Jackson Browne – The Pretender (Guitar Intro)

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Chords

[Intro] 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 G Am7 G D G Em7 G Am7 G D G Em7 [Verse]
             G
I'm going to rent myself a house

                    Em7    C D
In the shade of the freeway

             G
I'm going to pack my lunch in the morning

          D          C   D
And go to work each day

             G              C
And when the evening rolls around

           G               C
I'll go on home and lay my body down

             G                             D
And when the morning light comes streaming in

                          C G
I'll get up and do it again

Am7 G
Amen

            C G
Say it again

Am7 G
Amen
[Verse]
          G
I want to know what became of the changes

              Em7          C D
We waited for love to bring

          G
Were they only the fitful dreams

                  D     C
Of some greater awakening?

           G                        C
I've been aware of the time going by

                G                        C
They say in the end it's the wink of an eye

             G                             D
And when the morning light comes streaming in

                             C G
You'll get up and do it again

Am7 G    C G Am7 G
Amen
[Pre-chorus]
                   D
Caught between the longing for love

        C                            Em B7
And the struggle for the legal tender

          C
Where the sirens sing and the church bells ring

        Em
And the junk man pounds his fender

          C                     G
Where the veterans dream of the fight

      B7                      Em
Fast asleep at the traffic light

        A               A7
And the children solemnly wait

                      D     G D
For the ice cream vendor
[Chorus]
             C                  D
Out into the cool of the evening

                     Em
Strolls the Pretender

              C                       D
He knows that all his hopes and dreams

                   G   D G
Begin and end there

Em
Ah the laughter of the lovers

                             G  D G
As they run through the night

Em
Leaving nothing for the others

                            D7
But to choose off and fight

                G                    C
And tear at the world with all their might

           G                   Em
While the ships bearing their dreams

  C   Em    Am7   D
Sail out of sight
[Verse]
             G
I'm going to find myself a girl

                     Em7
Who can show me what laughter means

          G
And we'll fill in the missing colors

                D                    C
In each other's paint-by-number dreams

               G                      C
And then we'll put out dark glasses on

               G                      C
And we'll make love until our strength is gone

             G                             D
And when the morning light comes streaming in

                            C G Am7 G
We'll get up and do it again

                C G Am7 G
Get it up again
[Pre-chorus]
               D
I'm gonna be a happy idiot

    C                            Em B7
And struggle for the legal tender

          C
Where the ads take aim and lay their claim

       Em
To the heart and the soul of the spender

       C                     G
And believe in whatever may lie

         B7                     Em
In those things that money can buy

             A                               D    G D
Thought true love could have been a contender
[Chorus]
        C
Are you there?

      D                       Em
Say a prayer for the Pretender

            C                      D
Who started out so young and strong

                 G 
Only to surrender

      Am7 G D   G       C
Say a prayer for the pretender

G       Am7 G D G        C
Are you there for the pretender

G     Am7 G D G         C
Say a prayer for the pretender
The song often ends on some variation of a progression with stepwise base movement such as: G Am7 G D G C/E D/F# G Am7 G/B C G