I Shot The Sheriff Chords & Tabs

by Bob Marley

[Version Description]
Strumming Patterns:
Pattern 1:
BPM: 96
Denominator: 16
Triplet: No
Measures: [2, 202, 1, 101, 2, 202, 1, 202, 2, 202, 1, 101, 2, 202, 1, 202]
...I SHOT THE SHERIFF... by Bob Marley
------------------------..............
*from 'Burnin'' (1973)*

[Chorus 1]
Gm                 
I shot the sheriff,
Cm                    Gm                
But I didn't shoot no deputy, oh no! Oh!
Gm                 
I shot the sheriff,
Cm                    Gm                       
But I didn't shoot no deputy. Ooh, ooh, oo-ooh.

[Verse 1]
Eb    Dm7      Gm           
All a-round in my home town,
        Eb        Dm7      Gm   
They're tryin' to track me down;
Eb            Dm7                 Gm     
They say they want to bring me in guilty,
        Eb           Dm7  Gm 
For the killing of a depu-ty,
        Eb        Dm7 Gm               
For the life of a dep-uty. But I say...
*(Riff):
e|-------------------------|
B|-------------------------|
G                           
D|--5-3--------------------|
A|-------5-3-----5-3-------|
E|------------6-------6-3--|

[Chorus 2]
Gm                 
I shot the sheriff,
Cm                    Gm                           
But I swear it was in self-defence. (Oh, no! Yeah!)
       Gm                     Cm   
I say; I shot the sheriff, oh Lord!
                     Gm                    
And they say it is a capital offence. Yeah!

[Verse 2]
Eb      Dm7               Gm       
Sheriff John Brown always hated me,
    Eb     Dm7      Gm   
For what... I don't know.
      Eb     Dm7     Gm   
Every time I plant a seed,
        Eb         Dm7     Gm   
He said kill it be-fore it grow,
        Eb           Dm7       Gm                     
He said kill them be-fore they grow. And so, and so...
*(Riff):
e|-------------------------|
B|-------------------------|
G                           
D|--5-3--------------------|
A|-------5-3-----5-3-------|
E|------------6-------6-3--|
(Read it in the news!)

[Chorus 3]
Gm                 
I shot the sheriff,
Cm                    Gm                  
But I swear it was in self-defence. I say;
Gm                 
I shot the sheriff,
Cm                    Gm                   
But I swear it was in self-defence. (Yeah!)

[Verse 3]
Eb              Dm7     Gm  
Freedom came my way one day,
      Eb      Dm7     Gm         
And I started, out of town, yeah!
Eb       Dm7          Gm                 
All of a sudden I saw Sheriff John Brown,
Eb        Dm7      Gm   
Aiming to shoot me down,
     Eb      Dm7              Gm                
So I shot, I shot, I shot him down. And I say...
*(Riff):
e|-------------------------|
B|-------------------------|
G                           
D|--5-3--------------------|
A|-------5-3-----5-3-------|
E|------------6-------6-3--|
(If I am guilty, I will pay)...

[Chorus 4]
Gm                 
I shot the sheriff,
Cm                    Gm                
But I didn't shoot no deputy, oh no! Oh!
Gm                 
I shot the sheriff,
Cm                    Gm                       
But I didn't shoot no deputy. Ooh, ooh, oo-ooh.

[Verse 4]
   Eb             Dm7       Gm 
Re-flexes had the better of me,
    Eb         Dm7     Gm 
And what is to be must be.
      Eb       Dm7           Gm   
Every day, the bucket a-go a-well,
Eb          Dm7         Gm       
One day the bottom a-go drop out,
Eb          Dm7         Gm       
One day the bottom a-go drop out.
*(Riff):
e|-------------------------|
B|-------------------------|
G                           
D|--5-3--------------------|
A|-------5-3-----5-3-------|
E|------------6-------6-3--|
(I say)...

[Chorus 5]
    Gm                    
I-I-I, I shot the sheriff,
Cm                           Gm     
Lord, I didn't shot the depu-ty. No!
  Gm                     
I-I...(shot the sheriff),
Cm                    Gm                     
But I didn't shoot no deputy. Yeah! So, yeah!

[Coda]
Gm  Cm
Gm
(Repeat to Fade)
CHORD DIAGRAMS:
---------------
Gm      Cm      Eb      Dm7
EADGBE  EADGBE  EADGBE  EADGBE
355333  x35543  x68886  x57565
Tabbed by Joel from cLuMsY, Bristol, England, 2004 (clumsyband@hotmail.com)