Chorus 1
G
I was once a broken man
C
I was once a broken fool
D
Lost my wife and children
C G
To one basic broken rule
G
Now I live my life in silence
C
Though I'm not quite in a shell
D
I drink and listen to that song
C G
"A Whiter Shade of Pale"
C G
Oh, a whiter shade of pale
Chorus 2A
G
I was a good shade tree mechanic
C
So I sent myself to school
D
They smoothed out my rough edges
C G
In my hands they put new tools
G
The instructor once he told me
C
I could work on any line
D
I could tune and make a diesel sing
C G
Just like Patsy Cline
C G
Oh, just like Patsy Cline
G
Well, I met my wife to be
C
Through my mother's best friend's son
D
She'd been a barroom singer
C G
She was as good as any-one
G
But I asked her to stop singing
C
And the girl she did not flinch
D
Next day she went and bought that man
C G
A brand new crescent wrench
C G
Oh, a brand new crescent wrench
G
Well, we had three fine children
C
As eight years went on by
D
I learned to supervise a line
C G
My knuckles stayed bone dry
G
But after supper I kept hearing her
C
By the kitchen radio
D
Singing sweet but desperate harmony
C G
A little bit too low
C G
Oh, a little bit too low
G
She left three months later
C
I'd just come home for lunch
D
The note said "easy come, hard go
C G
But still love you much"
G
She said, "I don't know if I'll be back
C
Or if you'll want me if I come
D
But if and when that happens, dear
C G
You better let my sweet dream run
C G
Oh, let my sweet dream run"
Chorus 2B
G
I was a good shade tree mechanic
C
So I sent myself to school
D
They smoothed out my rough edges
C G
In my hands they put new tools
G
The instructor once he told me
C
I could work on any line
D
But now my diesels aren't the only thing
C G
That sing like Patsy Cline
C G
Oh, just like Patsy Cline
Chorus 1
G
I was once a broken man
C
I was once a broken fool
D
Lost my wife and children
C G
To one basic broken rule
G
Now I live my life in silence
C
Though I'm not quite in a shell
D
I drink and listen to that song
C G
"A Whiter Shade of Pale"
C G
Oh, a whiter shade of pale