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CLOSER TO FINE (Emily Saliers)
------------------------------
This song isn't too hard to play, but it sounds pretty impressive once
you've got it down. I sort of learned to play the guitar on this song.
I've written the chords down according to the way Amy & Emily play the
song, as best as I can figure out from watching TV and stuff. If you're
not quite up to playing D11's or four-fingered C's yet, you can play the
D11's as D(9) or even D, and you can play the C's as x32010, but it won't
sound as good.
I'd recommend learning the full C (332010) anyway if you don't already
know it, because it's a nice chord to know; once you know it, sliding
between it and D11 (554030) is really easy.
On the full-measure C chords, hammer-on and pull-off with your middle
finger on the D string, so that the chord alternates between C and C(9).
The song is actually in A, so capo at the 2nd fret.
Here's the approximate tab for the introduction, and the part that
you play through the first part of the verses (but when you actually
play it, it's hard to just hit the single note at the beginning of each
chord; usually you hit two or three strings):
G G6/A C(9) Dsus D D(9) D
E ----3---3-3-3-3-----3---3-3-3-3-|----3---3-3-3-3---2---0---2-2-2-|
B ----3---3-3-3-3-----3---3-3-3-3-|----3---3-3-3-3---3---3---3-3-3-|
G ----0---0-0-0-0-----0---0-0-0-0-|----0---0-0-0-2---2---2---2-2-2-|
D ----0---0-0-0-0-----2---2-2-2-2-|----2---2-2-2-0---0---0---0-0-0-|
A ----2---2-2-2-2-0---------------|3-------------------------------|
E 3-------------------------------|--------------------------------|
^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ . ^ .
Each chord represents half of a measure, except the "Ds,D,D9,D" thing, which
is half a measure total, and "G - D", which is also half a measure total.
"D9" really means D(9), and "Ds" is Dsus. "n.c." means "no chord."
G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
[intro]
G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
I'm trying to tell you something 'bout my life
G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
Maybe give me insight between black and white
D11 D11 C C
And the best thing you've ever done for me
D11 D11 C C G G6/A
Is to help me take my life less seriously; it's only life after all
C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
[instrumental]
G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
Well darkness has a hunger that's insatiable
G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
And lightness has a call that's hard to hear
D11 D11 C C
I wrapped my fear around me like a blanket
D11 D11 C C G - D G
I sailed my ship of safety till I sank it; I'm crawling on your shore
D D C(9) G
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
D D C(9) G
I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain
D11 D11 C C G G
There's more than one answer to these questions pointing me in a crooked line
D11 D11 C [stop] n.c.
And the less I seek my source for some definitive, the closer I
G G6/A C(9) Dsus G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
am to fine, The closer I am to fine
G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
I went to see the doctor of philosophy
G G6/A C(9) D
With a poster of Rasputin and a beard down to his knee
D11 D11 C C
He never did marry or see a B grade movie
D11 D11 C C
He graded my performance, he said he could see through me
G D C(9) D G - D G
I spent 4 years prostrate to the higher mind, got my paper and I was free
D D C(9) G
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
D D C(9) G
I looked to children, I drank from the fountain
D11 D11 C C G G
There's more than one answer to these questions pointing me in a crooked line
D11 D11 C [stop] n.c.
And the less I seek my source for some definitive, the closer I
G G6/A C(9) Dsus G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
am to fine, The closer I am to fine
D D C(9) C(9) D D C(9) C(9)
[whistle]
G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D
I stopped by the bar at 3 A.M.
G G6/A C(9) D
To seek solace in a bottle or possibly a friend
D11 D11 C C
And I woke up with a headache like my head against a board
D11 D11 C C G G
Twice as cloudy as I'd been the night before, and I went in seeking clarity
D D C(9) G
I went to the doctor, I went to the mountains
D D C(9) G
I looked to children, I drank from the fountain
D D C(9) G
We go to the doctor, we go to the mountains
D D C(9) G
We look to the children, we drink from the fountain
D D C(9) G
We go to the bible, we go through the workout
D D C(9) [stop] G [stop]
We read up on revival, we stand up for the lookout
D11 D11 C C G G
There's more than one answer to these questions pointing me in a crooked line
D11 D11 C n.c.
And the less I seek my source for some definitive, the closer I
G G6/A C(9) Dsus G G6/A C(9) Dsus
am to fine, The closer I am to fine The closer I
G G6/A C(9) Ds,D,D9,D G.
am to fine
CHORDS:
G = 320033 G6/A = x02033 C(9) = x32033 or x32030 or 330010
D = x00232 Dsus = x00233 D(9)= x00230
C = 332010 D11 = 554030
- Adam Schneider, schneider@pobox.com
Brought to you by the GUITARMASTA - http://www.guitarmasta.net
Tab Discussion, Comments, and Critiques
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No Picture
Peter Average |
#1 by Peter Boyle at Mar 27, 1971 at 3:00 AM EST |
| I'm trying to figure out who, precisely, she's talking to. | |
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No Picture
Bradon Average |
#2 by Bradon at Mar 24, 1974 at 10:37 AM EST |
| I agree w/ the rest of you, it's a great song, but I don't think it's about being gay specifically. Instead I think it's about life in a more general sense: what not to waste time on, what makes true happiness, and making the most out of life. 1 | |
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No Picture
Matt Rhythm Player |
#3 by Matt at Dec 15, 1976 at 1:47 PM EST |
| They are trying to tell you to quit finding meaning with life. It only will make you questioning more and dig you deeper into a pit of sorrow. Instead, we should live it up because it is "just a life". Don't look to God, exercise, Tibet, therapy, or some magic potion to make your life worthwhile. Get out there and have a blast and quit preoccupying your mind with what might make you happy and enjoy life's ups and downs. | |
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No Picture
hey u by the th Average |
#4 by hey u by the that thing. SHUTUP!! at Mar 26, 1977 at 6:04 PM EST |
| To me this song reminds me of a quote about Taoism. ""The tao that can be named is not the true tao"" To me we search for all the answers in higher education( spent four years prostrate to the higher mind Got my paper and I was free) Finding answers in a bottle or other people, in children, in dr's ,psychiatrists , religion, exercise and the more we look - the further we become from the answer. Maybe the answer is just to BE and we might be closer to fine. My favorite line in the song? Well darkness has a hunger that's insatiable And lightness has a call that's hard to hear It is so true - the darkness -if it be depression,sadness, or cynism, fear or other darkness is so much easier to to choose. It has a hunger that overpowers and consumes everything in it's wake. The lightness's call is much harder to hear. | |
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No Picture
jared Wanna Be |
#5 by jared bobak at Aug 11, 1977 at 1:42 AM EST |
| When I first came out of the closet, I made it my life mission to look for songs that best describe what I was feeling...no other song best describes that than this one. It ROCKS! Basically, the song is about a gay person's life and how he/she yearns for the world to understand his/her life. The Indigo Girls are speaking in behalf of the the gay peeps when they wrote this song, and it has now become my personal anthem to anyone who's opposed to, or are continuously questioning, my life . Let's break it down by stanza: 1.Basically,the person in this stanza (who happens to be gay) is saying that he has taken his life more seriously, simply because of al the homophobia, ignorance and gay hate crimes. 2. Brilliant description of being in the closet--hiding (darkness is a hunger, meaning you get used to the false comfort of pretending you're not gay) your true sexuality and negelceting the urgency of coming out (light has a call that's hard to hear), feeling "safe" till you can't take the pretence anymore (till I sank it ), being contrlled by fear (wrapped around you like a blanket)----sad but true, and extremely well thought of. 3,5,7.You know how some people actully try and find WHY some people are gay? This stanza says---"WHO CARES??"---People looked for answers everywhere; doctors, preachers, the bible---they searched high and low for causes and the moral implications---but if the world just focuses A LOT LESS on the why's and how's and just let us live our life the same way straight people do, then the closer we'll all be to inner and outer peace. 4. I think the gay persona was consulting an elderly gay person who had it tough; he knew exactly what the person was going through, and can even see through his pretensions and lies. And the singer learned so much from him that he decided to come out---and because of that, he felt free. 6. This one is more literal; the dperession of being in a closet has taken a toll on him, and he now wants to find solace---that's is EXTREMELY hard to do. :) God, I love this song. Indigo Girls ROCK!! | |
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No Picture
Adam Average |
#6 by Adam Baine at Feb 15, 1978 at 3:16 AM EST |
| I think she may be either talking to a really good friend or a lover. I think she is talking about how we shouldn't take life so seriously, its only life after all! If you spend your entire life trying to figure everything out, you'll miss alot along the way and probably end up more confused about life than you were to begin with. There is more than one answer to 'life' questions. We should live our lives instead of worrying whether or not we're living the right way! | |
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No Picture
Ger Wanna Be |
#7 by Ger Hart at Feb 7, 1979 at 4:45 PM EST |
| Remember there's a whole lot about god in here too. Which shows that being gay and being religious do not exclude one another. | |
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No Picture
joe Average |
#8 by joe at Apr 13, 2001 at 2:01 PM EST |
| I love this song. Why? Because it pretty much says in a few paragraphs how I feel right now. A few people have already said this, but basically this song is about coming out of the closet. The first verse to me, is the singer talking to her partner. The singer in this verse has been trying to ignore the fact that she's gay, but she's suddenly found this amazing person who has helped her accept who she is. She was caught up in defining what her sexuality was and this person helped her calm down about all that. And for a while, she was in the closet, not an easy place to be - "Well darkness has a hunger that's insatiable" And it's definitely NOT easy to come out, so many fears - "And lightness has a call that's hard to hear" By hard to hear, I think she means it's sometimes hard to decide why to come out because you get caught up in the "oh my gosh, everyone is going to know and then hate me" factor. The last two lines, I really like. "I sailed my ship of safety till I sank it I'm crawling on your shores" She had been able to hide her sexuality and ignore her feelings...until she finally met a person that she couldn't ignore. Such a good metaphor here. The chorus is her looking for answers as to why she's gay. She goes to counseling, maybe off somewhere to think about it. Maybe thinks back to her childhood. But she soon finds sexuality is not usually something one can define easily. "There's more than one answer to these questions Pointing me in a crooked line" And the next part is really awesome to me. "And the less I seek my source for some definitive (The less I seek my source) The closer I am to fine The closer I am to fine" It's so true. For me, I had been caught up defining my sexuality, trying to figure it out, but the less I think about it and the more I just live my life, being myself, the closer I am to fine. This song is so amazing. Can't wait to go see the Indigo Girls in concert! | |
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No Picture
Zach Average |
#9 by Zach at Jul 6, 2004 at 7:14 AM EST |
| this is a kick-ass song, i love it! somehow i don't think it's about being straight or gay, it seems more like it's just trying to say that if you are constantly trying to find out what the point to life is you are missing it! god, it's such a great song! | |
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No Picture
Cody Rhythm Player |
#10 by Cody Stone at Jan 20, 2007 at 5:14 AM EST |
| "There's more then one answer to these questions pointing me in a crooked line..." Me in a nutshell! Great song, made me like the Indigo Girls. | |
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