Iron Maiden – Rime Of The Ancient Mariner (Guitar)

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Versions (3)

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Chords

[Intro] Em C D x2 Em G D Em D [Verse 1]
Em
Hear the rime of the ancient mariner

                               D
See his eye as he stops one of three

Em
Mesmerises one of the wedding guests

C                                      D      Em
Stay here and listen to the nightmares of the sea

        C
And the music plays on, as the bride passes by

D                                             Em  D
Caught by his spell and the mariner tells his tale
[Verse 2]
Em
Driven south to the land of the snow and ice

                          D
To a place where nobody's been

Em
Through the snow fog flies on the albatross

C                                 D           Em
Hailed in God's name, hoping good luck it brings

        C
And the ship sails on, back to the north

D                                                 Em D
Through the fog and ice and the albatross follows on
[Interlude 1] Em G/B Em D x2 Em D C D C D x2 Em D [Verse 2]
Em                                  D
The mariner kills the bird of good omen

Em                                      D
His shipmates cry against what he's done

Em                                       D
But when the fog clears, they justify him

Em
And make themselves a part of the crime

        C               D                 Em D Em
Sailing on and on and north across the sea

        C               D                 Em D Em
Sailing on and on and north 'til all is calm
[Verse 4]
Em                                     D
The albatross begins with its vengeance

Em                                  D
A terrible curse, a thirst has begun

Em                                         D
His shipmates blame bad luck on the mariner

Em
About his neck, the dead bird is hung

        C                 D               Em D Em
And the curse goes on and on and on at sea

        C                 D                 Em D Em
And the curse goes on and on for them and me
[Verse 5]
Em
"Day after day, day after day

                              D
We stuck nor breath nor motion

   Em
As idle as a painted ship upon a painted ocean

D
Water, water everywhere and all the boards did shrink

Em
Water, water everywhere nor any drop to drink"
Em G D Em Em G D [Verse 6]
 Em                          Em                          Em
"There", calls the mariner, "There comes a ship over the line"

     Em                       Em                       Em
"But how can she sail with no wind in her sails and no tide?"

C
See... onward she comes

           Am
Onward she nears, out of the sun

C
See, she has no crew

        Am
She has no life, wait but there's two
[Verse 7]
Em
Death and she life in death

Em                            Em
They throw their dice for the crew

Em                   Em                    Em
She wins the mariner and he belongs to her now

C
Then, crew one by one

               Am
They drop down dead, two hundred men

C
She, she, life in death

             Am
She lets him live, her chosen one
[Interlude 2] F#m Am Em F G x2 Em D Em C Eb x3 Em D Em Am E F# Amaj7/C# [Bridge] A+ G+ A+ F#+ A+ G+
A+
One after one by the star dogged moon
Too quick for groan or sigh
F#+
Each turned his face with a ghastly pang
And cursed me with his eye
A+
Four times fifty living men
And I heard nor sigh nor groan
                G+
With heavy thump, a lifeless lump
They dropped down one by one A+ F#+ Dm/A Cm/G Dm/A Bm/F# x2 [Interlude 3] D Dsus4 D5 x2 [Verse 8]
    D              Dsus4       D5
The curse it lives on in their eyes

    D       Dsus4          D5
The mariner he wished he'd die

 Dsus2         Dm
Along with the sea creatures

Dsus2          Dm         D5
But they lived on, so did he

D          Dsus4        D5
And by the light of the moon

   D               Dsus4      D5
He prays for their beauty not doom

Dsus2         Dm
With heart he blesses them

Dsus2           Dm          D5
God's creatures all of them too
[Verse 9]
Dm7      Dm    Dm7       D5
Then the spell starts to break

    Dm7       Dm    Dm7      D5
The albatross falls from his neck

Dm7             Dm   Dm7      D5
Sinks down like lead into the sea

Dm7          Dm    Dm7       Am
Then down in falls comes the rain
[Interlude 4] Am F G Am G x2 [Guitar Solo 1] Am F G Am G x4 [Guitar Solo 2] Em C D Em D x4 [Interlude 5] Em C D Em D x4 Em C D Em D x2 E Em E Em E [Verse 10] Em C D x2
Em
Hear the groans of the long dead seamen

                                D
See them stir and they start to rise

Em
Bodies lifted by good spirits

C                                       D        Em
None of them speak and they're lifeless in their eyes

    C
And revenge is still sought, penance starts again

D                                            Em D
Cast into a trance and the nightmare carries on

Em
Now the curse is finally lifted

                           D
And the mariner sights his home

Em
Spirits go from the long dead bodies

C                                      D     Em
Form their own light and the mariner's left alone
[Interlude 6] Em G/B Em D x2 Em D [Verse 11]
Em                                      D
And then a boat came sailing towards him

Em                               D
It was a joy he could not believe

Em                                      D
The pilot's boat, his son and the hermit

Em
Penance of life will fall onto him

        C               D             Em
And the ship sinks like lead into the sea

        C                   D              Em
And the hermit shrieves the mariner of his sins
[Verse 12]
Em                                      D
The mariner's bound to tell of his story

Em                                D
To tell this tale wherever he goes

Em                                    D
To teach God's word by his own example

Em
That we must love all things that God made

        C                 D             Em
And the wedding guest's a sad and wiser man

        C                D             Em
And the tale goes on and on and on and on