Bob Dylan - Ballad in plain d

--------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ballad in Plain D – Bob Dylan --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Written by: Bob Dylan From: “Another Side of Bob Dylan” (1964) Tabbed by: maguri Tuning: Standard Not easy to transcribe: Dylan is still working out the chord structure as he's going along (notice the many irregularities here and there). C or C/G: I guess he plays 3-3-2-0-1(0) for all the C-chords; the difference is due to which string he picks as the root note (A-string: C, E-string: C/G). --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Capo: 2nd fret Play: C Key: D (not so "plain", after all ...) Time signature: 3/4 Tempo: 125 bpm CHORDS E-A-D-G-B-e C x-3-2-0-1-x C/G 3(3)2-0-1-x G 3-x-0-0-0-x G6 3-x-2-0-0-x G7 3-x-3-0-0-x Bb x-x-0-3-3-x or x-x-3-3-3-x (for example in Verse 6) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Verse 1] 2/4 | G | G7 | C Am C/G | C | C/G | C | C/G | I once loved a girl, her skin it was bronze C/G Am Bb | F | % | With the innocence of a lamb, she was gentle like a fawn C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | I courted her proudly but now she is gone C G6 G7 | C/G | % | C | G | Gone as the season she’s ta- ken [Verse 2] G7 C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | In a young summer’s youth, I stole her away C/G Am Bb | F | % | % | From her mother and sister, though close did they stay C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | Each one of them suffering from the failures of their day C/G G G7 | C | C/G | C | G | G6 | G7 | With strings of guilt they tried hard to guide us [Verse 3] | G7 | C Am C/G | C | C/G | C/G | O - o - of the two sisters, I loved the young Am C/G G7 | F | % | With sensitive instincts, she was the creative one C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | The constant sc(r?)apegoat, she was easily undone C/G G G7 | C/G | % | G | By the jealousy of others around her [Verse 4] | G | G7 | C/G Am C/G | C | % | For her parasite sister, I had no respect C/G Am G7 | F | % | Bound by her boredom, her pride to protect C/G Am C/G (F)| C | C/G | Countless visions of the other she’d reflect C G G7 | C/G | % | % | G | G6 | As a crutch for her scenes and her socie- ty [Verse 5] 2/4 | G7 | C Am C/G | C | C/G | My- self, for what I did, I cannot be excused C/G Am C/G | F | % | % | The changes I was going through can’t even be used C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | For the lies that I told her in hopes not to lose C/G G G7 | C/G | % | C | G | The could-be dream-lover of my life- time [Verse 5] | G7 | C Am C/G F | C | C/G | With unseen consciousness, I possessed in my grip C/G Am Bb | F | % | A magnificent mantelpiece, though its heart being chipped (bum note:x-0-3-3-3-x) C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | Noticing not that I’d already slipped C/G G7 | C | C/G | C | G | To a sin of love’s false securi- ty [Verse 6] | G7 | C Am F | C | C/G | From silhouetted anger to manufactured peace C/G Am Bb | F | % | Answers of emptiness, voice vacancies C/G Am C/G | C/G | C/G | Till the tombstones of damage read no questions but, “Please C/G G7 | C | C/G | G | % | G7 | % | What’s wrong and what’s exactly the mat-ter?” [Verse 7] C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | And so it did happen like it could have been foreseen C/G Am Bb | F | % | The timeless explosion of fantasy’s dream C/G Am C/G | C/G | % | At the peak of the night, the king and the queen C/G G7 | C | C/G | % | G | G6 | G7 | Tumbled all down into pie-ces [Verse 8] | G7 | C/G Am F | C | C/G | “The tragic figure!” her sister did shout C/G Am Bb | F | % | “Leave her alone, God damn you, get out!” C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | And I in my armor, turning about C/G G7 | C/G | % | G | G6 | G7 | And nailing her in the ruins of her pettiness [Verse 9] | G7 | C/G Am C/G | C | C/G | Be- neath a bare lightbulb the plaster did pound C/G Am Bb | F | % | Her sister and I in a screaming battleground C/G Am C/G | C | % | And she in between, the victim of sound C/G G G7 | C | C/G | % | G | G6 | G7 | Soon shattered as a child to the sha- dows [Verse 10] | G7 | C/G Am Am | C/G | % | All is gone, all is gone, admit it, take flight C/G Am Bb | F | % | I gagged in contradiction, tears blinding my sight C/G Am C/G | C/G | % | My mind it was mangled, I ran into the night C/G G G7 | C/G | % | G | G6 | G7 | Leaving all of love’s ashes behind me [Verse 11] | G7 | C/G Am F | C | C/G | The wind knocks my window, the room it is wet C/G Am Bb | F | % | The words to say I’m sorry, I haven’t found yet C/G Am F | C | C/G | I think of her often and hope whoever she’s met C/G G7 | C/G | % | G | % | Will be fully aware of how precious she is [Solo] | C/G | Am | F | C/G | % | | C/G | Am | Bb | F | % | | C/G | Am | G7 | F | C/G | % | | C/G | G7 | % | C/G | G | % | [Verse 12] 2/4 | G7 | C Am C/G | C | % | Ah, my friends from the prison, they ask unto me C Am F | F | F/C | “How good, how good does it feel to be free?” C/G Am C/G | C | % | And I answer them most mysteriously 2/4 C/G G | G7 | % | C | C/G | “Are birds free from the chains of the sky- way?” [Coda] | Am | C/G | F | % | C/G | % | G7 | C/G (timing is fuzzy in the last few bars)