The Price You Pay
View chords used in this chart
C# F#
You make up your mind you choose the chance you take
C# G#
You ride to where the highway ends and the desert breaks
C# F#
Out on to an open road you ride until the day
C# G# C#
You learn to sleep at night with the price you pay
Now with their hands held high,
F#
they reached out for the open skies
C#
And then with their last breath they built the roads
G#
They would ride to their deaths
C# F#
Driving on through the night, unable to break away
C# G# F#
>From the restless pull of the price you pay
C# F#
Oh, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay
C# G# C# F#
Now you can't walk away from the price you pay
C# F#
Now they'd come so far and they'd waited so long
C# G#
Just to end up caught in a dream where everything goes wrong
C# F#
Where the dark of night holds back the light of the day
C# G# F#
And you've gotta stand and fight for the price you pay
C# F#
Oh, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay
C# G# C# F#
Now you can't walk away from the price you pay
SOLO
C#
Little girl down on the strand
F#
With that pretty little baby in your hands
C# G#
Do you remember the story of the promised land
C#
How he crossed the desert sands
F#
And could not enter the chosen land
C#
On the banks of the river he stayed
G# C#
To face the price you pay
F#
So let the games start, you better run you little wild heart
C# G#
You can run through all the nights and all the days
C#
But just across the county line,
F#
A stranger passing through put up a sign
C# G# F#
That counts so many fallen away to the price you pay,
C# F#
Oh, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay
C# G# F#
Now you can't walk away from the price you pay
C# F#
Oh, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay
C# G# F# C# F# C#
Now you can't walk away from the price you pay
From Emmylou Harris "Cimarron"
Warner Brothers Records 1981
Copyright Bruce Springsteen Music(ASCAP)
How to play The Price You Pay
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 C#. 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.