kris kristofferson
Kris Kristofferson always had a passion for literature (he had a B.Phil. degree in English literature), and many of his songs are written after reading some novel. This one, from his second album "The Silver Tongued Devil and I" (Monument 1971), is told to be influenced by John Bunyan’s "The Pilgrim’s Progress", where the red thread is that a true Christian must be willing to pay the cost of salvation no matter what. Man is full of sin, but this does not keep him from attaining glory.
I'm not able to decide if this is true or not: I haven't bothered reading that 17th century stuff. That "#33" is most likely an effort to make it mystic, a common habit with song titles in the six- and seventies.
The spoken intro to the song goes like this: «I started writing this song about Chris Gantry, ended up writing about Dennis Hopper and Johnny Cash … Norman Norbert, Funky Donnie Fritts, Billy Swan, Bobby Neuwirth, Jerry Jeff Walker, Paul Siebel … Ramblin’ Jack Elliot had a lot to do with it». Leave this, or make Your own intro ...
... but the spoken outro line is essential. Kris could forgive most anything; he'd been there and done that.
see him wasted on the sidewalk in his jacket and his jeans
wearin' yesterday's misfortunes like a smile
once he had a future full of money love and dreams
which he spent like they was going out of style
and he keeps right on a-changin' for the better or the worse
and searchin' for a shrine he's never found
never knowin' if believin' is a blessin' or a curse
or if the going up is worth the coming down
he's a poet [and he's a picker]
he's a prophet [and he's a pusher]
he's a pilgrim and a preacher and a problem when he's stoned
he's a walking contradiction : partly truth and partly fiction
taking every wrong direction on his lonely way back home
he has tasted good and evil in your bedrooms and your bars
and he's traded in tomorrow for today
runnin' from the devils Lord and reachin' for the stars
and losin' all he loved along the way
but if this world keeps right on turning for the better or the worse
and all he ever gets is older and around
from the rocking of the cradle to the rolling of the hearse
the going up was worth the coming down
he's a poet [and he's a picker]
he's a prophet [and he's a pusher]
he's a pilgrim and a preacher and a problem when he's stoned
he's a walking contradiction : partly truth and partly fiction
taking every wrong direction on his lonely way back home
... and there's lotta wrong directions on that lonely way back home
For the following CHORD section, fullscreen/horizontal mobile is recommended.
Chords in brackets may be omitted.
G G7 see him wasted on the sidewalk in his jacket and his jeans C D7 G ... G7 wearin' yesterday's misfortunes like a smile C G E7 once he had a future full of money love and dreams Am D D7 which he spent like they was going out of style G G7 and he keeps right on a-changin' for the better or the worse C D7 G ... G7 and searchin' for a shrine he's never found C G E7 never knowin' if believin' is a blessin' or a curse Am D7 G or if the going up is worth the coming down C he's a poet and he's a picker G he's a prophet and he's a pusher Am D D7 G7 he's a pilgrim and a preacher and a problem when he's stoned C G E7 he's a walking contradiction partly truth and partly fiction Am D D7 G taking every wrong direction on his lonely way back home
