Lyndon Johnson Told The Nation — Tom Paxton
Chords and lyrics for Lyndon Johnson Told The Nation by Tom Paxton (key of Am).
Verse 1
Tab by: Fabian Schild
Title: Lyndon Johnson Told the Nation
Verse 1
[Am]I got a letter from L.B.J.
It [Dm]said, "This is your lucky day,
It's [Am]time to put your [E7]khaki trousers [Am]on.[E7]
[Am]Though it may seem very queer,
We've [Dm]got no jobs to give you here,
So [Am]we are sending [E7]you to [Am]Vietnam."
Chorus
[F]Lyndon Johnson [C]told the nation
[Dm]"Have no fear of [Am]escalation,
[Am]I am trying [E7]everyone to [Am]please.[A7]
[F]Though it isn't [C]really war,
We're [Dm]sending fifty [Am]thousand more
To [Am]help save [E7]Vietnam from [Am]Vietnamese."[E7]
Verse 2
[Am]I jumped off the old troop ship
And [Dm]sank in mud up to my hips
I [Am]cussed until the [E7]captain called me [Am]down[E7]
[Am]"Never mind how hard it's raining,
[Dm]Think of all the ground we're gaining,
[Am]Just don't take one [E7]step outside of [Am]town."
Chorus
[F]Lyndon Johnson [C]told the nation
[Dm]"Have no fear of [Am]escalation,
[Am]I am trying [E7]everyone to [Am]please.[A7]
[F]Though it isn't [C]really war,
We're [Dm]sending fifty [Am]thousand more
To [Am]help save [E7]Vietnam from [Am][E7]Vietnamese."[E7][Am]
Verse 3
[Am]Every night the local gentry
[Dm]Slip out past the sleeping sentry
[Am]They go out to [E7]join the old [Am]V.C.[E7]
[Am]In their nightly little dramas
[Dm]They put on their black pajamas
[Am]And come lobbing [E7]mortar shells at [Am]me
Chorus
But [F]Lyndon Johnson [C]told the nation
[Dm]"Have no fear of [Am]escalation,
[Am]I am trying [E7]everyone to [Am]please.[A7]
[F]Though it isn't [C]really war,
We're [Dm]sending fifty [Am]thousand more
To [Am]help save [E7]Vietnam from [Am][E7]Vietnamese."[E7][Am]
Verse 4
[Am]We go round in helicopters
[Dm]Like a bunch of big grasshoppers
[Am]Searching for the [E7]Viet Cong in [Am]vain[E7]
They [Am]left a note that they had gone
They [Dm]had to get down to Saigon
Their [Am]government [E7]positions to [Am]maintain
Chorus
And [F]Lyndon Johnson [C]told the nation
[Dm]"Have no fear of [Am]escalation,
[Am]I am trying [E7]everyone to [Am]please.[A7]
[F]Though it isn't [C]really war,
We're [Dm]sending fifty [Am]thousand more
To [Am]help save [E7]Vietnam from [Am][E7]Vietnamese."[E7][Am]
Verse 5
Well, [Am]here I sit in this rice paddy
[Dm]Wondering about Big Daddy
[Am]And I know that [E7]Lyndon loves me [Am]so[E7]
[Am]Yet how sadly I remember
[Dm]Way back yonder in November
[Am]When he said I'd [E7]never have to [Am]go
Chorus
But [F]Lyndon Johnson [C]told the nation
[Dm]"Have no fear of [Am]escalation,
[Am]I am trying [E7]everyone to [Am]please.[A7]
[F]Though it isn't [C]really war,
We're [Dm]sending fifty [Am]thousand more
To [Am]help save [E7]Vietnam from [Am]Vietnamese."
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