To: *
Subject: /v/*


----------------------
  I learned this from the book _The_Authentic_Guitar_Style_of_Suzanne_Vega_,
be without it.  Buy it; it's only $12.95, and it has very good transcriptions
of eleven songs from Suzanne's first two albums.  If your local music store
doesn't have it, do a special order or call Hal Leonard (Cherry Lane's
distributor) directly; that's how I got it.


TAB FOR INTRO AND FIRST VERSE:

[The second and third verses are slightly different; if you want to get it
 exactly right, just listen to the recording.]
[An equal sign (=) is a hammer-on; *2 means quickly hammer-on from 0 to 2.]
[Accents are on the 1st, 4th, and 7th eighth notes of each measure; those are
 usually played by the thumb.  (In the recording, you can barely even hear
 the non-accented notes.)]
[Actually in G; capo at the 3rd fret.]

  E7                E7sus4           E7               E7sus4
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
B --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-------|--0-----0-----0-|
G ----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|
D ----------------|------0---------|2-----------0=2-|0-----------0---|
A ------2---------|2-----------2---|------2---------|------2---------|
E 0-----------0---|----------------|----------------|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .

  E7                E7sus4           E7               E7sus4
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
B --------------0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|
G ------1---1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|
D 0=2--------*2---|0-----------0---|----------------|------0---------|
A ----------------|------2---------|------2---------|2-----------2---|
E ----------------|----------------|0-----------0---|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .

  E7                E7sus4           E7               E7sus4
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
B --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-------|--0-----0-----0-|
G ----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|
D ----------------|------0---------|2-----------0=2-|0-----------0---|
A ------2---------|2-----------2---|------2---------|------2---------|
E 0-----------0---|----------------|----------------|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .

  E7                E7sus4           E7               E7sus4
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
B ----0-----0-----|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|
G ------1---------|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|
D 0=2---------0=2-|0-----------0---|----------------|------0---------|
A ----------------|------2---------|------2---------|2-----------2---|
E ----------------|----------------|0-----------0---|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
       I live on an island     and  I    'waken   to  the dawn

  A                A7/6sus4         A                A7/6sus4
E --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|
B ----2-----2-----|----3-----3-----|----2-----2-----|----3-----3-----|
G ------------2---|------0---------|------------2---|------0---------|
D ------2---------|4-----------4---|------2---------|4-----------4---|
A 0---------------|----------------|0---------------|----------------|
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
A long    time ago,            I  watched him struggle with the sea

  E7                E7sus4           E7               E7sus4
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
B --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-------|--0-----0-----0-|
G ----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|
D ----------------|------0---------|2-----------0=2-|0-----------0---|
A ------2---------|2-----------2---|------2---------|------2---------|
E 0-----------0---|----------------|----------------|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
       I knew that he was drowning  and I brought him in   to  me

  Asus4            Asus4            A(4)             A(4)
E --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--------0-------|
B ----3-----3-----|----3-----3-----|----2-----2-----|----2-----2-----|
G ----------------|------2---------|------------2---|------2---------|
D ------0-----2---|0-----------0---|------0---------|0=2---------2---|
A 0---------------|----------------|0---------------|----------------|
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .

  C                Cmaj7            F#m7(4)          F#m7(4)
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
B --1-----1-----1-|--0-----0-------|----------------|----------------|
G ----0-----0-----|----0-----0-----|----2-----2-----|----------2-----|
D ------2-----2---|------2---------|----------------|------2---------|
A 3---------------|3---------------|-----*2---------|0=2---------2---|
E ----------------|------------0---|2-----------0=2-|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
  he        sails away;    Af - ter       one              last

  E                E7sus4           E                E7sus4
E ----------------|----------------|----------------|----------------|
B --0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|--0-----0-----0-|
G ----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|----1-----1-----|----2-----2-----|
D ------------2---|------0---------|------------2---|------0---------|
A ------2---------|2-----------2---|------2---------|2-----------2---|
E 0---------------|----------------|0---------------|----------------|
  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .  ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
        night,             I        let him go.

LYRICS AND CHORDS:

[It's a judgement call as to whether the E7's are actually E's or E7's.
 And it doesn't really matter.]
[For the "I let him go" parts at the ends of the verses, play as many
 the last two measures of the first verse.]
[Capo 3.]

E7  E7sus4  E7  E7sus4   E7  E7sus4  E7  E7sus4
[intro]

E7         E7sus4         E7             E7sus4
E7              E7sus4     E7        E7sus4
  I live on an island, and I 'waken to the dawn
A           A7/6sus4   A                   A7/6sus4
Long time ago,       I watched him struggle with the sea
E7             E7sus4         E7                 E7sus4
  I knew that he was drowning, and I brought him in to me
Asus4    Asus4    A(4)    A(4)
  Now today, come morning light
C         Cmaj7     F#m7(4)   F#m7(4)    E      E7sus4  E          E7sus4
He sails away; after       one       last night,      I let him go

Thick and wild and hidden is the sweetness there that grows
My hair, it blows long as I sing into the wind
I tell of nights where I could taste the salt on his skin
Salt of the waves and of tears
And though he pulled away, I kept him here for years
Now I let him go

 just play it like the "I let him go" parts at the end of the verses.]

In the dawn he sails away to be gone forever more
And the waves will take him in again, but he'll know their ways know
I will stand upon the shore with a clean heart and my song in the wind
The sand will sting my feet and the sky will burn
It's a lonely time ahead; I do not ask him to return; I let him go
I let him go