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Chords and Lyrics for Old Black Joe

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Words and Music by Stephen Foster

VERSE 1

D                         G                   D 
Gone are the days when my heart was young and gay,

                             G              A 
Gone are my friends from the cotton fields away,

D                        G             D 
Gone from the earth to a better land I know,

  A7                D      G         D   A7    D 
I hear their gentle voices calling, "Old Black Joe."

                               G               D 
I'm coming, I'm coming, for my head is bending low;

  A7                D      G         D   A7    D 
I hear those gentle voices calling, "Old Black Joe."

VERSE 2

D                     G                    D 
Why do I weep when my heart should feel no pain?

                      G                 A 
Why do I sigh that my friends come not again,

D                         G           D 
Grieving for forms now departed long ago?

  A7                D      G         D   A7    D 
I hear their gentle voices calling, "Old Black Joe."

                               G               D 
I'm coming, I'm coming, for my head is bending low;

  A7                D      G         D   A7    D 
I hear those gentle voices calling, "Old Black Joe."

VERSE 3

D                            G            D 
Where are the hearts once so happy and so free?

                             G            A 
The children so dear, that I held upon my knee,

D                          G                  D 
Gone to the shore where my soul has longed to go.

  A7                D      G         D   A     D 
I hear their gentle voices calling, "Old Black Joe."

                               G               D 
I'm coming, I'm coming, for my head is bending low;

  A7                D      G         D   A7    D 
I hear those gentle voices calling, "Old Black Joe."

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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