Standard (EADGBE)

 Well I find myself in reverie, 'bout what we might have had

 And what might have been

We had something going once

 That was such a long, long time ago

 It was way back in '76 our friendship formed of pure innocence

We first met on Mathew Street

 And we heard something that would set us free

A sign stands over a door, it says "Four lads who shook the world"

In the depths of those heady nights we would dream of those bright lights

Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend

[G/f#]

Somewhere tonight out on the street

[G/f#]

Somewhere beneath this city's heat

 In the eyes of strangers who pass me by

Life is cruel and so unkind

 Oh, Oh the SPIRIT OF '76

And my friend John, he went away and he made some mistakes

Spent time in Walton jail

And now when I see him we still talk but there's no light shining in his eyes

And Susie, she was 17 and more beauty in this world I swear you'll never see

I was gonna be king and she was gonna be queen

But now all she does is hide behind the tears

If there was more sense in this world and work wasn't so hard to find

You would not be going your way, I would not be going mine

Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend

[G/f#]

Mersey lights shine in the distance same as they did for us then

Mersey lights shine bright in the distance where are you now my friend?

 You see some nights when I can't sleep, I still think of you

Of all the promises, all the dreams we shared

I know those lights still call to you

I can hear them now, I can hear them now

And now me, I've seen my dreams come true

But that don't make me no hero

I'm just one of the lucky few

If a man can't change the world these days

I still believe a man can change his own destiny

But the price is high that has got to be paid

For everyone who survives there are many who fail

Seen my friends caught out in that crossfire

All their dreams and hopes smashed on the funeral pyre

I will never give in until the day that I die

I get myself some independence

Carve out a future with these two bare hands

Oh my friend, Oh my friend, Oh my friend