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Amsterdam

Jacques Brel

Text File

Here's the English version of Jacques Brel's Amsterdam
as sung by David Bowie on 'Bowie at the Beeb - the best
of the BBc sessions 68-72'

David plays each chord once for the first verse and then
starts strumming with a driving rhythm enhanced by various
hammer-ons etc. and then he gradually gets louder and pained.

Never heard the original but DB's version is great as is the 
whole Bowie at the Beeb album if you like early Bowie.

AMSTERDAM
---------

	Am       
In the port of Amsterdam
	Em
There's a sailor who sings
	F
Of the dreams that he brings
	E
From a wide open sea
	Am
And in the port of Amsterdam
	Em
There's a sailor who sleeps
	F	E7
While the river bank weeps
	Am
To the old willow tree
	C
And in the port of Amsterdam
	G7	E7
There's a sailor who dies
	Am
Full of beers full of cries
	E7
In a drunken down fight
	F
And in the port of Amsterdam
	Em
There's a sailor who is born
	Dm7	E7
On the hot muggy morn
	Am
By the dawns early light

	Am
In the port of Amsterdam
	Em
Where the sailors all meet
	F
There's a sailor who eats
	E
Only fish heads and tails
	Am
He'll show you his teeth
	Em
That have rotted too soon
	F	E7
That can haul up the sails
	Am
That can swallow the moon
	C
And he'll yell to the cook
	G7	E7
With his arms open wide
	Am
Oh bring me more fish
	E7
Though it's down by my side
	F
And he wants so to belch
	Em
But he's too full to try
	Dm7	E7
So he stands up and laughs
	Am
And he zips up his flies

	Am
In the port of Amsterdam
	Em
You can see sailors dance
	F
Paunches bursting their pants
	E
Grinding women's with paunch     (not sure about this line)
	Am
They've forgotten the tune
	Em
That their whiskey voice croaks
	F	E7
Splitting the night
	Am
With the roar of their jokes
	C
And they turn and they dance
	G7	E7
And they laugh and they lust
	Am
Till the rancid sound
	E7
Of the accordion bursts
	F
And then out of the night
	Em
With their pride in their pants
	Dm7	E7
And the slut that they tow
	Am
Underneath the street lamps

	Am
In the port of Amsterdam
	Em
There's a sailor who drinks
	F
And he drinks and he drinks
	E
And he drinks once again
	Am
Oh he drinks to the health
	Em
Of the whores of Amsterdam
	F	E7
Who have given their bodies
	Am
To a thousand other men
	C
It's their worth and their goodness
	G7	E7
Their virtues all gone
	Am
For the few dirty coins
	E7
When he just can't go on
	F
Throws his nose to the sky
	Em
And he aims it up above
	Dm7	E7
And he pisses like I cry
	Am
For an unfaithful love

	Am
In the port of Amsterdam
	Em		Dm E7 Am
In the port of Amsterdam


Submitted by Mr Thyroid

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Amsterdam

Jacques Brel