Album Version
D /c G/b D
The sweet pretty things are in bed now of course
D /c G/b D
The city fathers they're trying to endorse
D /c G(b D
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse
D/c G/b D
But the town has no need to be nervous
The ghost of Belle Starr she hands down her wits To Jezebel the nun she violently knits A bald wig for Jack the Ripper who sits At the head of the chamber of commerce
G
Mama's in the fact'ry
D
She ain't got no shoes
G
Daddy's in the alley
D
He's lookin' for food
G
I'm in the kitchen *)
D
With the tombstone blues
The hysterical bride in the penny arcade Screaming she moans, "I've just been made" Then sends out for the doctor who pulls down the shade Says, "My advice is to not let the boys in"
Now the medicine man comes and he shuffles inside He walks with a swagger and he says to the bride "Stop all this weeping, swallow your pride You will not die, it's not poison"
Mama's in the fact'ry She ain't got no shoes Daddy's in the alley He's lookin' for food I'm in the kitchen With the tombstone blues
Well, John the Baptist after torturing a thief Looks up at his hero the Commander-in-Chief Saying, "Tell me great hero, but please make it brief Is there a hole for me to get sick in?"
The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly Saying, "Death to all those who would whimper and cry" And dropping a bar bell he points to the sky Saying, "The sun's not yellow it's chicken"
Mama's in the fact'ry She ain't got no shoes Daddy's in the alley He's lookin' for food I'm in the kitchen With the tombstone blues
The king of the Philistines his soldiers to save Puts jawbones on their tombstones and flatters their graves Puts the pied pipers in prison and fattens the slaves Then sends them out to the jungle
Gypsy Davey with a blowtorch he burns out their camps With his faithful slave Pedro behind him he tramps With a fantastic collection of stamps To win friends and influence his uncle
Mama's in the fact'ry She ain't got no shoes Daddy's in the alley He's lookin' for food I'm in trouble With the tombstone blues
The geometry of innocent flesh on the bone Causes Galileo's math book to get thrown At Delilah who's sitting worthlessly alone But the tears on her cheeks are from laughter
Now I wish I could give Brother Bill his great thrill I would set him in chains at the top of the hill Then send out for some pillars and Cecil B. DeMille He could die happily ever after
Mama's in the fact'ry She ain't got no shoes Daddy's in the alley He's lookin' for food I'm in the kitchen With the tombstone blues
Where Ma Raney and Beethoven once unwrapped their bed roll Tuba players now rehearse around the flagpole And the National Bank at a profit sells road maps for the soul To the old folks home and the college
Now I wish I could write you a melody so plain That could hold you dear lady from going insane That could ease you and cool you and cease the pain Of your useless and pointless knowledge
Mama's in the fact'ry She ain't got no shoes Daddy's in the alley He's lookin' for the fuse I'm in the streets With the tombstone blues
*) The copyrighted version has looking for the fuse / I am in the streets.
Can also be played in standard tuning, capo 2nd fret:
E A E
The sweet pretty things are in bed now of course
E A E
The city fathers they're trying to endorse
E A E
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse
E A E
But the town has no need to be nervous
Acoustic version, Newport 24 July 1965
Note that the refrain is not yet part of the song.
In the first verse, Dylan starts the descent too early and plays the c bass already in the first bar, so he has to insert a b flat in the end instead (D/c /b /bb D). The A is played
Basic strumming pattern:
Cadd9 D Cadd9
. : . . . : . . .
|------0-0-|-----2-----2-0h2-|-----2-2-2-2-0---|
|------3-3-|-----3-----3-3---|-----3-3-3-3-3---|
|------0---|-----2-----2-0h2-|-----2-2-2-2-0---|
|----------|-0---0-----------|-----0-----------|
|------3---|-----0-----------|-------------3---|
|----------|-----------------|-0---------------|
D /c G/b D
The sweet pretty things are in bed now of course
D /c G/b D
The city fathers they are planning to endorse
D /c G/b D
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse
A Asus4 D
But the town has no need to be nervous
The ghost of Belle Starr she hands down her wits To Jezebel the nun who violently knits A bald wig for Jack the Ripper who sits At the head of the chamber of commerce
The screaming bride in the penny arcade Screaming she moans, "I've just been made" Then send out for the doctor who pulls down the shade And says, "My advice is to not let the boys in"
Now the medicine man comes and he shuffles inside He walks with a swagger and he says to the bride "Stop all this weeping, and swallow your pride You will not die, it's not poison"
The blacksmith and the boyscout, after torturing a thief, Looking up at their hero the Commander-in-Chief Saying, "Tell me great hero, but please make it brief Is there a hole for us to get sick in?"
The Commander-in-Chief answers while pounding a fly Saying, "Death to all those who would whimper and cry" And dropping a bar bell he points to the sky Saying, "The sun's not yellow it's chicken"
The king of the Philistines his soldiers to save Puts jawbones on their tombstones and flatters their graves Sends the pied pipers to prison and fattens the slaves And sends them out to the jungle
While Gypsy Davey with a blowtorch he burns out their camps With his faithful slave Pedro behind him he tramps With a thousand-dollar collection of stamps To win friends and to influence his uncle
The geometry of innocent flesh on the bone Keeps Galileo busy while his math book gets thrown In lazy Delilah's lap, who sits worthlessly alone Yet the tears on her cheeks are from laughter
She wishes she could give Brother Bill his great thrill And set him in chains at the top of the hill Then send out for some pillars and Cecil B. DeMille He could die happily ever after
Where Ma Raney and Beethoven once unwrapped their bed roll Tuba players now rehearse around the flagpole And the National Bank selling road maps for the soul To the old folks home and the college
I wish I could write you a melody so plain That could hold you dear lady from going insane That could ease you and calm you and cease the pain Of your pointless and useless knowledge .
Real Live version
B
The sweet pretty things are in bed now of course
The city fathers they're trying to endorse
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse
A B
But the town has no need to be nervous
. . .
E
Mama's in the fact'ry
B
She ain't got no shoes
E
Daddy's in the alley
B
He's lookin' for food
E
I'm in the kitchen
B
With the tombstone blues
Unplugged version
(recorded nov 1994)
The G is a bluesy mix of G major and minor (exactly the same used in Viola Lee Blues.
The following riff is played by one of the guitars throughout the song, where there’s a line with G.
G : . . . : . . . |-------------------------|---------------1---------|- |-------------------------|------------23--3--------|- |--- 3----0---------3--0--|----3----0---------3--0--|- |-------------------------|-------------------------|- |-------------------------|-------------------------|- |-------------------------|-------------------------|-
G
The sweet pretty things they're in bed now of course
The city fathers they're trying to endorse
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse
Bb C G
But the town has no need to be nervous
The ghost of Belle Starr she hands down her wits To Jezebel the nun she violently knits A bald wig for Jack the Ripper who sits At the head of the chamber of commerce
C
Mama's in the fact'ry
G
She ain't got no shoes
C
Daddy's in the hallway
G
lookin' for the fuse
C
I'm in the kitchen with the
C Bb G
tombstone blues
Shadow Kingdom version
Slow strums without a marked metre, just the chords. The most interesting part, musically speaking, is the intro which takes the cues from the previous song, Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues
[Transition Tom Thumb's Blues:] B A E ->
F C Bb Bb7
Bb
The sweet pretty things they're in bed now of course
Eb
The city fathers they're trying to endorse
Bb
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse
Db Eb Bb
But the town has no need to be nervous
Eb
Mama's in the fact'ry
Bb
She ain't got no shoes
Eb
Daddy's in the alley
Bb
lookin' for the fuse
Eb
I'm in the kitchen with the
Bb
tombstone blues