Tennessee
View chords used in this chart
Recorded version is in A major
Intro
C F C
Am Em Dm7 G
[Verso 1]
C F C Cadd4 C
The tobacco field tilted toward the edge of summer,
Am Em G G7
Greener than anything that it could ever keep.
Am F C Cadd4 C
The creek rehearsed the same old conversation
F G C Csus4 C
With stones best meant to listen, not to speak.
[Verso 2]
C F C Cadd4 C
The blackberries slowly darkened in the sunshine,
Am Em G G7
Using all of June just to learn their name.
Am F C Cadd4 C
We found them where the pasture met the forest,
F G C Cadd4 C
Taking what the bluebirds couldn't claim.
[Refrão]
F G7 C Cadd4 C
Where Tennessee narrows toward Virginia,
F G7 C Cadd4 C
The brick house holds the stories we all knew.
Am F C Cadd4 C
It carries all our summers through the hollers,
Dm7 G7 C
Always leaving room for someone new.
[Verso 3]
C F C Cadd4 C
Love's voices crossed these hills before the daylight.
Am Em G G7
I hear them as I whisper through the trails.
Am F C Cadd4 C
My brother and my sisters left their footprints,
F G C Cadd4 C
Grown over now but this farm still tells their tales.
[Verso 4]
C F C Cadd4 C
I still see mom and dad along the hillsides,
Am Em G G7
Though their days in Tennessee are gone.
Am F C Cadd4 C
And still I see my daughter walk beside them.
F G C Cadd4 C
So they can pass their dusk onto her dawn.
[Refrão]
F G C Cadd4 C
Where Tennessee narrows toward Virginia,
F G C Cadd4 C
The brick house holds the stories we all knew.
Am F C Cadd4 C
It carries all our summers through the hollers,
Dm7 G7 C
Always leaving room for someone new.
[Verso 5]
C F C
The hills keep watch above the rolling pastures,
Am Em G
While seasons pass like shadows through the trees.
Am F C
We leave our names behind us as we wander,
F G C
Someone will find them in another summer breeze.
[Refrão]
F G C Cadd4 C
Where Tennessee narrows toward Virginia,
F G C Cadd4 C
The brick house holds the stories we all knew.
Am F C Cadd4 C
It carries all our summers through the hollers,
Dm7 G7 C
Always leaving room for someone new.
How to play Tennessee
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 A. 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.