Key:G
Chorus:
[Verse 1]
G
C
G
On a warm summer's
evenin' on a train
bound for
nowhere,
C G
C
D
I met up with the
gambler; we were
both too tired to
sleep.
G
C
G
So we took turns a
starin' out the
window at the
darkness
C G
D
G
'til boredom
overtook us, and he
began to speak.
[Verse 2]
G
C
G
He said, "Son, I've
made a life out of
readin' people's
faces,
C
G
C
D
and knowin' what
their cards were by
the way they held
their eyes.
G
C
G
And if you don't
mind my sayin', I
can see you're out
of aces.
C
G D
G
For a taste of your
whiskey I'll give
you some advice."
[Verse 3]
G
C
G
So I handed him my
bottle and he drank
down my last
swallow.
C G
C
D
Then he bummed a
cigarette and asked
me for a light.
G
C
G
And the night got
deathly quiet, and
his face lost all
expression.
C
G
D
G
Said, "If you're
gonna play the game,
boy, ya gotta learn
to play it right.
[Chorus]
G
C
G
You got to know when
to hold 'em, know
when to fold 'em,
C G
C
D
know when to walk
away and know when
to run.
G
C
G
You never count your
money when you're
sittin' at the
table.
C
G D
G
There'll be time
enough for countin'
when the dealin's
done.
[Verse 4] (transpose
+1 here if you want
to play it
correctly)
G
C
G
Ev'ry gambler knows
that the secret to
survivin'
C G
C
D
is knowin' what to
throw away and
knowing what to
keep.
G
C
G
'Cause ev'ry hand's
a winner and ev'ry
hand's a loser,
C
G
D G
and the best that
you can hope for is
to die in your
sleep."
[Verse 5]
G
C
G
And when he'd
finished speakin',
he turned back
towards the
window,
C G
C
D
crushed out his
cigarette and faded
off to sleep.
G
C
G
And somewhere in the
darkness the
gambler, he broke
even.
C G
D
G
But in his final
words I found an ace
that I could
keep.
[Chorus]
G
C
G
You got to know when
to hold 'em, know
when to fold 'em,
C G
C
D
know when to walk
away and know when
to run.
G
C
G
You never count your
money when you're
sittin' at the
table.
C
G D
G
There'll be time
enough for countin'
when the dealin's
done.
G
C
G
You got to know when
to hold 'em, know
when to fold 'em,
C G
C
D
know when to walk
away and know when
to run.
G
C
G
You never count your
money when you're
sittin' at the
table.
C
G D
G
There'll be time
enough for countin'
when the dealin's
done.
G
C
G
You got to know when
to hold 'em, know
when to fold 'em,
C G
C
D
know when to walk
away and know when
to run.
G
C
G
You never count your
money when you're
sittin' at the
table.
C
G D
G
There'll be time
enough for countin'
when the dealin's
done. |
