Old King Coal
By Sturgill Simpson
CD: High Top Mountain
Tabbed By Larry Mofle
9/6/2014



E
Many a man down in these here hills
       E               B7        E
Made a living off that old black gold
E   
Now there ain't nothing but welfare and pills
        E          B7      E
And the wind never felt so cold

        E
I'll be one of the first in a long long line
       E                 B7        E
Not to go down from that old black lung
       E
And my death will be slower than the rest of my kind
       E                            B7             E  
And my life will be sadder than the songs they all sung


Chorus:
A                      E
Old King Coal what are we gonna do
         E                      B7     E
When the mountains are gone and so are you
     A                     E
They come from the city to lend a hand
         E                            B7   
carrying signs saying, Shut the mines down
         A                    E              A   
We ain't looking for pity and you don't understand
      E                           B7              E  
So go back to your city now cause this ain't your town

Piano

E
My Great Grandfather spent his days in a coal mine
        E             B7         E  
and his nights on the porch in a chair
E         
Now he's in heaven and down here in hell 
    B7                       A             E
The rivers run muddy and the mountains are bare


Chorus:
A                       E
Old King Coal, what are we gonna do
         E                      B7     E
When the mountains are gone and so are you
         A                       E
Well now Old King Coal, what are we gonna do
         E                      B7     E
When the mountains are gone and so are you