Songs to Aging Children Come by Joni Mitchell
| Tabbed: October 1996 This one is pretty easy to play until the end. Of course, you'll need a friend to sing it with you. If you have a choice, sing the harmony, because timing-wise, it's easier to sing while playing than singing the melody. Tuning: B F# B F# B D# (Open B Tuning) Thanks to Jim Leahy for 5/6ths of the tuning. His has a D# on the 4th string instead of a B. After listening carefully, I do not agree with this. I usually find these clues by the last chord, as with this song. What is played indicates that there must be a B there because it is played as she strums backwards on the last chord. Try it yourself and you'll see what I mean. The entire song is merely played by barring straight across
the frets. The only exceptions for this are the intro (which is repeated at the end)
when she sings sings the echo to "Songs to aging children come" and just before
the end, "Aging children, this is one." At these parts, she does a little
arpeggio on the first 3 strings while she holds the D# chord (4th fret) and suspends it
back and forth from the A#maj7sus4 to the D#madd9. Listen to the recording and you'll hear
it. As always, e-mail me with any questions. |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |||
| B | F# | B | F# | B | D# | B | F# | B | F# | B | D# | |||
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |||
| G | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | A#maj7sus4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | |
| F# | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | D#madd9 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 4 | |
| F | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | B-2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | |
| B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Badd9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | |
| A | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | B(#9) | 0 | x | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | |
| D | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||
| D# | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Intro: B-2 Badd9 B(#9) B-2 Badd9 B(#9)
G
F#
F
B
Through the windless wells of wonder by the throbbing light machine
A G
F#
B
In a tea leaf trance or under orders from the king and queen
D
F
Chorus: Songs to aging children come (songs to aging children come)
B
D#
G
Aging children I am one (I am one)
People hurry by so quickly, don't they hear the melodies
In the chiming and the clicking and the laughing harmonies?
Chorus
Some come dark and strange like dying, crows and ravens
whistling
Lines of weeping, strings of crying, so much said in listening
Chorus
Does the moon play only silver when it strums the galaxy?
Dying roses will they will their perfumed rhapsodies to me?
D
F
Chorus: Songs to aging children come
B D#
A#maj7sus4
D#madd9 (These 2 chords back & forth!)
This
is one
B B-2 Badd9 B(#9)(Strum this chord backwards!)