Orchids (words and music by Chris Stanley)

 Orchids (words & music by Chris Stanley)

 

Verse #1

D                                           Am

The blackbird is singing a song for the crows

G                                   D

A secret is lost to the wind

D                                           Am

You tend to your orchids I tend to my rose

G                                                   D

And I know the trouble we’re in

F                                                   C    C/B   C/A   C/G    D

Tomorrow’s the fall, then it’s win            -                ter

 

Verse #2

The blackbird is searching, its heart full of song

Too heavy to rise from the ground

The orchid is bitter, the rose has its thorns

And our love is more lost than found

If you had one more year, would you try?

And if your orchids had tears, could you cry?

 

Chorus #1

         Am         D

I say no, I say no

                    Am                                    D

You better dig up your orchids and go

                              F                                   C    C/B   C/A   C/G    D

Cause there’s no love in this soil and no space left to grow

 

Verse #3

The blackbird is dead but I still hear its tune

A prayer for the sadness of men

Your love is a season that ended too soon

And won’t pass this way again

I can still hear the song of the summer

But the blackbird is gone

 

Chorus #2

I say no, I say no

You better dig up your orchids and go

Cause there’s no love in this soil and no space left to grow

 

Bridge

                              Am                                 D

And even in our darkest hour we were friends, we were lovers

                Am                                               D

Then we got these flowers and grew away from each other

         F                                                    C    C/B   C/A   C/G    D

It’s a root through the heart and it hurts

 

Chorus #3

And I say no, I say no

You better dig up your orchids and go

Cause there’s no love in this soil and no space left to grow

There’s no love in this soil and no space left to grow

There’s no love in this soil

There’s no love in this soil…

 

(N.b the bridge chords are the same as the chorus)

 

Structure:

 

·         Verse

·         Verse

·         Chorus

·         Verse

·         Chorus

·         Bridge

·         Extended chorus to end

Gamblin' Man (words & music by Chris Stanley)

 Gamblin’ Man (words & music by Chris Stanley)

 

Verse #1

E

She met a boy by the river

Who promised her gold and silver

Took her hand and held her prayers

Showed her how the Good Lord shares

              Asus2                                        E

So, she said goodbye to mama, goodbye

D

Packed her bible and her cash

        A                     Bb   B

And left with him that night

 

Chorus #1

         E                                    A

They bought a house, and bought a car

       E                                       A                               B

She lost her way when she lost her heart to a gamblin’ man

        A                        Bb    B

To a gamblin’ man

Luck made her his bride

       A                         B          E

But luck was never on her side

 

Verse #2

She saw a fortune teller

Behind the carousel

Who said the road of choices, hon’

Is forked just like the serpent’s tongue

If you can separate the future from the past

She stared into the crystal ball

But all she saw was glass

 

Chorus #2

They lost the house, and lost the car

She lost her way when she lost her heart to a gamblin’ man

To a gamblin’ man

Luck made her his bride

But luck was never on her side

 

Bridge

             A                                                    E

On the road of understanding he was always changing lanes

                 F#                                                      B

She grew tired of being a passenger, grew tired of all his games

 

Verse #3

So she rolled the dice

Spun the wheel

Played the cards

And made a deal

Now she’s going home to mama to put things right

And mama’s waiting on the porch

With a six gun at her side

 

Chorus 3

They lost the house, and lost the car

She lost her way when she lost her heart to a gamblin’ man

To a gamblin’ man

Her luck was never right

But mama’s always on her side

 

 

The Lowering (words & music by Chris Stanley)

 

Verse #1

C

The light bulb swayed when you slammed the door

F

Now the furniture’s gone

C                                                                F

I’ve ripped the carpet from the floor, just trying to move on

Am                                            G      F                              C

I left my job before my job left me with nothing to say

Am                                            G      F                              C

Now I’m living in the shadow of a memory of yesterday

 

Chorus #1

Am                        G             F            

And I remember how you smiled

Am                           G                        C       C/B       C/A      G

How you filled my heart with the songs that you’d sing

Bb                                            F

Now the music of my heart is a funeral march

Am                G      F           C…

Here at the lowering

 

Verse #2

The temperature dropped when you left that night

There was ice on the road

I don’t know how it happened and I’ll never know why

But you must have been cold

There are some things in life you can’t explain, however you try

I’d give up the sun and rain just to kiss you goodbye

 

Chorus #2

I remember how you smiled, how you filled my heart with the songs that you’d sing

Now the music of my heart is a funeral march

Here at the lowering

 

Bridge

      Am       G       F

And I – I

  Am         G       C       C/B       C/A      G

I miss you

Bb                                             F

But the music of my heart is a funeral march

Am                G      F

Here at the lowering

Am                G      C

Here at the lowering