Tom: D
[Intro] D G D G
D
On a warm summer's evenin'
G D
on a train bound for nowhere
G D
I met up with the gambler
G A
we were both too tired to sleep
D
So we took turns a starin'
G D
out the window at the darkness
G D
'til boredom overtook us
A D
and he began to speak
D
He said, "Son, I've made my life
G D
out of readin' people's faces
G D
and knowin' what their cards were
G A
by the way they held their eyes
D
And if you don't mind my sayin'
G D
I can see you're out of aces
G D
For a taste of your whiskey
A D
I'll give you some advice"
D
So I handed him my bottle
G D
and he drank down my last swallow
Then he bummed a cigarette
G A
and asked me for a light
D
And the night got deathly quiet,
G D
and his face lost all expression
G D
Said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy
A D
ya gotta learn to play it right
E
You got to know when to hold 'em
A E
know when to fold 'em
A E
know when to walk away
B7
and know when to run
E
You never count your money
A E
when you're sittin' at the table
A E
There'll be time enough for countin'
B7 E
when the dealin's done
E
Every gambler knows
A E
that the secret to survivin'
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is knowin' what to throw away
G B7
and knowing what to keep
E
'Cause every hand's a winner
A E
and every hand's a loser
A E
and the best that you can hope for
B7 E
is to die in your sleep"
E
And when he'd finished speakin'
A E
he turned back towards the window
E
crushed out his cigarette
B7
and faded off to sleep
E
And somewhere in the darkness
A E
the gambler, he broke even
A E
But in his final words I found
B7 E
an ace that I could keep
