Billy Joel — Allentown Chords

Allentown by Billy Joel

C D G 3x
		G	Em	D
Well we're living here in Allentown
		C		D	G
And they're closing all the factories down
	Em			A	D
Out in Bethlehem they're killing time
  A	      Em	A	D
Filling out forms — Standing in line
	     G			Em		D
Well our fathers fought the Second World War
		C		    D	G
Spent their weekends on the Jersey Shore
	     Em		A   D
Met our mothers in the USO
    A		D		A		D
Asked them to dance, Danced with them slow
	G	    Em		D
And we're living here in Allentown

	F		G		C
But the restlessness was handed down
	Em		C	G	D  Em  D
And it's getting very hard to stay

C D G — C D G
		G	Em	D
Well we're waiting here in Allentown
		C		D	G
For the Pennsylvania we never found
	Em		A	D
For the promises our teachers gave
  A	      Em	A	D
If we worked hard , If we behaved
     G			Em		D
So the graduations hang on the wall
	C		    D	   G
But they never really helped us at all
	     Em			A 	  D
No they never taught us what was real
    A		D	A 	    D
Iron and coke — And chromium steel

	G	    Em		D
And we're waiting here in Allentown

	F		G		C
But they've taken all the coal from the ground
	Em		C	G	D  Em  D
And the union people crawled away

C D G

F		G		A#
Every child had a pretty good shot
F		G		A#
To get at least as far as their old man got
F		G		A#
But something happened on the way to that 

Place
F		G		A#
They threw an American flag in our face

C D G
	G	    Em		D
Well I'm living here in Allentown
		C		D	G
And it's hard to keep a good man down
	Em		C	G	D  Em  D
But I won't be getting up today   —  ay  —  ay

C D G

SOLO>  F G A#  (4x)

	Em		C	G	D  Em  D
And it's getting very hard to stay
		C	D	G
And we're living here in Allentown

The D Chord is often lifted and dropped on the E string.
The F—G—A# part is played by sliding the F up the bridge.
Submitted by David Whitney