Belle and Sebastian : The Boy With The Arab Strap

Capo:

IV

C/g

F

He had a stroke at the age of twenty-four

F

C/g

It could have been a brilliant career

Am

Em

F

Painting lines in a school that was too well known

Am

Em

F

Painting lines with a friend that had gone before

F

D/f#

G

She challenged everyone to a fight

F

C

G

But the people all backed down

F

C

G

And they ran her out of town

F

C

G

Because she drank and swore and spoke

F

C

D

Out of turn, she was the village joke She had a stroke at the age of twenty-four It could have been a brilliant career Getting clients to finance her strategies She's filling time in on Safeways on Saturday She wears the clothes of an emperor But her paintings are a sham And they're going for a grand When the dealers come to view Do they ever see the real you? He had a stroke at the age of twenty-four It could have been a brilliant career Selling lies to the boys with the old Dansettes Pulling the wool, playing the fool, it's no wonder that He is dribbling spit tonight And the one he sent away Was the only one who stayed With a spoon and a decent book And you can tell by the way she looks He is sorry and resigned As he wets himself for the final time

E

B

C#m

A

E

And the moment will come when composure returns

B

Put a face on the world, turn your back to the wall

C#m

And you walk twenty yards with your head in the air

A

Down the Liberty Hill, where the fashion brigade Look with curious eyes on your raggedy way And for once in your life you've got nothing to say And could this be the time when somebody will come To say, "Look at yourself, you're not much use to anyone"

E

B

C#m

A

Take a walk in the park, take a Valium pill Read the letter you got from the memory girl But it takes more than this to make sense of the day Yeah, it takes more than milk to get rid of the taste And you trusted to this, and you trusted to that And when you saw it all come, it was waving the flag Of the United States of Calamity, hey! After all that you've done, boy, I know you're going to pay

E

B

C#m

A

x2

In the morning you come to the ladies salon To get all fitted out for The Paperback Throne But the people are living far away from the place Where you wanted to help, it's a bit of a waste And the puzzle will last until somebody will say "There's a lot to be done while your head is still young" If you put down your pen, leave your worries behind Then the moment will come, and the memory will shine

E

B

C#m

A

Now the trouble is over, everybody got paid Everybody is happy, they are glad that they came Then you go to the place where you've finally found You can look at yourself, sleep the clock around

E

B

C#m

A

G

C

G

Is it wicked not to care when they say that you're mistaken

C

G

D

Thinking hopes and lots of dreams that aren't there?

G

C

G

Is it wicked not to care when you've wasted many hours

C

G

D

Talking endlessly to anyone that's there?

Am

I know the truth awaits me

Am

D

But still I hesitate because of fear Skipping tickets making rhymes, is that all that you believe in? Wearing rags to make you pretty by design Rusting armour for effect, it's not fun to watch the rust grow For it will all be over when you're dead

Am

D

Am

D

Counting acts and clutching thoughts, by the river where the moss grows Over rocks, the water running all the time Is it wicked when you smile, even though you feel like crying Even though you could be sick at any time?

Am

But if there was a sequel

Am

Would you love me as an equal?

Am

D

Would you love me until I'm dead?

Instrumental verse

If there was a sequel Would you love me like an equal? Would you love me until I'm dead? If there was a sequel Would you love me like an equal? Would you love me until I'm dead?

G

Or is there someone else instead?

Fmaj7

Ease your feet off in the sea

Bbmaj7

My darling, it's the place to be

Fmaj7

Take your shoes off, curl your toes

Bbmaj7

I will frame this moment in time Troubles come and troubles go The trouble that we used to know Will stay with us until we get old Will stay with us until somebody

C

Decides to go

Fmaj7

Decides to go Soberly, without regret I make another sandwich And I fill my face, I know that things Have got to you, but what can I do? Suddenly, without a warning On a pale blue morning You decide your time is wearing thin A conscious choice to let yourself go

C

Cm

Dangling, hovering

Bb

It's an emergency

Bbm

There's no more wait and see

Instrumental verse

Maybe if I shut my eyes Your trouble will be split between us People come and people go You're scouring everybody's face For some small flicker of the truth To what it is that you are going Through, my boy, I left you dry The sign was clear that you were not going

C

Cm

Anywhere, anywhere

Bb

Save for a falling down

Bbm

Save for a falling down

C

Cm

Anywhere, anywhere

Bb

Save for a falling down

Ab

Gb

Ab

Gb

Fmaj7

Everything's going high Later on, as I walked home The plough was showing, and Orion I could see the house where you live I could see the house where you give All your time and sanity to people Then you waited for the people to acknowledge you They spoke in turn but their eyes would pass

C

Cm

Over you, over you

Bb

Who's seeing you at all? Who's seeing you at all?

Capo:

II

D

|-------0--2--|-------3--2--|-------0--2--|-------7--5--|

|---3---------|---3---------|---3---------|---3---------|

|-2---2-------|-2---2-------|-2---2-------|-2---2-------|

|-------------|-------------|-------------|-------------|

D

Summer in winter Winter in springtime You heard the birds sing Everything will be fine

Em

A

I spent the summer wasting

Em

A

G

The time was passed so easily

Em

A

But if the summer's wasted

Em

A

G

How come that I could feel so free

Em

A

I spent the summer wasting

Em

A

G

The sky was blue beyond compare

Em

A

A photograph of myself

Em

A

Is all I have to show for

D

G/d

Seven years of river walkways

D

C

Em

Seven weeks of staying up all night

Em

A

Em

A

|---------2-0-----|-------------------|

|-----0-3-----3-2-|-----0-3-3-2-0-----| x2

|---0-------------|---0-----------2---|

|-2---------------|-2-----------------|

|-----------------|-------------------|

Em

A

I spent the summer wasting

Em

A

G

The time was passed so pleasantly

Em

A

Say cheerio to books now

Em

A

G

The only things I'll read are faces

Em

A

I spent the summer wasting

Em

A

Under a canopy of

D

G/d

Seven weeks of reading papers

D

G/d

Seven weeks of river walkways

D

G/d

Seven weeks of feeling guilty

D

C

Em

Seven weeks of staying up all night |

Em

A

|

Em

A

|

x2

D

Summer in winter Winter is springtime You heard the bird say Everything will be fine

|

D

|

G

| |

D

|

G

| |

D

|

G

D

Seymour Stein

G

D

I've been lonely

G

A

I caught a glimpse of someone's face

G

D

It was mine and I'd been crying

G

D

Half a world away

G

D

Ticket for a plane

G

A

Record company man

G

D

I won't be coming to dinner

G

D

My thoughts are far away

G

D

I'm working on that day

G

A

North country girl (

Am

) I think she's going to stay

Am

Bm

Am

Bm

Promises of fame, promises of fortune

Am

Bm

Am

Bm

LA to New York, San Francisco back to Boston

C

D

Has he ever seen Dundee?

C

D

Won't he hire a limousine?

C

A7

Seymour send her back to me |

D

|

G

| |

D

|

G

| |

D

|

G

|

A

| |

D

|

G

D

I heard dinner went well

G

D

You liked Chris's jacket

G

A

He reminded you of Johnny

G

D

Before he went electronic

G

D

Seymour Stein

G

D

Sorry I missed you

G

A

Have a nice ride home

G

D

It's a good day for flying

G

D

Seymour Stein Seymour Stein Seymour Stein Seymour Stein |

G

|

D

| ...

I dreamt I had to go to Mars. I'm always kidding on about going to Mars for the day, but faced with the reality of it, in a dream, I was terrified. And it wasn't going to be like a moon trip - there was three of us going, but we couldn't all go on the same ship; we had to go one at a time with a day between us. I had to go first, and it was the thought of passing through all that black space, all the darkness with nothing in it, and then being the first one to land there, all alone... I knew it was supposed to be all dark around, with just a red surface, but what if I got there and it was light, all civilized and populated and stuff? So I made a plan. The other astronauts were going to be my dad and my sister, and my dad would come first after me, so I decided when I landed I would just stay in my seat until he got there, and then we could get out together and have a look around and see what sort of things were there. And when I woke up and I was lying in the darkness, I thought I had landed. And I just lay still for a while, waiting for my dad to get there too.

|

E

|

A

|

x4

E

A

E

A

I'm lucky, I can open the door and I can walk down the street

E

A

C#m

Unlucky, I've got no place to go and so I follow my feet

C#m

A

E

B

A choice is facing you, a healthy dose of pain

C#m

A

E

B

A choice is facing you as you stare through the rain

C#m

A

E

B

A choice is facing you but I choose to refrain

E

G#m

A

For today, tomorrow we'll be back in trouble again Dream one, you had a whole lot of fun with a comedian Stop short of going all the way, you'll have to make it someday Why is this happening to you, you're not a child? Why is this happening? You've too much on your mind Things creep up on you when you are fast asleep You are dreaming, you are sleeping, you are stuck to the sheets |

E

|

A

|

x3

C#m

A

E

B

In a town so small, there's no escaping you In a town so small, there's no escape from view In a town so small, there's nothing left to do |

E

|

G#m

|

A

| Dream two you couldn't see her face, but you saw everything else Dream two was pretty special, easily beats loving yourself Could you put a name to someone else's sigh? Could you put a face to someone else's eyes? Is it someone that you'd maybe recognise? But it all fades into morning when you open your eyes

G

A mile and a half on a bus takes a long time

G

C

The odour of old prison food takes a long time to pass you by

G

Day upon day of this wandering gets you down

G

C

Nobody gives you a chance or a dollar in this old town

G

Hovering silence from you is a giveaway

G

C

Squalor and smoke's not your style, I don't like this place, we better go

G

Then I compare notes with your older sister

G

C

I am a lazy get, she is as pure as the cold driven snow |

D

|

D

|

G

|

G

|

G

What did you learn from your time in the solitary cell of your mind?

C

There was noises, distractions from anything good and the old prison food

G

Colour my life with the chaos of trouble

G

C

'Cause anything's better than posh isolation, I missed the bus

C

D

You were laid on your back with the boy with the arab strap

G

With the boy from the arab strap |

G

|

G

|

C

|

C

| |

G

|

G

|

C

|

C

| |

D

|

D

|

C

|

C

|

G

|

G

|

G

Some people to speak of the way you are feeling

G

C

To crowds there assembled, do you ever feel you've gone too far?

G

Everyone suffers in silence, a burden

G

C

The man who drives minicabs down in Old Compton, the Asian man

C

D

With his love/hate affair with his racist clientele

G

A central location for you is a must

G

C

As you stagger about making free with your lewd and lascivious boasts

G

We all know you are soft because we've all seen you dancing

G

C

We know you are hard because we all saw you drinking from noon until noon again

D

You're the boy with the filthy laugh

G

You're the boy with the arab strap |

G

|

G

|

C

|

C

| |

G

|

G

|

C

|

C

|

G

Strapped to the table with suits from the shelter shop

G

C

Comic celebrity takes a back seat as the cigarette catches and sets off the smoke alarm

G

What do you make of the cool set in London?

G

C

You're constantly updating your hit parade of your ten biggest wanks

D

She's a waitress and she's got style

G

Sunday bath time could take a while

|

G

C

|

x4

G

C

G

C

G

What was it I saw in New York?

C

G

I'm not the same no more

E7

Am

D

G

How will I hide these feelings inside?

C

G

C

Call my girl on the phone

G

C

G

Neon light shine bright

G

C

G

Taxi cabs glide by

E7

Am

D

G

Aeroplanes they fly high up in the sky

A/g

Pretty girl says "Hi

D/f#

What's the worst job you've had?

A/g

What do you read?

D/f#

Bb/c

G

What's driving you mad? Met the cigarette girl Took a note of her charms but no cigar Met the Indie-cool queen Took me out of the bar And showed me the scene My little girl I can't find She's five hours behind Singer not the song And something's gone wrong Said the spider to the fly Do I like this girl? It's such a big world I like the tone of her voice Loved the sound of her voice When I get back to London From outer space Will I fall into place? I'll hold onto my smile Find my girl in a while Look myself in the face Don't know what you see Am I playing in your movie? You're in my magazine Are you talking to me? Chick factor

e|------------------------------|

b|----0-----2-----3-----2-3-2---|

G|------0-----0-----0---------2-|

D|--------2-----2-----2---------|

A|------------------------------|

E|------------------------------|

Em

If you want me I'll be there

G

D

A boy to deal with all your problems

C

G

But part of the deal

C

G

Is for you to feel something

Em

If you want me look me up

G

D

I don't exist in usual places

C

G

D

Subtle as the wind is grey

Em

G

If you want me you know where I am

D

C

I saw your arms in a dream

G

C

And there were blue veins blue

G

Blue veins

Em

G

If you want me all you have to do

D

Is ask a thousand questions

C

G

Triplicate and file under

B

C

G

"Simple things you ask to make a young boy sigh"

C

Em

Young boy sigh

[Show chord shapes]

G6 320030

D

G6

D

G6

Hey people, looking out the window at the city below Hey people, looking out the window, full of fun and sorrow Hey people, looking out the window at the city below Hey people, looking out the window, you'll be gone tomorrow

A

G6

The roller-coaster ride

A

G6

The roller-coaster ride

Bm

G6

Of all the trouble kept her inside Take Judy, with her bow and arrow, she's a mastermind Too frumpy for the teenage population of her time Car coat, she has a quilted jacket with a hood if it rains Big pockets for the pharmaceuticals she takes to fix her brain The roller-coaster ride... A puzzle, for the moment settle down to do it with him You're happy 'cause your cosy and the rain comes rattling in It tickles, and it's something that is very good for the skin You're waiting for a baby, Baby, watch the idiot running The roller-coaster ride... You're hanging from the balcony upon the riverboat glass You're watching with your mouth wide open for the top of the class She came on with the boys while you were stuck in various poses If you were to remove your clothes d'you think the singer would notice? The roller-coaster ride...

Belle and Sebastian : The Boy With The Arab Strap
1998

It Could Have Been A Brilliant Career

Sleep The Clock Around

Is It Wicked Not To Care?

Ease Your Feet Into The Sea

A Summer Wasting

Seymour Stein

A Space Boy Dream

Dirty Dream Number Two

The Boy With The Arab Strap

Chickfactor

Simple Things

Rollercoaster Ride

Belle and Sebastian : The Boy With The Arab Strap 1998

It Could Have Been A Brilliant Career

Sleep The Clock Around

Is It Wicked Not To Care?

Ease Your Feet Into The Sea

A Summer Wasting

Seymour Stein

A Space Boy Dream

Dirty Dream Number Two

The Boy With The Arab Strap

Chickfactor

Simple Things

Rollercoaster Ride

Belle and Sebastian : The Boy With The Arab Strap
1998