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Leningrad

Billy Joel
Version1
90

Chords in this song

Strum
D-DU-UDU
  Key:
  Works for piano/guitar, though guitarplayers
  would heavily rely on a bass player.
  The Song is divided into two chord
  progressions og "patterns" if you prefer that.
  We will call them Pattern A & Pattern B.
  Lyrics below are marked with the pattern to follow.
  For those who doesn't know. "C/G" means you play
  a "C", but the bass goes on a "G". So if you wanna
  play this alone on one guitar, you will have to
  change the chord or your strumming so that the
  lowest of the strings in motion will represent
  the bass (i.t.c "G")
  For example:
  To play "C/G" you would play a normal open C, but
  but hit the low E string on the 3rd fret with you pinky.
  (Low  3rd fret = )
  Hehe... okey... now then.. the chords!
 Piano Only, but works for guitar too ;) )
 
 
 
  (It's a little hard to tell you where to change chords
  you'll have to figure out that yourself ;) )
 Definition to Pattern A:
 Viktor was born  in  the spring of ´44
 And never saw  his father anymore
 A child of sacrifice,  a child of war
 Another son  who never had  a father after  Leningrad
 Follows Pattern A:
  Went off to school and learned to serve the state
  Followed the rules and drank his vodka straight
  The only way to live was drown the hate
  A Russian life was very sad
  And such was life in Leningrad
 Definition of Pattern B:
 I was born in ´49
  A cold  war kid in McCarthy  time
  Stop  ´em at the 38th  Parallel
  Blast  those yellow reds to hell
 And cold war kids were hard to kill
  Under  their desk in an air  raid drill
  Haven´t  they heard  we won the war
  What  do they keep on fighting for?
 Follows Pattern A:
  Viktor was sent to some Red Army town
  Served out his time, became a circus clown
  The greatest happiness he´d ever found
  Was making Russian children glad
  And children lived in Leningrad
 Follows Pattern B:
  But children lived in Levittown
  And hid in the shelters underground
  Until the Soviets turned their ships around
  And tore the Cuban missiles down
  And in that bright October sun
  We knew our childhood days were done
  And I watched my friends go off to war
  What do they keep on fighting for?
 Follows Pattern A:
  And so my child and I came to this place
  To meet him eye to eye and face to face
  He made my daughter laugh, then we embraced
  We never knew what friends we had
  Until we came to Leningrad
 
 
 
 
 
 
 End on:
   ;)

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Readable chord sheet for Leningrad by Billy Joel

Key: [D]

     Works for piano/guitar, though guitarplayers
     would heavily rely on a bass player.
     The Song is divided into two chord
     progressions og "patterns" if you prefer that.
     We will call them Pattern A & Pattern B.
     Lyrics below are marked with the pattern to follow.

     For those who doesn't know. "C/G" means you play
     a "C", but the bass goes on a "G". So if you wanna
     play this alone on one guitar, you will have to
     change the chord or your strumming so that the
     lowest of the strings in motion will represent
     the bass (i.t.c "G")

     For example:

     To play "C/G" you would play a normal open C, but
     but hit the low E string on the 3rd fret with you pinky.
     (Low [E] 3rd fret = [G])

     Hehe... okey... now then.. the chords!

Piano Only, but works for guitar too ;) )

     [D]  [A/D]  [D]   [D]   [A]

     [Em] [B] [E]  [Em]  [Em]  [B]

     [G]  [G]    [D]   [D]   [G]   [G]   [A] [D]  [A7]  [Bm]  [G]  [A]   [A7]  [D]

     (It's a little hard to tell you where to change chords
      you'll have to figure out that yourself ;) )

Definition to Pattern A:

[D]      Viktor was b[Em/D]orn in  [G/D]   the spring of &[A/D]acute;44
[D]      And never s[Em/D]aw    [G/D]    his father [A/D]anymore
[D/C]      A child of s[G/B]acrifice, [D/A]    a child of w[E/F#]ar
[D/F#]      Another s[Bm7]on who never had  [G]   a father a[A]fter Leningr[D]ad

Follows Pattern A:

     Went off to school and learned to serve the state
     Followed the rules and drank his vodka straight
     The only way to live was drown the hate
     A Russian life was very sad
     And such was life in Leningrad

Definition of Pattern B:

[Dm]     I was born in ´49
     A c[Dm]old[A] war kid in McC[Am]arthy time
     St[C/G]op ´em at the [G]38th Parallel
     Bl[A]ast those yellow reds to hell
[Dm]     And cold war kids were hard to kill
     [Dm]Und[A]er their desk in an a[Am]ir raid drill
     H[C/G]aven´t they hear[G]d we won the war
     Wh[A]at do they keep on fighting for?

Follows Pattern A:

     Viktor was sent to some Red Army town
     Served out his time, became a circus clown
     The greatest happiness he´d ever found
     Was making Russian children glad
     And children lived in Leningrad

Follows Pattern B:

     But children lived in Levittown
     And hid in the shelters underground
     Until the Soviets turned their ships around
     And tore the Cuban missiles down
     And in that bright October sun
     We knew our childhood days were done
     And I watched my friends go off to war
     What do they keep on fighting for?

Follows Pattern A:

     And so my child and I came to this place
     To meet him eye to eye and face to face
     He made my daughter laugh, then we embraced
     We never knew what friends we had
     Until we came to Leningrad

     [D]  [A/D]  [D]   [D]   [A]

     [Em] [B] [E]  [Em]  [Em]  [B]

     [G]  [G]    [D]   [D]   [G]   [G]   [A] [D]  [A7]  [Bm]  [G]  [A]   [A7]  [D]

     [D]  [A/D]  [D]   [D]   [A]

     [Em] [B] [E]  [Em]  [Em]  [B]

     [G]  [G]    [D]   [D]   [G]   [G]   [A] [D]  [A7]  [Bm]  [G]  [A]   [A7]

End on:

     [D]    ;)

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