To Beat the Devil Chords

Lyrics & chords

[Verse 1]
A couple of years [G]back I come across a great and wasted friend of mine in the hallway of a recording studio. And while he was reciting some poetry to me that he had written, I saw that he was about a step away from dying,
and [D]I couldn't help but wonder why. [G]And the lin[D]es of this son[G]g occurred to me. I'm happy to say he's no longer wasted, and he's got him a good woman. And I'd like to dedicate this to John and June, who helped showed me how to beat the devil.

[Verse 2]
[G]
It was wintertime [D]in Nashville
[G]Down on Music Cit[D]y Row[G]
And I was looking for a place
And to get [D]my self out of the cold
[C]To warm the fro[D]zen feeling that was
[G]eating [D]at my soul[Em][C]
Keep the chilly wind off my [D]guitar
[G]My thirsty wanted whiskey
[C]But my hunger needed bea[G]ns
But it had been a month of paydays
Since [D]I'd heard that eagle scream
[C]So with a stomach ful[D]l of empty
[G]And a pocket ful[Em]l of dreams
[C]I left my pri[D]de and stepped inside a bar[G]
[Em]Actually I'd guess you'd call
[C]it a tavern
Cigarette smoke to the ceil[Am]ing
And sawdust [D]on the floor
Friendly shad[G]ows
I saw that there was just one
old man [C]sitting [G]at the bar
And in the mirror I could see him
checking me [D]and my guitar
And [C]he turned and said,
[D]Come up here,
boy, and [G]show us [Em]what you are
[C]I said I'm dry, and he bought me a b[D]eer
[G]He nodded at my guitar and said,
[C]It's a tough life, [G]ain't it?
I just looked at him
He said, you [D]ain't making
any money, are you?
[C]I said, you been reading m[D]y mail
[G]He just smiled and said,
[Em]let me see [C]that guitar
[D]I got something you ought to hear
[G]And then he laid it on me

[Verse 3]
If you waste your time a talking [C]To the
people who don't listen
[G]To the things that you are saying
Who do [D]you thinks gonna hear?
And if [G]you should die explaining how
The [C]things that they complain about
Are [G]things they could be changing
Who do [D]you thinks gonna [G]care?
There were [D]other lonely singers
In a [C]world turned deaf and [G]blind
Who were [C]crucified for [G]what they
[D]tried to show
And their [G]voices have been scattered by the
[C]swirling winds of [G]time
‘Cause the truth remains that
[D]no one wants to [G]know

[Verse 4]
Well [G]the old man was a stranger
But [C]I'd heard his [G]song before
Back when failure had me locked out
On the [D]wrong side of the door
[C]When no one sto[D]od behind me
But my [G]shadow [Em]on the floor
[C]And lonesome was more than
[D]a state of mind
[G]You see, the devil haunts a hun[C]gry man[G]
If you don't want to join him
You gotta [D]beat him
[C]I ain't saying I bea[D]t the devil[G]
[Em]But I drank his beer [C]for nothing
[D]Then I stole his[G] song

[Verse 5]
And you still can hear me [G]singing
To the [C]people who don't listen
[G]To the things that I am saying
[D]Praying someone's gonna hear
And I [G]guess I'll die explaining how
The [C]things that they complain about
Are [G]things they could be changing
Hoping [D]someone's [G]gonna care
I was [D]born a lonely singer
And I'm [C]bound to die the [G]same
But I've [C]gotta feed the hunger in my [D]soul
And if I [G]never have a nickel
[C]I won't ever die [G]ashamed
‘Cause I don't believe
that [D]no one wants to [G]know