I've always been a major Jeff Buckley fan and I believe that his cover of Cohen's Hallelujah is one of the greatest covers ever. Perfect in every aspect.
This song got a lot of attention from being in the Shrek movie, although that was the John Cale piano version (Due to legal reasons, the Rufus Wainwright appears on the soundtrack CD).
Anyway, since the Jeff Buckley version is long and constantly changing and takes a fairly long time to fully learn, I played this version before fully learning that. And it works well, supported by the vocal melody and has a certain beauty in it's simplicity.
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Well, (G)I heard there was a (Em)secret chord
that (G)David played and it (Em)pleased the Lord
But (C)you don't really care for music, (G)do ya? (I normally add some filler fingerplay here, picking the three or four highest notes)
Well it (G)goes like this :
The (C)fourth, (D)the fifth, the (Em)minor fall and the (C)major (D)lift
The (D)baffled king (B)composing (Em)Hallelujah
Halle(C)lujah Halle(Em)lujah Halle(C)lujah Halle(G - D)lu(G)jah...
Repeat throughout the song
Well, your faith was strong, but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof,
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya
And she tied you to her kitchen chair,
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
But from your lips she drew the Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah...
(Yeah but) Baby, I've been here before
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor,
(You know) I used to live alone, before I knew ya
And I've seen your flag on the marble arch
and love is not a victory march,
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah...
Well, there was a time when you let me know
What's really going on below,
But now you never show that to me do ya,
But remember when I moved in you
And the holy dark was moving too
And every breath you drew was Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah
Hallelujah...
Instrumental solo bit. I usually just arpeggiate my way through the chords, improvising a picking pattern. It makes the song a little different each time, which I like
Maybe there's a God above,
But all I've ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew ya
It's not a cry that you hear at night
It's not somebody who's seen the light
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah - Holding the last note while slowly fading out the guitar works like a charm. Especially if you can do it like Jeff.
Behold! The great northern viking's pinnacle of evolution! Behold my wavy blonde locks, my icy blue eyes and my muscular physique! Behold my.. screw this, I'm going to McDonald's.
That's a great post, Illicit.
I've been searching for a good tab for this song for a long time and this is the only one that seems to get the chord changes right. So thanks a lot. This will certainly help me.
While many tabs give this song in the key of C, the Buckley version uses the chords you give with a capo on the 5th fret, if i remember correctly.
Great song! kd lang also does a cover of it in the same key as Rufus Wainwright (C). You can play along with the chords above using, as Elvis says, a capo on the 5th fret.
I play it as below, sans capo.
Intro:
C Am C Am
Well, (C)I heard there was a (Am)secret chord
that (C)David played and it (Am)pleased the Lord
But (F)you don't really (G)care for music, (C)do ya? (G)
Well it (C)goes like this :
The (F)fourth, (G)the fifth, the (Am)minor fall and the (F)major lift
The (G)baffled king (E)composing (Am)Hallelujah
Halle(F)lujah Halle(Am)lujah Halle(F)lujah Halle(C - G)lu(C)jah...
For "But (F)you don't really (G)care for music" I use the open G formation but at "The fourth, the fifth" I slide the barre chord up from F to G.
"The baffled king" also uses the traditonal chord shape, as opposed to the barre. Your mileage may vary, however.
However you play it, it's a fun song.
Matt
