johnny ace is dead chords by Dave Alvin

SimplifiedEm · A · B · Bm

GuitarPianoUkulele

Intro 1

Verse 1
Em 
Down in Houston,
Texas on a Christmas night
With a gun in his hand and
his name up in lights
He was young and handsome,
the Prince of the Blues
In a sharkskin suit and alligator shoes
He was flirting with some women
who had come backstage
He said, "Ladies,
want to see me play a wild little game?"
But Big Mama Thornton said,
"Go sing Your Song
And put that damn thing down
before something goes wrong"
A 
Big Mama

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Verse 2

cried,

"Dear Lord," Big Mama said,

He put a 22 pistol right

up to his head

Then he smiled at the ladies

Now Johnny Ace is dead

Verse 3
Em 
The band leader set his saxophone down
And said, "I think I better split before
the cops come 'round"
While the crowd in the theater
slowly drifted away
With their heads hung low,
not sure of what to say
But Big Don Robey,
the record company man
With big diamond rings on
both of his hands
Said, "I'm gonna send him back
to Memphis in a refrigerated truck
Cause Johnny Ace is gonna

Verse 4
make me a million bucks."
A 
Big Mama cried,
Em 
"Dear Lord," Big Mama said,
A 
Em 
He put a 22 pistol right up to his head
B 
Then he smiled at the ladies
Bm 
Em 
Now Johnny Ace is dead

Interlude 1
Em 
A 
Em 
B 
Em 
A 
Em 

Verse 5
Em 
When Johnny came home to Memphis,
Tennessee
B 
Everyone on Beale Street came out to see
Em 
There were pimps and gamblers,
husbands and wives,
Women young and old all
came to say goodbye
And as the choirs sand and
B 
the preachers prayed
Em 
Five thousand mourners
marched him to his grave
Well, there may be a Heaven
and there may be a Hell,
No one knows for sure but now
A 
Johnny Ace knows damn well.