Lorcas Novena
View chords used in this chart
***Lorca's Novena - by Shane MacGowan
from the album "Hell's Ditch"
Lorca's Novena - as performed by The Pogues
Intro; E (bass plays E E EF EF riff each bar)
E
Ignacio lay dying in the sand
A single red rose clutched in a dying hand
Am
An' the women wept to see their hero die
G
And the big black birds gathered in the sky
Mother of all our joys, mother of all our sorrows
Intercede with him tonight
D G
For all of our tomorrows
The years went by and then the killers came
And took the men and marched them up the hill of pain
And Lorca the faggot poet they left till last
Blew his brains out with a pistol up his arse
Mother of all our joys, mother of all our sorrows
Intercede with him tonight
For all of our tomorrows
Solo guitar over E
The killers came to mutilate the dead
But ran away in terror to search the town instead
But Lorca's corpse, as he had prophesied just walked away
And the only sound was the women in the chapel praying
Mother of all our joys, mother of all our sorrows
Intercede with him tonight
For all of our tomorrows
Gob-iron solo over G
End on E
***Version 2*** by Kristoffer Ekman
Intro ||:E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F:||
E F E F E |F E F ||
Ignacio lay dying in the sand
E F E F E |F E F ||
A single red rose clutched in a dying hand
Am C Am
The women wept to see their hero die
G C G C G |G C|G C||
And the big black birds gathered in the sky
G C G C
Mother of all our joys mother of all our sorrows
G C G C
Intercede with him tonight
G D G
For all of our tomorrows
Inst 1 |G C|G C||
The years went by and then the killers came
And took the men and marched them up the hill of pain
And Lorca the faggot poet they left till last
Blew his brains out with a pistol up his arse
Chorus 2
Inst 2 |E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F||
The killers came to mutilate the dead
But ran away in terror to search the town instead
But Lorca's corpse as he had prophesied just walked away
And the only sound was the women in the chapel praying
Chorus 3
Outro ||:G C|G C|G C|G C|G C|G C|G C|G C|G C|G C:||
||:E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F|E F:||
Repeat To Fade
How to play Lorcas Novena
Use the controls above to change the key and text size. Follow the highlighted chords while listening, then practice each section slowly before playing at the original tempo.
What is the starting chord?
The first identified chord is E. You can transpose without leaving the page.
Can I play it on guitar or keyboard?
Yes. The chord progression works on acoustic guitar, electric guitar and keyboard. Adapt the voicings to your instrument and level.