Ian Tyson, Night Riders Lament Tabs

Night Rider's Lament    Ian Tyson      Old Corrals & Sagebrush
Stony Plain Recording Co. Calgary Alberta
I learned it from an old Jerry Jeff Walker album. I've also heard Garth
Brooks & a neat version (in concert) by Suzzi Bogus

3/4 time
        C               F
Well I was out a-ridin
C                                       G
Graveyard shift midnight till dawn
        F                               C
The moon was as bright as a reading light
        G                                          C
For a letter from an old friend back home

                     c     d     e
(Chorus) And he asked me
F                  G              C          c  d  e
Why does he ride for his money
F                   G                 C
Why does he rope for short pay
   c   d   e F            G
He ain't gettin' nowhere
                C           F e  d  c
And he's loosin his share
F                            G          C
He must have gone crazy out there

He tells me
Last night he run on to Jenny
She's married and has a good life
Boy you sure missed the track
When you never came back
She's the perfect professonals wife

And she asked him (Chorus)

Well I read up the last of my letter
Tore off the stamp for black Jim
Billy road up to releave me
He just looked at my letter and grinned

And he said (Chorus)
                                F       G         C
(Bridge) But they've never seen the Northern Lights
F                   G                C
Never seen a hawk on the wing
F                     G                 C       F e  d  c
Never seen the spring hit the Great Divide
F                       G                 C
Never heard ol' Camp Cookie sing

F  C  G  C
Yolel