Rolling Stones - Sympathy for the Devil
The chord names are written above the lyrics to show where they're played in the song, like this:
E / / / D / / / Please allow me to introduce myself, I'm a A / / / E / / / man of wealth and taste
In this song each bar lasts for four beats. The chord is written in for the first beat and the other three beats are shown by these: /
Because the lyrics speed up and slow down, some of the gaps between strums are bigger than others, making it look like a very random beat. Nevertheless, you still want each strum to last the same length of time just as if it was written like this:
E / / / D / / / A / / / E / / /
Don't be surprised if it takes a bit of practise before you can keep the beat steady and change chords fast enough, but don't let that stop you. It's best to spend a while just playing the chords once each so that you can get better at changing between them in time. Its always hard to begin with but if you can learn the chord changes in this song you'll find that you use them over and over again in any other songs you decide to learn.
Bearing this in mind, have a go at playing the first verse. If you can get hold of a copy of the song it's handy to have a listen so that you can hear what it sounds like and it'll be easier to know what you're meant to be doing.
E / / / D / / /
Please allow me to introduce myself, I'm a
A / / / E / / /
Man of wealth and taste
E / / / D / / /
I've been around for long, long years I've stolen
A / / / E / / /
Many a man's soul and faith
E / / / D / / /
I was around when Jesus Christ had his
A / / / E / / /
Moments of doubt and pain
E / / / D / / /
Made damn sure that Pilate washed his
A / / / E / / /
Hands and sealed his fate
E / / /
B7 / / / B7 / / /
Pleased to meet you, hope you guess my name,
E / / / E / / /
but what's
B7 / / / B7 / / /
Puzzling you, is the nature of my game
E / / / E / / /
That's the most difficult bit over with, the rest of the song carries on in much the same way. I've included the rest of the words so that you can sing it if you want to but the chords and timing are exactly the same for each verse. You should try and have a bash at singing it if you can because you'll get a lot more satisfaction out of playing guitar if you can sing along at the same time.
Verse 2:
E D A E
I stuck around St. Petersburg when I saw it was a time for a change
E D A E
Killed the Tzar and his ministers, Anastasia screamed in vain
E D A E
I rode a tank, held a general's rank, when the blitzkrieg raged and the bodies stank
B7 E
Pleased to meet you, hope you guess my name, oh yeah ah what's
B7 E
Puzzling you, is the nature of my game
verse 3:
E D
I watched with glee while your kings and queens, fought for
A E
Ten decades for the gods they made
E D A E
I shouted out "Who killed the Kennedys?", when after all it was you and me
E D A E
Let me please introduce myself, I' a man of wealth and taste
E D A E
And I lay traps for troubadours, who get killed before they reach Bombay
B7 E
Pleased to meet you, hope you guess my name, oh yeah but what's
B7 E
Puzzling you, is the nature of my game ah yeah
There's a solo here for a half a minute or so that you probably don't want to be concerning yourself with at this point, and it sounds fine if you miss it out. When it's finished they come back in with the bridge - pleased to meet you, etc - and then on to the fourth verse:
verse 4:
E D A E
Just as every cop is a criminal, and all the sinners saints, as
E D A E
Heads is tails, just call me Lucifer, 'cause I'm in need of some restraint so if you
E D A E
Meet me, have some courtesy, have some empathy and some taste
E D A E
Use all your well-learned politesse, or I'll lay your soul to waste
B7 E
Pleased to meet you, hope you guess my name, mmm yeah, but what's
B7 E
Puzzling you, is the nature of my game
And that's pretty much it. They spend quite a while at the end playing E, D, A, E like at the beginning of each verse and going "woo hoo" over it, which is entirely optional from your point of view.
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