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Raglan Road

Billy Bragg

Text File

#----------------------------------PLEASE NOTE--------------------------------#
#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.#
#-----------------------------------------------------------------------------#

Date: 23 Mar 1998 11:39:47 Z
From: "Boulton, Nic" 
Subject: b/bragg_billy/raglan_road.crd

Lyrics by the Irish poet Patrick Kavanagh, music from the traditional
F?inne Geal an La /Dawning of the Day.

Fromhe free EP that came with The Internationale. The arrangement's
mostly piano. The guitar's capoed at the 8th fret (in Ab), but you can
only really hear it during the intro, so you might be better to tune down
four frets and play it at the nut.

4/4 time   52bpm

|CCCF|CGCC|
|FFCC|CCGG|
|FFCC|CCGG|
|CCCF|CGCC|


[intro]:

     C                    F     C      G      G C
e ---0----0000--1-3-------1-1-1-0----0----------0-------|
B ---1----1111--1-1-------1-1-1-1----1-3------3-1-------|
G -------------------------------------0------0---------|
D ------------------------3-3-3-------------------------|
A ---3----3333--3-3-------------3----3----------3-------|
E -------------------------------------3------3---------|


    C                        F         C       G         C
On Raglan Road on an Autumn day     I saw her first and knew
      F                   C                                   G
that her dark hair would weave a snare that I would some day rue
   F              C                                G
I saw the danger yet I walked  along the enchanted way
       C                            F             C      G      C
and I said 'let grief be a falling leaf   at the dawning of the day'


    C                         F          C     G           C
On Grafton Street in November we walked lightly along the ledge
      F                 C                                     G
of a deep ravine where can be seen    the worth of passion's pledge
      F                        C                                 G
the queen of hearts     still making tarts     and I not making hay
       C                                F         C          G      C
and I loved too much, and  by such, by such   is happiness thrown away


    C                             F     C          G      C
I gave her the gifts of the mind I     gave her a secret sign
        F                 C                                            G
that's known to all the artists who have known true gods of sound and
tone
     F                  C                                          G
and word and tint    I never did stint      I gave her   poems to say
          C                                F          C              G
with her own name there and her long dark hair like clouds o'er the
fields
                                                                       C
                                                                   of May

       C                            F            C       G       C
on a quiet street where old ghosts meet       I see her walking now
  F              C                               G
away from me so hurriedly       my reason must allow
     F                C                                   G
theta I have wooed not as I should     a creature made of clay
          C                          F          C             G       C
when the angel woos the clay  he'll lose   his wings  at the dawn of day


    C                        F         C       G         C
On Raglan Road on an Autumn day   I saw her first and knew
      F                   C                                   G
that her dark hair would weave a snare that I might some day rue
   F              C                                   G
I saw the danger yet I walked    along the enchanted way
       C                           F             C      G      C
and I said let grief be a falling leaf  at the dawning of the day

All chords are open fingerings. For the picking, try using a slow
arpeggio (1-5-1-3-1-5 [Nashville numbering]) and let everything ring out.

Here's the timing and the melody for the vocal.

       C                        F         C       G         C
B -----------------------------------|------------------------------|
G -----0--0---0---0--0---0--0---2----|-2--0-------------------------|
D -2---------------------------------|--------2---0-----------------|
A -----------------------------------|------------------3---3-------|
   On Raglan Road on an Autumn day     I saw her first and knew
beats  1      2          3     4          1      2          3    4


         F                   C                                   G
B -----------------0----1---------------------|---------1-----------|
G --0----2---0----2---------------------------|0--------------------|
D ----------------------------2---0---2----2--|---2----------2---0--|
   that her dark hair would weave a snare that I would some day rue
bts      1        2          3        4        1        2        3  4

      F              C                                G
B -1-----------0-1---------------|--------------1-------------------|
G ----2---0---2------------------|-0-0--0----0----------------------|
D -------------------2--0--2-----|-----------------2---0------------|
   I saw the danger yet I walked  along the enchanted way
bts   1       2      3     4         1           2     3      4


         C                            F             C      G      C
B ------------------------------------------------|-------------------|
G -------------0----0---0--0--0--0----2-----2---2-|-0-----------------|
D ----0--2----------------------------------------|----2----0---------|
A -3----------------------------------------------|------------3---3--|
  and I said 'let grief be a falling leaf   at the dawning of the day'
bts      1          2          3      4              1    2        3  4


It seems this has been recorded by loads of people, including:

Artist           Album

Sinead O'Connor  Common ground
Van Morrison     Irish Heartbeat
Bruce Mitchell   Celtic Destiny
Dubliners        Celtic Collections
Chieftains       Irish Heartbeat, Irish Evening
Phil Coulter     Touch of Tranquility,
                  Forgotten Dreams, Celtic Collections
Tony Kenny       Best of
Martin Simpson   Band of Angels
Peter Rowan      Walls of Time
?various         Irish Memories
?various         Musical Reflections of Ireland
?various         Festival of Irish Folk Vol3


Nic

Nic.Boulton@bn.cwplc.com