Arkansas Breakout

 

Written by John Stewart

 

'Arkansas Breakout' is on “Sunstorm”, Warner Brothers LP (72), re-released as CD by Line Records (90).  Played there by a stellar cast of musicians, on electric guitar (e.g. jazz great Larry Carlton and “Jumping” James Burton of Elvis Presley and Emmylou Harris´ Hot Band fame.)  The guitar work on Arkansas Breakout is absolutely outstanding.  I call it “knife-edge playing”.  The version below is from “Sunstorm”.  The song is also on “John Stewart and Buffy Ford Live at the Turf Inn, Scotland”, recorded in 94 (or 95?), Folk Era Records (96), very well played and sung there, too.  John plays the song in the key of Gm in 72 and in Fm in 94 (95), I have it in Am, so transpose to Em (chord progression then Em-D-C-B7) and put a capo on the 3rd or 1st fret respectively.

 

 

(Am) (G) (F) (E7) (Am) (G) (F) (E7)

(Am) (G) (F) (E7) (Am) (G) (F) (E7)

(Am)Arkansas, (G)wind and straw,

(F)Keep on working (E7)hard.

(Am)Arkansas, it (G)killed your Pa,

You (F)found him in the (E7)yard.

(Am) (G) (F) (E7) (Am) (G) (F) (E7)

 

(Am)Arkansas, (G)is it all

(F)Work and drunk and (E7)dying?

(Am)Arkansas, there (G)ain't no law

To (F)keep a boy from (E7)flying.

 

Oh, leaving the (Am)fields and the (G)rain

And the (F)work and the (E7)pain,

Like the (Am)wheels of a (G)train

You must (F)run, run, run

From the (E7)work and the rain.

(Am) (G) (F) (E7) (Am) (G) (F) (E7)

 

(Am)Arkansas, (G)all I saw

(F)On the way to (E7)freedom,

(Am)All I saw in (G)Arkansas

Was (F)people bound for (E7)leaving.

 

Oh, leaving the (Am)fields and the (G)rain

And the (F)work and the (E7)pain,

Like the (Am)wheels of a (G)train

You must (F)run, run, run

From the (E7)work and the rain.

 

Leaving the (Am)fields and the (G)rain

And the (F)work and the (E7)pain,

Leaving the (Am)fields and the (G)rain

And the (F)work and the (E7)pain

Like the (Am)wheels of a (G)train

You must (F)run, run, run

From the (E7)work and the rain.

 

Leaving the (Am)fields and the (G)rain

And the (F)work and the (E7)pain,

Leaving the (Am)fields and the (G)rain

And the (F)work and the (E7)pain,

Like the (Am)wheels of a (G)train

You must (F)run, run, run

From the (E7)work and the rain.

Leaving the (Am)fields and the (G)rain

And the (F)work and the (E7)pain...(Am)

 

© John Stewart, All Rights Reserved

 

janhauenstein@gmx.de