Pancho And Lefty Chords

by Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard
453,430 views, added to favorites 23,799 times
Difficulty: intermediate
Tuning: E A D G B E
Key: D
Capo: no capo
Author bocephus1991 [a] 301.
12 contributors total, last edit on Apr 18, 2022
We have an official Pancho And Lefty tab made by UG professional guitarists.
Check out the tab

Chords

D
A
G
Bm
A/C#
Gmaj7

Strumming

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Is this strumming pattern correct?
1
&
2
&
3
&
4
&
* = one strum
 
[Intro]
 
e|--10---9--7---9--7--5--5----|--5--3--2--3--2--2------|
B|--10--10--8--10--8--5--5h7--|--7--5--3--5--3--2h3----|
G|----------------------------|------------------------| x2
D|----------------------------|------------------------|
A|----------------------------|------------------------|
E|----------------------------|------------------------|  h = hammer on
 
[Verse 1]
D
Livin' on the road, my friend
A
Was gonna keep you free and clean
G
And now you wear your skin like iron
D                            A
And your breath's as hard as kerosene
G
Weren't your mama's only boy
D                        G
But her favorite one, it seems
Bm                        G    D   A
She began to cry when you said goodbye
G                    Bm       A/C#*
(And) sank into your dreams
 
[Verse 2]
D
Pancho was a bandit, boys
A
His horse was fast as polished steel
G
He wore his gun outside his pants
D                  A
For all the honest world to feel
G
Well, Pancho met his match, you know
       D               G
On the deserts down in Mexico
Bm               G  D  A
Nobody heard his dyin' words
G                         Bm     A*
Ah, but that's the way it goes
 
[Chorus]
G
All the federales say
D                           G
They could have had him any day
Bm                G  D  A
They only let him slip away
       G              Bm     A/C#*
Out of kindness, I suppose
 
[Verse 3]
D
Lefty he can't sing the blues
A
All night long like he used to
G
The dust that Pancho bit down South
D              A
Ended up in Lefty's mouth
G
The day they laid poor Pancho low
D               G
Lefty split for Ohio
Bm               G    D   A
Where he got the bread to go
G                  Bm      A*
There ain't nobody knows
 
[Chorus]
G
All the federales say
D                       G
They could have had him any day
Bm              G  D  A
We only let him slip away
       G              Bm     A*
Out of kindness, I suppose
 
[Verse 4]
D
The poets tell how Pancho fell
A
And Lefty's livin' in a cheap hotel
G
The desert's quiet, and Cleveland's cold
D                A
And so the story ends, we're told
G
Pancho needs your prayers, it's true
D                  G
But save a few for Lefty, too
Bm                  G   D  A
He only did what he had to do
G                    Bm    A*
And now he's growin' old
 
[Chorus]
G
All the federales say
D                       G
They could have had him any day
Bm                G  D  A
They only let him go so long
       G              Bm     A/C#*
Out of kindness, I suppose
 
[Final Chorus]
G
A few gray federales say
D                       G
They could have had him any day
Bm                G  D  A
They only let him go so long
       G              Bm        Gmaj7  A D
Out of kindness, I suppose
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Pancho And Lefty – Willie Nelson
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"Pancho And Lefty"
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58 comments
Harca40
Rest in Peace Merle.
+23
6zbarcowman
Almost perfect. A little off on the last chorus, but an easy catch. Very well done. mcarol is either not familiar with the song, or is playing the chords in the wrong position. Well done.
+13
FL_Bob2002
Looks and sounds fine, great job on the arrangement.
+12