88 </pre>
  89 <pre class="tab">
  90   C                 G                 C
  91   :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .     :   .   .   .
  92 |-------0---------|------(3)--------|-0---------0-----|-0---------0-----||
  93 |-----------1-----|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------||
  94 |-0---------------|-----------0-----|-------0---------|-------0---------||
  95 |-----------------|-------------0---|-------------2---|-------------2---||
  96 |-----3-------3---|-----------------|-3---3-----------|-3---3-----------||
  97 |-----------------|-3---3-----------|-----------------|-----------------||
  98 </pre>
  99
 100 <pre class="verse">
 101 C
 102 Railroad Bill, he ain't so bad,
 103 E                         F
 104 killed his mommy, shot a [round] in his dad [/around with?]
 105 C        G        C
 106 Ride old Railroad Bill.
 107 </pre>
 108
 109 <pre class="bridge">
 110 [2 instr. verses, 2nd with harp]
 111 </pre>
 112
 113 <pre class="verse">
 114 Railroad Bill took my wife.
 115 If I'd said a word, he'd have taken my life
 116 Ride old Railroad Bill.
 117 </pre>
 118
 119 <pre class="bridge">
 120 [harp verse]
 121 </pre>
 122
 123 <pre class="verse">
 124 Railroad Bill he was comin' down the hill
 125 Lightin' cigars with a ten-dollar bill
 126 Ride old Railroad Bill
 127 </pre>
 128
 129 <pre class="bridge">
 130 [guitar verse + harp verse]
 131 </pre>
 132
 133 <pre class="verse">
 134 Ten policemen, all dressed in black,
 135 coming out of nowhere, walking down the tracks,
 136 and they're looking for Railroad Bill
 137 </pre>
 138
 139 <pre class="bridge">
 140 [guitar verse]
 141 </pre>
 142
 143 <pre class="verse">
 144 Railroad Bill, [comin' round the bend][/fence?]
 145 Robbin' a passenger train for 16 cents
 146 I'm gonna ride old Railroad Bill
 147 </pre>
 148
 149 <pre class="bridge">
 150 [guitar verse]
 151 </pre>
 152
 153 <pre class="verse">
 154 Railroad Bill got in a gamblin' game
 155 shot a man down, though he was to blame
 156 when you lose your mind, let it [turn?] loose
 157 </pre>
 158
 159 <pre class="bridge">
 160 [harp verse]
 161 </pre>
 162
 163 <pre class="verse">
 164 He's down in a jailhouse singin' railer's blues
 165 Same old pants on your passenger shoes
 166 When you lose your mind, let it loose
 167 </pre>
 168
 169 <pre class="bridge">
 170 [wicked harp verse + guitar verse]
 171 </pre>
 172
 173 <pre class="verse">
 174 Railroad Bill he's a mighty bad man
 175 Shot the lantern from a brakeman's hand
 176 Just to see that man suffer pain.
 177 </pre>
 178
 179 <pre class="bridge">
 180 [two lines of instrumental, then:]
 181 ride, ride, ride, ride.
 182 </pre>
 183
 184 <hr />
 185
 186 <h2 class="songversion">Additional verses from other versions</h2>
 187
 188 <p>Early one morning, standing in the rain<br />
 189 'round the curb come a long freight train</p>
 190
 191 <p>Railroad Bill, a-comin' on soon<br />
 192 Killed McMillen by the light of the moon</p>
 193
 194 <p>Kill me a chicken, send me the wing,<br />
 195 They think I'm working, lord, I ain't doin' a thing</p>
 196
 197 <p>Kill me a chicken, send me the hip<br />
 198 Think I'm workin', Lord, I'm laying in [deep]</p>
 199
 200 <p>Got a great long pistol, 'bout as long as your arm,<br />
 201 I'm gonna shoot everybody ever done me harm</p>
 202
 203 <p>Got a .38 special on a .45 frame.<br />
 204 How can I miss when I got dead aim</p>
 205
 206 <p>Gonna drink my whisky, gonna drink it in the wind<br />
 207 the doctor said it'd cure me, but he didn't say when</p>
 208
 209 <p>Going up on the mountain, going out west.<br />
 210 Thirty eight special sticking out of my vest.</p>
 211
 212 <p>Honey honey, think I'm a fool.<br />
 213 Think I would quit you when the weather is cool.</p>
 214
 215 </body></html>