Bob Marley – Johnny Was
Tabbed By: Tommy Nelson
Standard Tuning
These fills are mostly improvisions out of the A Major scale. Because they will likley
vary everytime you play it, I left out hammer-on notations, etc.
Fill 1 Fill 2
e----------------------------------------12-10-9-10-9-10-9-10---------------|
B-----------2-0----------------------------------------------10-12----------|
G---------------2-----------------------------------------------------------|
D-----------------4---------------------------------------------------------|
A---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E--0-2-0-2------------------------------------------------------------------|
Fill 3 Fill 4
e-------19-17-16-17-16-17-16-17------------------------9-12-10-9-10-9----9--|
B-------------------------------17-19-----------7-9-10----------------12----|
G---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
D---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
A---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
Fill 5 Fill 6
e-----------------------------------12-10-9---------------------------------|
B---10-12-12-10----10----------------------10-12----------------------------|
G---------------13----------------------------------------------------------|
D---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
A---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
Intro
F#m E C#m F#m
F#m E F#m [Fill 1 2x]
[ Tab from: https://www.guitartabs.cc/tabs/b/bob_marley/johnny_was_tab.html ]
Verse 1
F#m [Fill 2]
Woman hold her head and cry
D C#m E D C#m
Cause her son had been shot down in the street and died, from a stray
F#m [Fill 1]
bullett
F#m [Fill 3]
Woman hold her head and cry,
D C#m E D C#m F#m [Fill 1]
Explaining to her was a passerby who saw the woman cry (wondering)
F#m [Fill 4]
How can she work it out
D C#m E D C#m F#m7 [Fill 1]
Now she knows that the wages of sin is death, oh gift of Jah is life (life) (she cried)
Chorus 1
A Bm C#m Bm A Bm C#m Bm
Oh, oh, I know, Johnny was a good man, I know
A Bm C#m Bm
Johnny was a good, good, good, good, good,
A Bm C#m Bm F#m [Fill 1 4x]
She cried, she cried
Verse 2
F#m [Fill 5]
Woman hold her head and cry
D C#m E D C#m
cause her son had been shot down in the street and died, just because of
F#m [Fill 1]
the system
F#m [Fill 6]
Woman hold her head and cry
D C#m E D C#m F#m
Comforting her, I was passing by, she complained, then she cried (cried)
Chorus 2
A Bm C#m Bm
(ah-ah), yeah, I know now (ah-ah)
no I know, I know now (Johnny was a good man)
Said I know, mmmmmmmm (Never did a thing wrong)
Ah, ah, uh, uh (Johnny was a good man)
Can a woman tender care, she cried (Never did a thing wrong)
Cease towards the child she bear (Johnny was a good man)
Woah! Woman cry, woman (Never did a thing wrong)
She cried, woah, she cried, yeah (Johnny was a good man)
Can a woman tender care
Cease towards the child she bear (Never did a thing wrong)
Woman cry! (Johnny was a good man)
