The Kid From Spavinaw Chords by Tom Russell
CAPO 5
[Intro]
C
[Verse 1]
F
I was born in Oklahoma
C
Nineteen thirty-one
F
Outside the town of Spavinaw
C F
Where the red dust clouds the sun
G
And I ran beneath your diamond skies
C F
And I drank your waves of grain
Em Am
My name is Mickey Mantle, boys
Bb G
And baseball is my game
[Verse 2]
C F
My father's name was 'Mutt', boy
C
And he worked down in the mines
F
He pitched to me in the evening
C F
At least a thousand times
G
A thousand times again
C F
In my nightmare and my dreams
Em Am
You're gonna live in the house that Ruth built, kid
Bb G
You're gonna make that Yankee team
[Verse 3]
C F
Sure enough, the Yankee scout comes driving
C
Right down Route 66
F
He'd have never come to Spavinaw
C
Class D ball in the sticks
F G
But I happened to be playing in an old wood ballpark
C F
Way out on the Mother Road
Em Am
That Yankee scout he signed me
Bb G
And I went up to the show
[Verse 4]
C F
Strike 1, that was the drinking
C
Strike 2, there go the knees
F
Then my old man died in Denver
C
Some type of lung disease
F G
When god starts throwing changeups
C F
You can't swing with fame or wealth
Em Am
If I'd known I's gonna live this long
Bb G
I'd taken care of myself
[Instrumental]
G C F C F C
[Verse 5]
F
I don't miss the lights of Times Square
C
I don't miss Toots Shore's bar
F
I miss my old man pitching baseball
C
Near the shed in our backyard
F G
I wish that he were still around
C F
To see these trophies on my shelf
Em Am
If I'd a-known I was going to live this long
Bb G
I'd taken better care of myself
[Outro}
C F
I was born in Oklahoma
C
Nineteen thirty-one
F
Outside the town of Spavinaw
C
Where the red dust clouds the sun
