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Chords and Lyrics for Darling Nelly Gray

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Words and Music by Benjamin Hanby

VERSE 1

          D                       G 
There's a low green valley on the old Kentucky shore,

           D                        A 
There I've whiled many happy hours away

  D                            G 
A-sitting and a-singing by the little cottage door,

      D        A7            D 
Where lived my darling Nelly Gray.

CHORUS

       A                          D 
Oh! my poor Nelly Gray, they have taken you away,

                                  A 
And I'll never see my darling any more,

    D                             G 
I'm sitting by the river, and I'm weeping all the day,

           D             A7            D 
For you've gone from the old Kentucky shore.

VERSE 2

         D                                      G 
When the moon had climbed the mountain, and the stars were shining too,

         D                     A 
Then I'd take my darling Nelly Gray,

    D                               G 
And we'd float down the river in my little red canoe,

         D      A7             D 
While my banjo sweetly I would play.

CHORUS

       A                          D 
Oh! my poor Nelly Gray, they have taken you away,

                                  A 
And I'll never see my darling any more,

    D                             G 
I'm sitting by the river, and I'm weeping all the day,

           D             A7            D 
For you've gone from the old Kentucky shore.

VERSE 3

    D                                   G 
One night I went to see her, but "She's gone!" the neighbors say,

    D                            A 
The white man bound her with his chain,

          D                           G 
They have taken her to Georgia for to wear her life away,

       D            A7             D 
As she toils in the cotton and the cane.

CHORUS

       A                          D 
Oh! my poor Nelly Gray, they have taken you away,

                                  A 
And I'll never see my darling any more,

    D                             G 
I'm sitting by the river, and I'm weeping all the day,

           D             A7            D 
For you've gone from the old Kentucky shore.

VERSE 4

     D                          G 
My canoe is under water, and my banjo is unstrung,

    D                   A 
I'm tired of living any more,

   D                               G 
My eyes shall look downward and my song shall be unsung,

        D           A7           D 
While I stay on the old Kentucky shore.

CHORUS

       A                          D 
Oh! my poor Nelly Gray, they have taken you away,

                                  A 
And I'll never see my darling any more,

    D                             G 
I'm sitting by the river, and I'm weeping all the day,

           D             A7            D 
For you've gone from the old Kentucky shore.

VERSE 5

   D                               G 
My eyes are getting blinded, and I cannot see the way,

              D                        A 
Hark! there's somebody knocking at the door,

      D                             G 
Oh! I hear the angels calling and I see my Nelly Gray,

    D           A7           D 
Farewell to the old Kentucky shore.

CHORUS

       A                          D 
Oh! my poor Nelly Gray, they have taken you away,

                                  A 
And I'll never see my darling any more,

    D                             G 
I'm sitting by the river, and I'm weeping all the day,

           D             A7            D 
For you've gone from the old Kentucky shore.

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Chords

Below is a list of all the chords in this song. Click on a chord to learn how to play the chord on a particular instrument.

Instrument Chords
Banjo A Major A7 D Major G Major
Guitar A Major A7 D Major G Major
Mandolin A Major A7 D Major G Major
Piano A Major A7 D Major G Major
Ukulele A Major A7 D Major G Major

Sheet Music for Darling Nelly Gray

Chords on this page may be simplified from the original version. View the sheet music for this title to see the original chords. The following sheet music is available for this title: