Johnny 99 Electric Nebraska

Intro: C    G    C 



[Verso 1]

C 
Well, they closed down the Ford plant in Mahwah late that month 
                                                  G 
Johnny went out lookin' for a job but he couldn't find none 
        C 
He came home too drunk from mixin' Tanqueray and wine 
                                   G                     C 
Got a gun, shot a night clerk, now they call him Johnny 99 



[Verso 2]

C 
He was down in a part of town where a red light, buddy, you don't stop 
                                                         G 
Johnny's wavin' a gun around and threatenin' to blow his top 
        C 
When an off-duty cop snuck up on him from behind 
                                                           G                C 
Right there in front of the Club Tip Top, they slapped the cuffs on Johnny 99 



[Ponte]
 
                  F 
Well, the city supplied a public defender 
        C 
But the judge was Mean John Brown 
C 
He came into the courtroom 
                    G 
And stared poor Johnny down 
           C 
"Well, the evidence is clear, gonna let the sentence, son, fit the crime 
                                                     G             C 
Prison for ninety-eight and a year and we'll call it even, Johnny 99" 


Harmonica Solo 
C     F    C       G  C 



[Ponte]

          F 
And a fistfight broke out in the courtroom 
            C 
They had to drag Johnny's girl away 
C 
His mama stood up and shouted 
                          G 
"Judge, don't take my boy this way" 
           C 
"Well, I'm sorry, ma'am, but the law must be satisfied 
                               G                C 
Check your son's killin' hands and an innocent man died 
        F                  G                C 
You got anything you wanna say, son, before you arrive?" 



[Verso 3]
 
C 
"Judge, the bank was gonna come and take my house away 
                                        G 
I have debts, Your Honor, no honest man could pay 
          C 
Well now, I ain't sayin' that makes me an innocent man 
                                      G                  C 
But it was more'n all this, sir, that put that gun in my hand 



[Verso 4]
 
C 
"Now, Your Honor, I do believe I'd be better off dead 
                                                               G 
So if you can take a man's life for the thoughts that's in his head 
      C 
And I do believe, sir, I'd be better off a dead man 
         F                      G                      C 
'Cause I shot that young boy, I shot him, judge, and I ran" (Oh) 


Outro: 
C        F    C      G  C 
F  G  C 
N.C. 
Alright, let's try another one