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American Rivers

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Tom Russell - American Rivers
CAPO: 2nd Fret
[Intro]
C
[Verse 1]
Ain’t no more Fcane on the CBrazos
Yeah, Fyeah, GyeahC  
It’s all been Fground down to moClasses
FYeah, Gyeah, Cyeah
[Verse 2]
I saw a red iron sunset
From a rust iron bridge
In the Indian Fcountry
Of the mockingbird Ckid
[Verse 3]
I saw the moon in a boxcar
Being carried as freight
Through sixty-two Fwinters 
Through forty-eight Cstates
[Verse 4]
In an old Chinese graveyard 
I slept in the weeds
When a song and a Fstory 
Were all a kid Cneeds
[Verse 5]
Hear the rhymes and the rattles 
Of those runaway trains
And the songs of the Fcowboy 
And the sound of the Crain
[Chorus]
And it’s, "Mom, I miss you"
I woke up and screamed
American Frivers
Roll deep through my Cdreams
It's ColoFrado, yeah, AlleCgheny
ShenanFdoah, SusqueChanny
And the AmWabash and the Hudson, the Gbrave Rio Grande
I was a Fkid there, asleep in the sandy old Cwater
FYeah, old CwatFer, yeCah
[Interlude]
C  Bb  C  Bb     C
[Verse 6]
We named ‘em for Indians 
Our guilt to forsake
The Delaware the FBlackfoot 
The Flathead the CSnake
[Verse 7]
Now they roll past casinos 
And old hamburger stands
They’re all waving fareFwell 
To the kid on the Cland
[Verse 8]
With their jigsawed old arteries 
So clogged and defiled
No open heart Fmiracle 
Is gonna turn ’em back Cwild
[Verse 9]
Past towns gone to bankers 
Past fields gone to seed
All cut up and Fcarved out 
So divided by Cgreed
[Verse 10]
And old grandfather catfish 
With his whiskers so long
And his life in a Fstruggle 
'Cause the oxygen’s Cgone
[Chorus]
"Oh, mom, I miss you", I woke up and screamed
These American Frivers
They poison my Cdreams
It's ColoFrado, yeah, AlleCgheny
ShenanFdoah, SusqueChanny
And the AmWabash and the Hudson, the Gbrave Rio Grande
I was a Fkid there, I was asleep in the sandy old Cwater
FYeah, old CwatFer, yeah
[Outro]
C  Bb  C  Bb     C

All chords in this song (5)

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American Rivers

by Tom Russell

Lyrics & chords · Original key · Capo on fret 2 (as written in this song)

Chords in this song · guitar

Tom Russell - American Rivers

CAPO: 2nd Fret

[Intro]

[Verse 1]

F C

Ain’t no more cane on the Brazos

F G C

Yeah, yeah, yeah

F C

It’s all been ground down to molasses

F G C

Yeah, yeah, yeah

[Verse 2]

I saw a red iron sunset

From a rust iron bridge

In the Indian country

Of the mockingbird kid

[Verse 3]

I saw the moon in a boxcar

Being carried as freight

Through sixty-two winters

Through forty-eight states

[Verse 4]

In an old Chinese graveyard

I slept in the weeds

When a song and a story

Were all a kid needs

[Verse 5]

Hear the rhymes and the rattles

Of those runaway trains

And the songs of the cowboy

And the sound of the rain

[Chorus]

And it’s, "Mom, I miss you"

I woke up and screamed

American rivers

Roll deep through my dreams

F C

It's Colorado, yeah, Allegheny

F C

Shenandoah, Susquehanny

Am G

And the Wabash and the Hudson, the brave Rio Grande

F C

I was a kid there, asleep in the sandy old water

F C F C

Yeah, old water, yeah

[Interlude]

C Bb C Bb C

[Verse 6]

We named ‘em for Indians

Our guilt to forsake

The Delaware the Blackfoot

The Flathead the Snake

[Verse 7]

Now they roll past casinos

And old hamburger stands

They’re all waving farewell

To the kid on the land

[Verse 8]

With their jigsawed old arteries

So clogged and defiled

No open heart miracle

Is gonna turn ’em back wild

[Verse 9]

Past towns gone to bankers

Past fields gone to seed

All cut up and carved out

So divided by greed

[Verse 10]

And old grandfather catfish

With his whiskers so long

And his life in a struggle

'Cause the oxygen’s gone

[Chorus]

"Oh, mom, I miss you", I woke up and screamed

These American rivers

They poison my dreams

F C

It's Colorado, yeah, Allegheny

F C

Shenandoah, Susquehanny

Am G

And the Wabash and the Hudson, the brave Rio Grande

F C

I was a kid there, I was asleep in the sandy old water

F C F

Yeah, old water, yeah

[Outro]

C Bb C Bb C

About American Rivers Chords by Tom Russell

Learn how to play American Rivers by Tom Russell with free guitar chords, lyrics, and interactive chord diagrams. Search for “American Rivers chords”, “American Rivers guitar chords”, or “Tom Russell American Rivers chords” and you will find this page — transpose to any key, tap chords for diagrams, and use auto-scroll while you play. Perfect for beginners looking for easy American Rivers chords and for experienced players who want accurate American Rivers lyrics and chords in one place. Common chords in this song include C, F, G, Am, Bb.

FAQ — American Rivers by Tom Russell

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The chords for "American Rivers" show the original chord names (including C, F, G, Am, Bb). Use transpose to move the song into any key that fits your voice or capo.