Portrait He Knew
View chords used in this chart
Portrait (He Knew)
Kansas
Intro: D F/D | G/D Bb/D | C/D Em/D |
F/D Em/D | D F/D | G/D Bb/D | C/D Em/D F/D
Em/D D C/D | A Cmaj7 Bm E5 F#m7 E F#m7
Dm Bb
He had a thousand ideas, You might have heard his name
F C G5
He lived alone with his vision, Not looking for fortune and fame
Dm Bb
Never said too much to speak of He was off on another plane
F C G5
The words that he said were a mystery Nobody's sure he was sane
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chorus ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dm F G Dm
But he knew He knew more than me or you
F G Dm Bb C G5
No one could see his view Where was he going to
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ verse 2 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dm Bb
He was in search of an answer The nature of what we are
F C G5
He was trying to do it a new way He was bright as a star
Dm Bb
But nobody understood him "His numbers are not the way"
F C G5
He's lost in the deepest enigma Which no one's unraveled today
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chorus ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dm F G Dm
But he knew He knew more than me or you
F G Dm Bb C G5
No one could see his view Oh Where was he going to
Dm F G Dm
And he tried But before he could tell us he died
F G Dm Bb C G5
When he left us the people cried Oh, where was he going to
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Solo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ verse 3 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dm Bb
He had a different idea A glimpse of the master plan
F C G5
He could see into the future A true visionary man
Dm Bb
But there's something he never told us It died when he went away
F C G5
If only he could have been with us No telling what he might say
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chorus ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dm F G Dm
But he knew He knew more than me or you
F G Dm Bb C G5
No one could see his view Oh Where was he going to
Dm F G Dm
But he knew You could tell by the picture he drew
F G Dm Bb C G5
It was totally something new Oh, where was he going to
How to play Portrait He Knew
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 D. 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.