Tight to the Jar
by Kelly Joe Phelps


Tabbed by Anthony Greenwood
antgreenwood@gmail.com



n.b. Since I tabbed this intro I've seen Kelly Joe play this live  
 and it's actually in double dropped-D tuning, which is DADGBD, capo 
  3rd fret. The way I've done it sounds right, but it's not technically
      correct to play it this way. I can't be bothered to re-tab it right      
now, but I will one day.                                           

DADF#AD tuning - capo 3rd fret

s=slide, h=hammer on

---0-----0----0------0---0-------0----0-----------------------
-0-----------0----------0------------0---------------------7--
---------------3----------s5-----------7-------7---8----------
-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0--
--------------------------------------------------------------
---0-----------4----------s5-----------7-----------9----------



-----------0---------0----0------0----0------0----0----2---0--
---9---------0-----------0-----------0-----------0------------
---------------5-----------3-----------2-----------1----------
-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0--
--------------------------------------------------------------
---7-----------5-----------4-----------2-----------2----------



---2---0--------------------------------------0----0-----------
-----------5---4-5-4---2---0----------0-----------0------------
-----------------------------------1h3-s5-----------7----------
-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0--------0---0------0---0---
---------------0-----------0-----------------------------------
---4------------------------------------5-----------7----------



---------0----0-------0----0----------s4---------------2---0-0
-------------0------------0--------------------0--------------
---8-----------s5---------------------------------------------
-------0---0--------0---0------0---0-------0---0-------2---0--
---------------------------------------------------0----------
---9-----------s5----------5-----------0----------------------



---------0----0------0----0------0---0-0---------|-----
-------------0-----------0---0------0----0-------|-----
---------------1-----------0---------------------|-----
-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0-------0---0-|-----
-------------------------------------------------|-----
---0-----------0-----------0-----------0---------|-0---



Lyrics

It’s a ditch, okay, I have shoes and a blanket
My head resting light on a stone
Though it’s hard it’s still rounded with a pocket for brains
Or what goes for in halls under roof tile
We’ll sing another blistering ballad for grandma
Melody sweet till it rolls out the ear
And the beer flows free as advice
With a tight hand holding the jar.

The mud cakes my chin strap, fills up my cuffs
As I plod, now, from creek edge to street side
As it dries I can whittle it little by little
"Hey, look, now I’m light as a bee"
Those gray clouds mean nothing to one such as I
Though shadows stand tall as some school master whack
On the back of a well intentioned quiet kid
Arms held fast to the jar.

And it’s slow, so slow the idea
The coming around of a sensible word
It hovers and shakes like a humming bird wing
At the end of a long hot year.

Fry up that supper, we’ll kill it for breakfast
Turn the table down side and crazy
With the legs up, the woman up, the men up to church
For the spirit, the hen yard, the bent steel tack rap
It’s a ditch, yeah, I know that
And, I do wonder
How that bright faced, ten year old me of a boy
Found the road out I never could see
With my eyes held tight to the jar.