Birth of the Blues
Henderson, DeSylva, Brown (1926)


Intro (Loosely sung and played)
So they say some people long a- [Cm] go
Were searching for a different [D7] tune
[Bbdim7] One that they could [D7] croon
As [Bbdim7] only they can [G] [Bbdim7] [D7↓]

Verse (Start regular strumming)
They heard the | [G] breeze in the | [Am7] trees
Singing | [G] weird melo- | [C] dies
And they | [D7] made that | [Am7]... the [D7] start of the |
| [G] blues [Bbdim7↓] [Am7↓] | [G↓]

And from a | [G] jail came the | [Am7] wail
Of a | [G] down-hearted | [C] frail
And they | [D7] played that | [Am7]... as [D7] part of the |
| [G] blues [Bbdim7↓] [Am7↓] | [G]

Bridge
From a whippoor- | [B7] will way up | on a hill
They | [B7] took a new note | [B7] ...
Pushed it through a | [E7] horn till it was | worn
Into a | [A7] blue note   | [D7↓]  

Then they | [G] nursed it, re- | [Am7] hearsed it
| [G] Then they sent out that | [C] news
That the | [D7] Southland... | [Am7]... gave [D7] birth to the |
| [G] blues [Bbdim7] [Am7] | [G↓]

Instrumental
| [G]   | [Am7] | [G] | [C] |
| [D7] | [Am7][D7] | [B7] | [E7]

And then they | [C] nursed it re- | [Bbdim7] hearsed it
| [G] And then they sent out that | [E7] news
That the | [A7] Southland | [D7] gave birth to the |
| [G] blues!  [Bbdim7↓][Am7↓] | [G↓]


#Capo on 1st fret to play along with Randy Travis' version.
#Last Updated 9/18/18 JJ
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