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Chords and Lyrics for Flow Gently, Sweet Afton

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Music by Jonathan Edwards Spilman
Words by Robert Burns

VERSE 1

     G                     C              G 
Flow gently, sweet Afton, amang thy green braes;

             D    G         D G       A7  D 
Flow gently, I'll sing thee a song in thy praise;

   G                    C         G 
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream,

             D     G      Am G        D7  G 
Flow gently, sweet Afton, disturb not her dream.

D                            A7              D 
Thou stockdove, whose echo resounds from the hill,

                                A7         D 
Ye wild whistling blackbirds in yon thorny dell,

D7   G                          C            G 
Thou green-crested lapwing, thy screaming forbear,

              D  G        C  G      D7  G 
I charge you, disturb not my slumbering fair.

VERSE 2

    G                      C           G 
How lofty sweet Afton, thy neighboring hills,

                D   G       D  G         A7  D 
Far marked with the courses of clear-winding rills!

      G                  C          G 
There daily I wander, as morn rises high,

              D  G      Am    G      D7 G 
My flocks and my Mary's sweet cot in my eye.

D                                A7        D 
How pleasant thy banks and green valleys below,

                                A7        D 
Where wild in the woodlands the primroses blow!

D7    G                           C        G 
There oft, as mild evening creeps over the lea,

               D  G           C  G    D7  G 
The sweet-scented birk shades my Mary and me.

VERSE 3

    G                          C         G 
Thy crystal stream, Afton, how lovely it glides,

             D   G         D  G    A7 D 
And winds by the cot where my Mary resides!

    G                     C          G 
How wanton thy waters her snowy feet lave,

              D     G          Am  G         D7    G 
As, gath'ring sweet flow'rets, she stems thy clear wave!

D                          A7             D 
Flow gently, sweet Afton, amang thy green braes,

                              A7          D 
Flow gently, sweet river, the theme of my lays;

D7 G                    C         G 
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream,

             D     G      C  G        D7  G 
Flow gently, sweet Afton, disturb not her dream.

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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 A7 A Minor C Major D Major D7 G Major
Guitar A7 A Minor C Major D Major D7 G Major
Mandolin A7 A Minor C Major D Major D7 G Major
Piano A7 A Minor C Major D Major D7 G Major
Ukulele A7 A Minor C Major D Major D7 G Major