Wild Irish Rose
by George Jones September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013
This is one of my favorite songs of all time, but the only versions I found
weren't exactly wrong, just incomplete. This song is VERY easy to play; you can
arpeggiate the chords if you want to make it that much better, but strumming is just fine.
"George Jones has left us. We have lost one of the most individual singers of all
time. I cannot express the emptiness I feel." Keith Richards
VERSE 1:
A D A
THEY SENT HIM TO ASIA TO FIGHT IN A WAR
D A E
HE CAME BACK HOME CRAZY AND THEY ASKED HIM WHAT FOR
A D A
THEY HAD HIM COMMITTED OH MEDALS AND ALL
D A E A
TO A MENTAL HOSPITAL WITH RUBBER WALLS
VERSE 2:
A D A
THEY CUT OFF THE FUNDING OH THEY CUT OF THE LIGHTS
D A E
HE HIT THE STREET RUNNING THAT COLD WINTER NIGHT
A D A
NOW THE STREETS ARE THE ONLY PLACE HE CAN CALL HOME
D A E A
HE SEEMS OH SO LONELY BUT HE'S NEVER ALONE
CHORUS:
A C#m D A
HE LIES THERE HOLDING HIS WILD IRISH ROSE
D A E
THIS CRAZY OLD FOOL IN THE SMELLY OLD CLOTHES
A C#m D A
HE COULD HAVE HAD SOMETHING MUCH BETTER, GOD KNOWS
A D E A
THAN A HALF EMPTY BOTTLE OF WILD IRISH ROSE
VERSE 3:
A D A
A BABY NAMED SCARLET WITH LAUGHING BLUE EYES
D A E A
HAS BEEN IN HIS WALLET OH WAY BACK SINCE '65
D A
SO MUCH WAS FORGOTTEN OH SO FAR BACK IN TIME
D A E A
WAY DOWN IN THE BOTTOM OF A RIVER OF WINE
SPOKEN:
D A
YOU KNOW THEY FOUND HIM ON PARK STREET, WEST 25TH
D A E
THEY CANT EVEN FIND A HEART BEAT LORD HIS FINGERS ARE STIFF
A D A
JUST LIKE THEIR ALL FROZEN HE'S HOLDING HER TIGHT
D A E A
BUT THE HABIT OH ITS BROKEN THIS IS ROSES LAST NIGHT
CHORUS 2
A C#m D A
HE LIES THERE HOLDING HIS WILD IRISH ROSE
D A E
BUT HIS SOUL'S IN A PLACE WHERE A REAL HERO GOES
A C#m D A
NOW HES GOT SOMETHING BETTER, MUCH BETTER, GOD KNOWS
No Chords
THAN A HALF EMPTY BOTTLE OF WILD IRISH ROSE
Outro
A, C#m, D, A, D, A, E (x2)
