| DOWNEASTER ALEXA (Chord Transcription) By Eric M. Norcross September 28, 2009 |
Downeaster Alexa
Words & Music By Billy Joel
Arranged for Single Acoustic Guitar
Transcribed by Eric Norcross
http://www.ericnorcross.com
Note: Arrangements for this transcription were made several
ways, over the course of the last few years. First and foremost
by listening to all the different recordings of the song that I
could locate, secondly using notes from existing tablature and
chord progression online. Forth, observing various covers of
the song through video links online (youtube and so forth). The
end result is this document, which I believe to be the very best
transcription of the song for a single acoustic guitar that
exists for “Downeaster Alexa”.
*See below for the back-story of this song. You shouldn’t sing
it unless you know what you’re singing about!
Chords Used:
Am Am7add11 G F
E --------0---|---------0----------|---3---|---1---|------|------
B --------1---|---------1----------|---3---|---1---|------|------
G --------2---|---------0----------|---0---|---2---|------|------
D --------2---|---------0----------|---0---|---3---|------|------
A --------0---|---------0----------|---2---|---3---|------|------
E --------0---|---------x----------|---3---|---1---|------|------
Intro: The intro is the main part of the song that simulates
waves crashing against the hull of an old Downeaster fishing
vessel. This is also played once very quickly after the first
line of each verse as noted below.
Am – Am7add11 – Am - G
Am – Am7add11 – Am – G
Am – Am7add11 – Am
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Well I'm on the Downeaster Alexa
C G F
And I'm cruising through Block Island Sound
F C Dm
I have chartered a course to the Vineyard
C G F
But tonight I am Nantucket bound
G C F
We took on diesel back in Montauk yesterday
G Am G F
And left this morning from the bell in Gardiner's Bay
G C F
Like all the locals here I've had to sell my home
G Am G
Too proud to leave, I worked my fingers to the bone
C G Am Am7add11 Am
So I could own my Downeaster Alexa
C G F
And I go where the ocean is deep
F C Dm
There are giants out there in the canyons
C G F
And a good captain can't fall asleep
G C F
I got bills to pay and children who need clothes
G Am G F
I know there's fish out there but where, God only knows
G C F
They say these waters aren't what they used to be
G Am G
But I've got people back on land who count on me
C G Am Am7add11 Am
So when you see my Downeaster Alexa
C G F
And if you work with the rod and the reel
F C Dm
Tell my wife I am trolling Atlantis
C G F
And I still have my hands on the wheel
Break: Am Am7add11 Am G Am Am7add11 Am G x2
Em (strum at will)
Am Am7add11 Am G
Am Am7add11 Am
Words & Music By Billy Joel
Arranged for Single Acoustic Guitar
Transcribed by Eric Norcross
http://www.ericnorcross.com
Note: Arrangements for this transcription were made several
ways, over the course of the last few years. First and foremost
by listening to all the different recordings of the song that I
could locate, secondly using notes from existing tablature and
chord progression online. Forth, observing various covers of
the song through video links online (youtube and so forth). The
end result is this document, which I believe to be the very best
transcription of the song for a single acoustic guitar that
exists for “Downeaster Alexa”.
*See below for the back-story of this song. You shouldn’t sing
it unless you know what you’re singing about!
Chords Used:
Am Am7add11 G F
E --------0---|---------0----------|---3---|---1---|------|------
B --------1---|---------1----------|---3---|---1---|------|------
G --------2---|---------0----------|---0---|---2---|------|------
D --------2---|---------0----------|---0---|---3---|------|------
A --------0---|---------0----------|---2---|---3---|------|------
E --------0---|---------x----------|---3---|---1---|------|------
Intro: The intro is the main part of the song that simulates
waves crashing against the hull of an old Downeaster fishing
vessel. This is also played once very quickly after the first
line of each verse as noted below.
Am – Am7add11 – Am - G
Am – Am7add11 – Am – G
Am – Am7add11 – Am
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Well I'm on the Downeaster Alexa
C G F
And I'm cruising through Block Island Sound
F C Dm
I have chartered a course to the Vineyard
C G F
But tonight I am Nantucket bound
G C F
We took on diesel back in Montauk yesterday
G Am G F
And left this morning from the bell in Gardiner's Bay
G C F
Like all the locals here I've had to sell my home
G Am G
Too proud to leave, I worked my fingers to the bone
C G Am Am7add11 Am
So I could own my Downeaster Alexa
C G F
And I go where the ocean is deep
F C Dm
There are giants out there in the canyons
C G F
And a good captain can't fall asleep
G C F
I got bills to pay and children who need clothes
G Am G F
I know there's fish out there but where, God only knows
G C F
They say these waters aren't what they used to be
G Am G
But I've got people back on land who count on me
C G Am Am7add11 Am
So when you see my Downeaster Alexa
C G F
And if you work with the rod and the reel
F C Dm
Tell my wife I am trolling Atlantis
C G F
And I still have my hands on the wheel
Break: Am Am7add11 Am G Am Am7add11 Am G x2
Em (strum at will)
Am Am7add11 Am G
Am Am7add11 Am
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Now I drive my Downeaster Alexa
C G F
More and more miles from shore every year
F C Dm
Since they told me I can't sell no stripers
C G F
And there's no luck in sword fishing here
G C F
I was a bay man like my father was before
G Am G F
Can't make a living as a bay man anymore
G C F
There ain’t much future for a man who works the sea
G Am G
There ain't no island left for islanders like me
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Ya, ya, ya yo
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Ya, ya, ya yo
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Ya, ya, ya yo
C G Am Am7add11 A m
Ya, ya, ya yo
End it with: Am Am7add11 Am
==Song Facts==
Downeaster Alexa: In the first verse of the song, Billy Joel
establishes that he’s a fisherman working on a Downeaster
fishing vessel called the “Alexa”. There is an actual fishing
vessel berthed along the coast of Maine called the Alexa (note:
Maine’s coast is often referred to as “Down East”.
Block Island Sound, Vineyard, Nantucket: The song is written for
the mariners working in the North Eastern United States, and so
many of the geographical places are mentioned, including Block
Island Sound (a nautical passage way off of Long Island’s East
End and near Massachusetts and of course the actual Block
Island), the Vineyard refers to Martha’s Vineyard, an island
that is much like the Hamptons, once predominantly a fishing
village is now quite wealthy and used primarily as a summer
resort for those who can afford it. Nantucket Island, a fairly
large island off of Massachusetts is similar in back story to
Martha’s Vineyard.
Montauk is the eastern most point of Long Island and often
associated with the famous “Hamptons”. Many fishing vessels
port in Montauk and the surrounding areas. Prior to the wealthy
colonizing the Hamptons, the whole south fork used to be a
working class cluster of fishing communities. This is also
relatively near Gardiner’s Bay, which is one of the bodies of
water that separates the north and south forks of Long Island.
There is a single political point to the song that is delivered
using two primary examples. The point is that making a living
as a mariner is becoming a lot harder as the fish become
scarcer. Hence the line “there’s no luck in sword fishing
here”. The second example is the use of the word “islander”.
Islander: In the line “there ain’t no island left for islanders
like me” – Joel isn’t talking about a specific island and it
would be foolish to think that he’s specifically talking about
all of Long Island. A great majority of America’s North Eastern
fishing industry is made up of families living on islands all up
the coast, from New York to Maine. In fact, the coast of Maine
is often referred to as “down east” and inspired the term
“Downeaster”. Down east is often used in travel magazines and
in everyday lingo that refer to the coast of Maine. From the
Cranberry Isles to the islands of Casco Bay, all the way down to
Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard, nearly every working resident of
these communities can relate to the song because this song was
in fact written about ALL of them. The line “there ain’t no
island left for islanders like me” also refers to the
“Hamptonization” of these islands and that it’s becoming tougher
for fishermen to make their living on the water for the reason
that they can’t afford to be on the waterfront with the wealthy
moving into these areas.
Like all musical pieces, meanings can be interpreted any which
way you relate to it. I grew up in a small fishing community in
Maine and am well versed in geography, the north east maritime
industries and based on my knowledge of the world in which this
song is set, this is the most accurate translation I have been
able to come up with. Suffice to say, I’m sure Billy Joel has a
far more personal back story than any of us could ever relate.
Now I drive my Downeaster Alexa
C G F
More and more miles from shore every year
F C Dm
Since they told me I can't sell no stripers
C G F
And there's no luck in sword fishing here
G C F
I was a bay man like my father was before
G Am G F
Can't make a living as a bay man anymore
G C F
There ain’t much future for a man who works the sea
G Am G
There ain't no island left for islanders like me
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Ya, ya, ya yo
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Ya, ya, ya yo
C G Am Am7add11 Am
Ya, ya, ya yo
C G Am Am7add11 A m
Ya, ya, ya yo
End it with: Am Am7add11 Am
==Song Facts==
Downeaster Alexa: In the first verse of the song, Billy Joel
establishes that he’s a fisherman working on a Downeaster
fishing vessel called the “Alexa”. There is an actual fishing
vessel berthed along the coast of Maine called the Alexa (note:
Maine’s coast is often referred to as “Down East”.
Block Island Sound, Vineyard, Nantucket: The song is written for
the mariners working in the North Eastern United States, and so
many of the geographical places are mentioned, including Block
Island Sound (a nautical passage way off of Long Island’s East
End and near Massachusetts and of course the actual Block
Island), the Vineyard refers to Martha’s Vineyard, an island
that is much like the Hamptons, once predominantly a fishing
village is now quite wealthy and used primarily as a summer
resort for those who can afford it. Nantucket Island, a fairly
large island off of Massachusetts is similar in back story to
Martha’s Vineyard.
Montauk is the eastern most point of Long Island and often
associated with the famous “Hamptons”. Many fishing vessels
port in Montauk and the surrounding areas. Prior to the wealthy
colonizing the Hamptons, the whole south fork used to be a
working class cluster of fishing communities. This is also
relatively near Gardiner’s Bay, which is one of the bodies of
water that separates the north and south forks of Long Island.
There is a single political point to the song that is delivered
using two primary examples. The point is that making a living
as a mariner is becoming a lot harder as the fish become
scarcer. Hence the line “there’s no luck in sword fishing
here”. The second example is the use of the word “islander”.
Islander: In the line “there ain’t no island left for islanders
like me” – Joel isn’t talking about a specific island and it
would be foolish to think that he’s specifically talking about
all of Long Island. A great majority of America’s North Eastern
fishing industry is made up of families living on islands all up
the coast, from New York to Maine. In fact, the coast of Maine
is often referred to as “down east” and inspired the term
“Downeaster”. Down east is often used in travel magazines and
in everyday lingo that refer to the coast of Maine. From the
Cranberry Isles to the islands of Casco Bay, all the way down to
Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard, nearly every working resident of
these communities can relate to the song because this song was
in fact written about ALL of them. The line “there ain’t no
island left for islanders like me” also refers to the
“Hamptonization” of these islands and that it’s becoming tougher
for fishermen to make their living on the water for the reason
that they can’t afford to be on the waterfront with the wealthy
moving into these areas.
Like all musical pieces, meanings can be interpreted any which
way you relate to it. I grew up in a small fishing community in
Maine and am well versed in geography, the north east maritime
industries and based on my knowledge of the world in which this
song is set, this is the most accurate translation I have been
able to come up with. Suffice to say, I’m sure Billy Joel has a
far more personal back story than any of us could ever relate.
| Note: Formatting is slightly off - will fix when time and patience allows for it. |
