Althea chords by
Grateful Dead (Official Version)
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1980Rock1.6K views

Key: A majorDifficulty: Intermediate

Intro 1

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

Verse 1
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
B B 
 
I told Althea I was feeling lost
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
Lacking in some direction
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
B B 
 
Althea told me upon   scrutiny
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
That my    back might need protec   tion
B B 
 
D#m D#m 
 
I told Althea that treachery
E E 
 
B B 
 
Was tearing me limb from limb
D#m D#m 
 
F# F# 
 
Althea told me, now cool down boy
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F# F# 
 
Settle back easy, Jim

Interlude 1

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

Verse 2
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
B B 
 
You may be Saturday's child all grown
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
Moving with a  pinch of grace
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
B B 
 
You may be a clown in the burying ground
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
Or just another pretty face
B B 
 
D#m D#m 
 
You may be the fate of Ophelia
E E 
 
B B 
 
Sleeping and perchance to dream
D#m D#m 
 
F# F# 
 
Honest to the point of recklessness
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F# F# 
 
Self-centred to the extreme

Interlude 2

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

Verse 3
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
B B 
 
Ain't nobody messin' with you   but you
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
Your friends are getting most concerned
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
B B 
 
Loose with the truth, maybe its   your fire
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
Baby don't get burned
B B 
 
D#m D#m 
 
When the smoke has cleared, she said
E E 
 
B B 
 
That's what she said to me
D#m D#m 
 
F# F# 
 
Gonna want a bed to lay your head
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F# F# 
 
And a little sympathy

Interlude 3

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

Bridge 1
E E 
 
A A 
 
There are things you can replace
F#7 F#7 
 
And others you cannot
E E 
 
A A 
 
The time has come to weigh those things
F#7 F#7 
 
This space is gettin' hot
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
You know this space is gettin' hot

Interlude 4

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

Verse 4
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
B B 
 
I told Althea, I'm a roving son
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
That I was born to be a ba    chelor
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
B B 
 
Althea told me, OK     that's fine
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F#7 F#7 
 
So now I'm trying to catch her
B B 
 
D#m D#m 
 
Can't talk to you without talking to me
E E 
 
B B 
 
We're guilty of the same old things
D#m D#m 
 
F# F# 
 
Thinking a lot about less and less
C#m C#m 
 
B B 
 
F# F# 
 
And forgetting the love we bring

Outro 1

C#m

B

F#7

B

C#m

B

F#7

[Repeat and fade]

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TunerE A D G B E

ChordsC#m B F#7 D#m E...

Chords

C#m
B
F#7
D#m
E
F#
A

Finger positions, low to high (E A D G B e). 0 is open, x is muted.

C#m: x-4-6-6-5-x
B: x-2-4-4-4-x
F#7: 2-4-2-3-2-2
D#m: x-6-8-8-7-x
E: 0-2-2-1-0-0
F#: 2-4-4-3-2-2
A: x-0-2-2-2-0

Capo: No capo

Transpose: 2

2

Accurately transcribed by the GuitarTuna team.

Barre chords ask a lot of the fretting hand. The barre course walks through hand position, pressure, and the cleanest way to land each shape. Practice barre chords

Most chord-change problems come from the strumming hand, not the fretting hand. The basic strumming course covers the patterns and timing that make any chord progression easier to play. Practice basic strumming

This is the definitive original version of Althea by Grateful Dead, transcribed exactly as it was recorded in the studio. Unlike our simplified arrangement, this chart preserves the precise chord voicings and progressions in the original key of A major. It is designed for guitarists ready to move past the basics and capture the true feel of Grateful Dead's performance.

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