12

Saint James’ Infirmary

This is another old one with a long and storied past spanning two continents. Maddie usually sings this one, but these are the words as best I can remember them.
Traditional
Key of Em
X:1
M:none
L:1/4
K:Emin
|B>GB2 | B>GA2 | B>AGE2 | E>EB2 | B2 e2 | c B3 |
|B>GB2 | B>GA2 | B>AGE2 | G/B3  | G/ A3 G/| E3 |

       Em          D           Em
I went down to the St. James Infirmary
             C    B
And I saw my baby there—
          Em       D    Em
Stretched out on a long white table—
   Em       D        Em
So cold, so pale, so fair.

Chorus:

        Em          D       Em
Let her go, let her go, God bless her
         C       B
Wherever she may be.
        Em          D          Em
She can search this wide world over
           Em           D              Em
But she’ll never find a sweet man like me.


I went down to old Joe’s barroom,
On the corner by the square
They were serving the drinks as usual,
And the usual crowd was there.


[Chorus]


When I die, go and bury me low down.
In a box cut suit and a Stetson hat
With a twenty dollar gold piece round my watch chain
So the boys’ll know I died standin’ pat.


[Chorus]


Get six gamblers to carry my coffin
Six chorus girls to sing me a song
Put a twenty-piece jazz band on my hearse wagon
To raise Hell as we go along


[Chorus]


Now that’s the end of my story
Let’s have another round of booze
And if anyone should ask you just tell them
I’ve got the dying crapshooter blues.