Bob Dylan – Joey (Guitar)
Key
-
Auto-scroll
Speed:
1.0x
Chords
From Desire (1976)
Edited by Jimi Foxx 9/2019
[Intro]
G F C G x2
C D C G Born in Red Hook, Brooklyn, in the year of a-who knows when C D C G Opened up his eyes to the tune of an accordion C D C G Always on the outside of whatever side there was Em G When they asked him why it had to be that way, C C/B Am "Well," he answered, "just because." C D C G Larry was the oldest, Joey was next to last. C D C G They called Joe "Crazy," the baby they called "Kid Blast." C D C G Some say they lived off gambling and runnin' numbers too. Em G It always seemed they got caught between C C/B Am the mob and the men in blue.
[Chorus]
G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G Em C Am King of the streets, child of clay. G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G F C Am What made them want to come and blow you away?
[Bridge]
G F C G
C D C G There was talk they killed their rivals, but the truth was far from that C D C G No one ever knew for sure where they were really at. C D C G When they tried to strangle Larry, Joey almost hit the roof. Em G He went out that night to seek revenge C Am thinkin' he was bulletproof. C D C G The war broke out at the break of dawn, it emptied out the streets C D C G Joey and his brothers suffered terrible defeats C D C G Till they ventured out behind the lines and took five prisoners. Em G They stashed them away in a basement C Am called them amateurs. C D C G The hostages were tremblin' when they heard a man exclaim, C D C G "Let's blow this place to kingdom come, let Con Edison take the blame." C D C G But Joey stepped up, he raised his hand, said, "We're not those kind of men. Em G It's peace and quiet that we need C Am to go back to work again."
[Chorus]
G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G Em C Am King of the streets, child of clay. G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G F C Am What made them want to come and blow you away?
[Bridge]
G F C G
C D C G The police department hounded him, they called him Mr. Smith C D C G They got him on conspiracy, they were never sure who with. C D C G "What time is it?" said the judge to Joey when they met Em G "Five to ten," said Joey. The judge says, C C/B Am "That's exactly what you get." C D C G He did ten years in Attica, reading Nietzsche and Wilhelm Reich C D C G They threw him in the hole one time for tryin' to stop a strike. C D C G His closest friends were black men 'cause they seemed to understand Em G What it's like to be in society C C/B Am with a shackle on your hand. C D C G When they let him out in '71 he'd lost a little weight C D C G But he dressed like Jimmy Cagney and I swear he did look great. C D C G He tried to find the way back into the life he left behind Em G To the boss he said, "I have returned C C/B Am and now I want what's mine."
[Chorus]
G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G Em C Am King of the streets, child of clay. G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G F C Am What made them want to come and blow you away?
[Bridge]
G F C G
C D C G It was true that in his later years he would not carry a gun C D C G "I'm around too many children," he'd say, "they should never know of one." C D C G Yet he walked right into the clubhouse of his lifelong deadly foe, Em G Emptied out the register, said, C C/B Am "Tell 'em it was Crazy Joe." C D C G One day they blew him down in a clam bar in New York C D C G He could see it comin' through the door as he lifted up his fork. C D C G He pushed the table over to protect his family Em G Then he staggered out into the streets C C/B Am of Little Italy.
[Chorus]
G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G Em C Am King of the streets, child of clay. G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G F C Am What made them want to come and blow you away?
[Bridge]
G F C G
C D C G Sister Jacqueline and Carmela and mother Mary all did weep. C D C G I heard his best friend Frankie say, "He ain't dead, he's just asleep." C D C G Then I saw the old man's limousine head back towards the grave Em G I guess he had to say one last goodbye C C/B Am to the son that he could not save. C D C G The sun turned cold over President Street and the town of Brooklyn mourned C D C G They said a mass in the old church near the house where he was born. C D C G And someday if God's in heaven overlookin' His preserve Em G I know the men that shot him down, C C/B Am they'll get what they deserve.
[Chorus]
G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G Em C Am King of the streets, child of clay. G C Am Joey, Jooooooey, G F C Am What made them want to come and blow you away?
[Outro]
G F C G