Big Hewer chords by Ewan MacColl

SimplifiedAm · A · D · Bm · E …

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Verse 1
Am 
A 
D 
Bm 
E 
 (A minor) Out of the dirt and dark (A major) ness  (D major)  (B minor) I   was born,  (E major) 
A 
G 
go down.  (A major)  (G major) 
A 
E 
Em 
G 
A 
Out  (A major) of the hard black coal  (E major) face  (E minor)  (G major) I  was torn,  (A major) 
E 
go down.  (E major) 
C 
Kicked  (C major) on the world
G 
and the earth split  (G major) open.
E 
Am 
 (E major) Crawled through a  (A minor) crack
A 
G 
A 
where  (A major) the  (G major) rock was broken.  (A major) 
D 
A 
Burrowed a hole away  (D major) in  (A major) the coal,
G 
A 
G 
A 
go down.  (G major)  (A major)  (G major)  (A major) 
G 
A 
In  (G major) a  (A major) cradle of coal
D 
E 
in the dark (D major) ness I was laid  (E major) 
A 
G 
A 
Am 
Go down,  (A major)  (G major) down  (A major)  (A minor) in  the dirt
E 
Em 
A 
Am 
 (E major) and darkness  (E minor) I was raised  (A major)  (A minor) 
A 
E 
C 
 (A major) Go down,  (E major)  (C major) cut me teeth
G 
on a five -foot tim (G major) ber
E 
A 
Held  (E major) at the  (A major) roof with me
G 
A 
Am 
 (G major) little fin (A major) ger (A minor) 
A 
E 
Star (A major) ted me time away in the  (E major) mine
A 
Am 
G 
Am 
 (A major) go down.  (A minor)  (G major)  (A minor) 
G 
Em 
Am 
D 
On  (G major)  (E minor) the  (A minor) day that I was born,  (D major) 
E 
Am 
I was six foot tall,  (E major) go down.  (A minor) 
Em 
G 
A 
Am 
 (E minor) An (G major) d  the  (A major) very nex (A minor) t day
E 
Em 
G 
A 
 (E major) I learned the way  (E minor) to  (G major) hoe,  (A major) 
D 
C 
D 
E 
 (D major)  (C major)  (D major) go down.  (E major) 
C 
Am 
On the  (C major) third day worked  (A minor) at
C 
 (C major) board and pillar,
E 
A 
 (E major) worked on the  (A major) fourth as
G 
A 
a  (G major) longwall filler (A major) ,
E 
getting me steam up ewing the  (E major) seam,
A 
G 
A 
 (A major) go down.  (G major)  (A major) 
G 
A 
I'm  (G major) the  (A major) son of the son
D 
E 
of the  (D major) son of a collier's  (E major) son,
Am 
G 
go down.  (A minor)  (G major) 
Am 
E 
Coal  (A minor) dust flows in the  (E major) veins
Em 
G 
A 
where the  (E minor) blood should  (G major) run,  (A major) 
Am 
A 
E 
 (A minor)  (A major) go down.  (E major) 
C 
Five  (C major) steel ribs and an iron backbone,
E 
A 
 (E major) teeth that can bite through  (A major) 
G 
A 
rock  (G major) and black (A major) ,
stonework in me time,
D 
A 
 (D major) away in the  (A major) mine,
Am 
G 
A 
Am 
G 
A 
G 
Am 
go down.  (A minor)  (G major)  (A major)  (A minor)  (G major)  (A major)  (G major)  (A minor) 
G 
A 
Three  (G major) hun (A major) dred years I
D 
E 
hewed  (D major) at the coal by hand  (E major) 
A 
G 
A 
Go down,  (A major)  (G major) in the  (A major) pits of Durham
Em 
A 
and  (E minor) East  (A major) Northumberland
E 
C 
Go down,  (E major) been gassed  (C major) and
burned and flown
E 
A 
Asunder,  (E major) buried more times  (A major) 
G 
A 
than  (G major) I  can num (A major) ber
D 
A 
Getting the coal away  (D major) in  (A major) the hole
G 
A 
G 
A 
Go down,  (G major)  (A major)  (G major) I've scrabbled  (A major) 
Am 
A 
D 
 (A minor) and picked at  (A major) the  (D major) face
E 
where the roof was low  (E major) 
A 
G 
A 
Go down!  (A major)  (G major) Crawl  (A major) 
Am 
A 
 (A minor) in  the  (A major) seams
Em 
G 
A 
where  (E minor) only a mole could  (G major) go  (A major) 
Am 
A 
E 
Go  (A minor)  (A major) down!  (E major) 
C 
Am 
In the  (C major) thin -cut seams  (A minor) of
C 
ripped  (C major) and redded
E 
A 
Where  (E major) even the  (A major) rats are born
G 
C 
Am 
A 
 (G major) Bow (C major) legged,  (A minor)  (A major) winning the coal
Away in the hole
E 
Am 
G 
A 
G 
Am 
Go  (E major) down!  (A minor)  (G major)  (A major)  (G major)  (A minor) 
A 
Have worked in the Hutton,  (A major) the Plessy,
D 
E 
 (D major) the Brockwell Seam  (E major) 
A 
G 
A 
Am 
Go down!  (A major)  (G major) The  (A major) Bencham, the  (A minor) Busty,
A 
Em 
A 
 (A major) the  (E minor) Beaumont, the Marshall Green  (A major) 
E 
C 
Go down!  (E major) I've  (C major) lain on me back
G 
in the old three -quarter,  (G major) 
E 
A 
G 
A 
 (E major) Up to the  (A major) chin in stinkin'  (G major)  (A major) water,
D 
A 
Hewin' the coal away  (D major) in the  (A major) hole,
go down.
Em 
G 
A 
In  (E minor)  (G major) the  (A major) northern pits I've
D 
E 
sweated and earned  (D major) me pay,  (E major) 
Am 
go down.  (A minor) 
A 
Em 
Toiled in the  (A major) worn -out drift  (E minor) mines
A 
E 
night and  (A major) day, go down.  (E major) 
C 
Where the  (C major) anthracite is
G 
hard and shin (G major) ing,
Em 
A 
I've  (E minor) tried me hand  (A major) at the hard rock mining,
D 
A 
D 
E 
I  (D major) dug me a  (A major) hole away  (D major) in the  (E major) cold,
A 
G 
A 
G 
A 
Am 
 (A major) go down  (G major)  (A major)  (G major)  (A major)  (A minor) 
A 
Out  (A major) of the dirt and darkness
D 
E 
A 
 (D major) I was born,  (E major) go down  (A major) 
G 
A 
Em 
 (G major) Out  (A major) of the hard black  (E minor) coal face
G 
A 
E 
 (G major) I  was torn,  (A major)  (E major) go down
C 
Left  (C major) in the shade of the high pit heap,
Em 
A 
I'm still  (E minor) down  (A major) there
Where the seams are deep,
D 
A 
E 
I'm digging a  (D major)  (A major) hole away in the  (E major) cold,
A 
A 
G 
A 
G 
A 
G 
A 
 (A major) go down  (A major)  (G major)  (A major)  (G major)  (A major)  (G major)  (A major) 
A 
You  (A major) 