Cotton Fields
Lead Belly (Huddie Ledbetter, 1940)



Try with 'Carter' Picking (Alternating Thumb)
4/4 | T3 - D -  T4 - D - |   or   4/4 | T3 - D u  T4 - D u |
      1    2    3    4                  1    2    3    4


Intro
| [A]   |   [E7]   |   [A]   |   [A]
When   |   [A]  I was a little bitty   |   baby my Mama would  
| [D]  rock me in my   |   [A] cradle
In them   |   [A]  old...   |   cotton fields back   |   [E7]  home   |   [E7]
When   |   [A]  I was a little bitty   |   baby my Mama would  
| [D]  rock me in my   |   [A] cradle
In them   |   [A] old...   |   [E7]  cotton fields back   |   [A]  home   |   [A]

Chorus
Now when them   |   [D]  cotton bolls get   |   rotten
You can't   |   [A]  pick very much   |   cotton
In them   |   [A] old...   |   cotton fields back   |   [E7] home   |   [E7]
It was   | [A] down in Louisi- | ana
Just about a   |   [D] mile from Texar- | [A] kana
In them   |   [A] old...   |   [E7]  cotton fields back   |   [A]  home   |   [A]

It was   |   [A] over in Arkan- | sas the people asked  
|   [D]  me what I come here   |   [A]  for
In them   |   [A]  old...   |   cotton fields back   |   [E7]  home   |   [E7]
It was   |   [A] over in Arkan- | sas the people asked  
|   [D]  me what I come here   |   [A]  for
In them   |   [A] old...   |   [E7]  cotton fields back   |   [A]  home   |   [A]

Chorus
Now when them   |   [D]  cotton bolls get   |   rotten
You can't   |   [A]  pick very much   |   cotton
In them   |   [A] old...   |   cotton fields back   |   [E7] home   |   [E7]
It was   | [A] down in Louisi- | ana
Just about a   |   [D] mile from Texar- | [A] kana
In them   |   [A] old...   |   [E7]  cotton fields back   |   [A]  home   |   [A]

It   |   [A] may  sound a little bit   |   funny,  but you
| [D]  can't make too much   |   [A]  money
In them   |   [A] old...   |   cotton fields back   |   [E7] home   |   [E7]
It   |   [A] may sound a little bit   |   funny,  but you
| [D]  can't make too much   |   [A]  money
In them   |   [A] old...   |   [E7]  cotton fields back   |   [A]  home   |   [A]

Chorus
Now when them   |   [D]  cotton bolls get   |   rotten
You can't   |   [A]  pick very much   |   cotton
In them   |   [A] old...   |   cotton fields back   |   [E7] home   |   [E7]
It was   | [A] down in Louisi- | ana
Just about a   |   [D] mile from Texar- | [A] kana
In them   |   [A] old...   |   [E7]  cotton fields back   |   [A]  home   |   [A]


#Folk Standard that's great fun to sing.
#We'll often play it in key of C but most online versions seem to be in Key of A (as shown here).
#Try using an alternating thumb picking pattern: 'Carter Picking'
#Last Updated 1/5/18 JJ
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