Ziggy Stardust Chords

Standard (EADGBE)

 4 G G | D D* D D* D | F F | C C | D D

4 (play four times)

G Ziggy played guitar, Bm jamming good

 with Wierd and CGilly and the Spiders fromD Mars.

 He played it left Ghand, but made it too Bmfar

 became the speCcial man, and we were DZiggy's band.

G Ziggy really sang, with Bmscrewed up eyes and

 screwed down hCairdo like some cat from JDapan.

 He could lick 'em by sGmiling, he could leave 'em to Bmhang.

 He came on so lCoaded man, well hung and snow-white Dtan.

A But Gwhere were the spidFersF, F F F F F G

A while the Gfly tried to FbreFak FourF baFllsF. F G

A Just the bGeer light to FguiFde Fus.F F F F

 And so we Gbitched about his fans and should we Dcrush his sweet hands.

[power section]X2

G Ziggy played for time, Bmjiving us that

 we were Cvoodoo and the kids was just Dcrass.

 He was the Gnazz with God-given Bmass.

 He took it Call too far but boy could he play Dguitar.

A Making Glove with his eFgo,F F F F F F G

A Ziggy sGucked up inFto FhisF miFnd F F F G

A Like a Gleper messiFah.F F F F F F G

 When the kGids had killed the man I had to Dbreak up the band.

[power section repeated to fade]

 Chords used: G Bm C D D* A F F*

NOTES: on D* and F*

D* is used in the [power] section. I play a normal D and used my 'pinky'

on the 3rd fret on alternate strums to acheive the (D D* D D* etc) sound on

the record. I think D* is actually Dsus but I'm not sure.

F* is used in the chorus. I pay the F chord as a barre chord (see tab above)

and lift my first (barre) finger on alternate strums.

I guess you really have to listen to the record to get the [chorus] and

[power] sections timed/played correctly.

Anyway, there it is. By no means an expert opinion, but it seems to impress my

flat-mate.

Ziggy Stardust by David Bowie.

Thanks to Johnny Birchett and Richard Ashley for their postings, which

inspired me to dig further.. Richard's lyrics are nearly perfect, and

Johnny's tab and chords are right on the mark. I've borrowed heavily

from Johnny, but made a few modifications (note the A / A7 in place

 of Am).

I've verified the lyrics against the version included on the jacket of the

recent AU 20 remaster of the Ziggy Stardust CD. The recorded version adds

a few words, which I've marked with parentheses.

For a great unplugged version of Ziggy, check out Bowie's original

acoustic 12-string demo included as a bonus track on this CD. The lyrics

are identical to those written on the jacket.

I've included two tabs for the Intro, the first is similar to the Mick

Ronson electric version, and the second is Bowie's acoustic demo version.

Intro

Ronson)

Ronson does some hammering on during the intro, so play around with this

if you want to imitate him more closely. He also plays it a little

differently on the Santa Monica live album (he picks more individual

notes).

B B

Intro

Bowie)

Bowie's original intro is pretty simple, but very nice on 12-string.

B B

Transition

The transition between C and D during "the Spiders from Mars" and

subsequent verses goes something like this:

the Spi ders from Mars

Chorus

Repeat 3 times:

then:

* * ** * **

This is one suggested pattern, but it varies, so improvise.

(My personal preference is to play the D and E in open position.)

On the acoustic and live versions, Bowie and Ronson continue

strumming on the D and E chords. Bowie also sometimes noodles

around with his pinky on the B string on the D and E chords.

On electric, emphasize the lower (thicker) strings, especially

to get the right sound during the F chord. The acoustic version

tends to emphasize the upper (thinner) strings.

Lyrics and chords

(Intro x 4, or Intro x 2 in acoustic version)

GZiggy played guitar, Bmjamming good with Wierd and GilCly,

 (and) the Spiders from Mars. D

 He played it left haGnd, but made it too fEmar,

 became the Aspecial A7man, then we were CZiggy's band.

GZiggy really sang, Bmscrewed up eyes and screwed down hairCdo,

 like some cat from Japan. D

 He could lick 'em by smilinGg, he could leave 'em to hEmang;

 (they) came on so Aloaded, A7man. Well-hung and Csnow-white tan.

A So Gwhere were the SFpiders? G

A While the Gfly tried to breFak our balls. G

A Just the Gbeer light to guFide us. GSo we

Dbitched about his fans and should we Ecrush his sweet hands...

(Intro x 2)

GZiggy played for time, Bmjiving us that we were vooCdoo,

 the kids was just crass,D

 He was the Gnazz, with God given Emass,

 He took it Aall too A7far, but boy could he Cplay guitar.

A Making Glove with his eFgo, G

A Ziggy Gsucked up inFto his mind, G

A like a Gleper mesFsiah, when Gthe

Dkids had killed the man I had to Ebreak up the band.

(Intro x 3) then:

Ziggy played ..... guitar.

(In acoustic version, after the second chorus Bowie immediately repeats

the second chorus, then he plays the intro several times and fades out,

without singing "Ziggy played guitar").