TAB by Song : 296075
Tab List Area
1 Pages 1 Results
Divers by Joanna Newsom
Divers
Capo:no capo
Am C
The diver is my love
G Am F
(& I am his, if I am not deceived),
F Am G Am
who takes one breath above, for every hour below the sea
Am C
who gave to me a jewel
G Am F
worth twice this woman's life (but would cost her less
F
than laying at low tide,
Am G Am
to see her true love phosphoresce)
( C )
& in an infinite regress:
G Am
Tell me, why is the pain of birth
G Am
lighter borne than the pain of death?
G F
I ain't saying that I loved you first,
C Bb
but I loved you best
Am C
I know we must abide
G Am F
each by the rules that bind us here:
F Am G Am
the divers, & the sailors, & the women on the pier
Am C
But how do you choose your form?
G Am F
How do you choose your name? How do you choose your life?
Am
How do you choose the time you must exhale,
G Am
& kick, & writhe?
C
& in an infinite capsize:
G Am
Like a bull tearing down the coast,
G Am
double hulls bearing double masts—
G F C Bb
I don't know if you loved me most, but you loved me last
Am C
Recall the word you gave:
G Am F
to count your way across the depths of this arid world,
F
where you would yoke the waves,
Am G Am
and lay a bed of shining pearls!
Am C
I dream it every night:
G Am F
the ringing of the pail,
( F )
the motes of sand dislodged,
( F )
the shucking, quick & bright;
( F ) Am G Am
the twinned & cast-off shells reveal a single heart of white
( C )
& in an infinite backslide:
G Am
Ancient border, sink past the West,
G Am
like a sword at the bearer's fall
G F
I can't claim that I knew you best,
C Bb
but did you know me at all?
Am C
A woman is alive!
G Am F
A woman is ali-ve;
( F ) ( F )
you do not take her for a sign in nacre on a stone,
Am G Am
alone, unfaceted & fine
Am C
& never will I wed
G Am F
I'll hunt the pearl of death to the bottom of my life,
( F )
& ever hold my breath,
Am G Am
'til I may be the diver's wife
( C )
See how the infinite divides:
G Am
& the divers are not to blame
G Am
for the rift, spanning distant shores
G F
You don't know my name,
C Bb
but I know yours
------------------
version 2
Tuning:E A D G B E
Capo:no capo
Intro (played through end of verse 1):
e|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|-10--13--12---------10----------------------------10------12-------------|
G|-------------12--9------12----------9------12--9------12-----------------|
D|----------------------------12--10-----12--------------------------------|
A|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-------------------------------------------------------------------------|
F Am G F
[Verse]
Am
A diver is my love
Am G
(and I am his, if I am not deceived)
F Am
who takes one breath above, for every hour below the sea
Am (alternate between Am and G/A)
who gave to me a jewel
Am G (alternate Am/G and G)
worth twice this woman's life (but would cost her less
F
than laying at low tide
Am (alternate Am and Am/G)
to see her true love phosphoresce)
[Chorus]
C
And in an infinite regress:
Gm F
Tell me, why is the pain of birth
F C
lighter borne than the pain of death?
G Gb F
I ain't saying that I loved you first,
C Bb
but I loved you best.
[Verse]
Am
I know we must abide
Am G (alternate G and Am/G)
each by the rules that bind us here:
F (alternate G/F and Am/F) Am
that divers, and the sailors, and the women on the pier.
Am
But how do you choose your form?
Am G
How do you choose your name? How do you choose your life?
F Am
How do you choose the time you must exhale,
and kick, and rise?
[Chorus]
C
And in an infinite capsize
Gm F
Like a bull tearing down the coast,
F C
double hulls bearing double masts–
G Gb F C Bb
I don't know if you loved me most, but you loved me last
[Verse]
Am
Recall the word you gave:
Am G (alternate between G and Am)
to count your way across the depths of this arid world,
F
where you would yoke the waves,
Am
and lay a bed of shining pearls!
Am
I dream it every night:
Am
the ringing of the pail,
G
the motes of sand dislodged,
the shucking, quick and bright;
F Am
the twinned and cast-off shells reveal a single heart of white
[Chorus]
C
And in an infinite backslide:
Gm F
Ancient border, sink past the West,
F C
like a sword at the bearer's fall.
G Gb F
I can't claim that I knew you best,
C Bb
but did you know me at all?
[Verse]
Am
A woman is alive!
Am
A woman is alive;
G F
you do not take her for a sign in nacre on a stone,
Am
alone, unfaceted and fine.
Am
And never will I wed.
Am G
I'll hunt the pearl of death to the bottom of my life,
F
and ever hold my breath,
Am
till I may be the diver's wife.
[Chorus]
C
See how the infinite divides:
Gm F
and the divers are not to blame
F C
for the rift, spanning distant shores.
G Gb F
You don't know my name,
C Bb
but I know yours.
------------------
version 3
Tuning:E A D G B E
Capo:12th fret
Capo on 12th to sound like the original, but sounds fine on other frets. I know
the main verses sound really
correct and match the harp, and although the chorus isn't exact, it still works.
It switches off between the Am and G throughout the song. You might have to
repeat more of the G progression
to get some of the lyric's timing right.
[Intro- repeat twice]
Am progression
e|----------|---------|---------|----------|
B|----1-0---|---------|---------|-------0--|
G|--2-----0-|---2-0---|-------0-|---2-0----|
D|----------|-2-----0-|---2-0---|-2--------|
A|--0-------|---------|-3-------|----------|
E|----------|---------|---------|----------| x2
G progression
e|----------|---------|---------|----------|
B|----1-0---|---------|---------|-------0--|
G|--2-----0-|---2-0---|-------0-|---2-0----|
D|----------|-2-----0-|---2-0---|-2--------|
A|--3-------|---------|-3-------|----------|
E|----------|---------|---------|----------| x2
[Am progression x2]
The diver is my love (And
[G progression x4]
I am his, if I am not deceived)
Who takes one breath above, for every
[Am progression x4]
hour below the sea;
Who gave to me a jewel / Worth
[G progression x4]
twice this woman's life (but would cost her less
Than laying at low tide / To see her
[Am progression x2]
true love phosphoresce) / And in an
C progression
e|----------|---------|-------------------|
B|----1-0---|---------|-------------------|
G|--0-----0-|---2-0---|-------0---2-0-----|
D|----------|-2-----0-|---2-0---2-----0---|
A|--3-------|---------|-3-----------------|
E|----------|---------|-------------------| x1
infinite regress: Tell me,
e|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
B|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
G|---0-------0-------0-------0-------2-------2-------2-------2-----|
D|-----0-------0-------0-------0-------2-------2-------2-------2---|
A|-2-------2-------2-------2-------0-------0-------0-------0-------|
E|-------3-------3-------3-------3-------0-------0-------0-------0-| x2
why is the pain of birth
Lighter borne than the pain of death?
I ain't
e|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
B|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
G|---0-------0-------0---------------3-------3-------3-------3-----|
D|-----0-------0-------0-----0---0-----2-------2-------2-------2---|
A|-2-------2-------2-----------------------2-------2-------2-------|
E|-------3-------3-------3-3---2---1-----1-------1-------1-------1-|
saying that I loved you first / But I
e|-----------------------------------------------|
B|-----------------------------------------------|
G|---0-------0-------3-------3-------3-------3---|
D|-----2-------2-------3-------3-------3-------3-|
A|-3-------3-------1-------1-------1-------1-----|
E|-------0-------0-------1-------1-------1-------|
loved you best
{NOTE: I'm not sure about the Bb here.}
I know we must abide
Each by the rules that bind us here:
The divers, and the sailors, and the women on the pier
But how do you choose your form?
How do you choose your name? How do you choose your life?
How do you choose the time you must exhale
And kick, and rise?
And in an infinite capsize:
Like a bull tearing down the coast
Double hulls bearing double masts —
I don’t know if you loved me most, but you loved me last
Recall the word you gave:
To count your way across the depths of this arid world
Where you would yoke the waves
And lay a bed of shining pearls!
I dream it every night:
The ringing of the pail
The motes of sand dislodged
The shucking, quick and bright;
The twinned and cast-off shells reveal a single heart of white
And in an infinite backslide:
Ancient border, sink past the West
Like a sword at the bearer's fall
I can't claim that I knew you best
But did you know me at all?
A woman is alive!
A woman is alive;
You do not take her for a sign in nacre on a stone
Alone, unfaceted and fine
And never will I wed
I'll hunt the pearl of death to the bottom of my life
And ever hold my breath
Till I may be the diver's wife
See how the infinite divides:
And the divers are not to blame
For the rift, spanning distant shores
You don’t know my name
But I know yours
----------