#-----------------------------------PLEASE NOTE------------------------------#
# This file is the author's own work and represents their interpretation #
# of the song. The owner of this website has not reviewed the contents of #
# this file. If you feel that the content of this file may be violating #
# copyright law, you may not use the information displayed here in any way. #
#----------------------------------------------------------------------------#
There are only two basic chords in the whole song-
E A D G B e
F: 0 3 3 2 1 1(somtimes open)
G: 3 2 0 0 3 3
Not too difficult, you just have to figure out the strumming...
Intro:
--------------------------------------------------------
--3---3h5p3--3--0-----------------------------0----0----
--0----------------4p2p0---2---2s4s2p0---2----0----0---- Repeat 3x
----------------------------------------------0h2--2----
--------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------
This is basically the same as the first tab at OLGA, so you can use that
one if this one confuses you...
Now this(whatever you call it):
F G
--1---------3---3------
--2---2-----3---3------
--3-----2---0---0------ Strum freely, listen to the song.
--3---------0---0------
------------2---2------
------------3---3------
Now this is played throughout the entire song:
F G ?
---------3---2--;--3-------------------
--1------3---3--;--3--3h5p3-3----------
--2p0----0---0--;--0-----------4s2p0--- This fill is only played in the
--3------0---0--;--0------------------- second verse, and not all the
----------------;--3------------------- time.
----------------;--2-------------------
Just listen to the song for the strumming.
Verse:This is where I've seen the majority of the screw ups, here's how
McCready plays it on the video tape.
--3------5------8--8--8p7--7--8p7--7--8-------------
--3------5------8--8--8----8--8----8--8-------------
--0------0------0--0--0----0--0----0--0-------------
----------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------
The rhythm might be hard to follow, but you can pick that up also
Brought to you by the GUITARMASTA - http://www.guitarmasta.net
Tab Discussion, Comments, and Critiques
|
No Picture
Justin Rhythm Player |
#1 by Justin Lepera at Aug 13, 1970 at 9:03 PM EST |
| I do get that now that I recall that Gilbran had said "your pain is self chosen". I reread yor post and I can definately see the connection to "The Profit". Like you basically said though, it was a reference and not a directive ; The song itself not being driven with the theme of the "The Profit", Gilbran. The influence however is clea,r to me, and even if Staley was never aware of Gilbran the conection is quite Germane. Pretty good insight, Staley was a very intelligent man and extrmeley sensitive. He was mistreated and taken advantage of his whole life. Its so very sad, and the song is so humble and without any diversion of blame for his life,. Ther'es also no anger towards God as often shown in his lyrics and by other musicians. Acceptance and acountability.... The lyrics are really almost like a journal to the public, depicting how he has really become complacent with being a drug addict and dying young. He talks about choices but I think the real thing that he was feeling was that his options had been exhausted. He knew his fate, and the choice to be made was still his, Yet it was like he was now a helpless victom,. and the choice to continue to take drugs was understood and acceptable. Actually, I went back and read all the posts here again, and the for-thought, and consideration given to this piece as poetic and prophetic is impressive. I supose his troubles were obvious , but still great deliberation. "The river of Deceit" actually, in my opinion, is a fine work of art! Its delicate and definately has had an impact on the minds of those who took consideration to this song other than just viewing it as followers of Alice in Chains Staley I think would have been happy to produce this song with its deeper menings, his own personal truth is ver much revealed here, and his wisdom is shown with this ediication. I myself have been enlightened to the deeper integrity of this song of submission. | |
|
No Picture
Keegan Average |
#2 by Keegan at Jun 17, 1971 at 4:52 AM EST |
| another beautiful song:) i think in this, he's admitting to knowing that his problems are his own fault and of his own lies and deciet. he's saying if he swims to shore from this river he can truely become the beautiful person he knows he is (like how we see him). he knows this river only goes in one direction, down. | |
|
No Picture
Aaron Wanna Be |
#3 by Aaron Howe at May 20, 1972 at 6:26 AM EST |
| I've been listening to Mad Season and AIC for a long time. I have always loved to listen to this song but never made a personal connection with the lyrics until about a year ago when I over came my own personal addictions. Then the songs meaning shined through. Just remember that your pain is self-chosen. | |
|
No Picture
«Rob» Average |
#4 by «Rob» at Dec 3, 1972 at 11:52 PM EST |
| i love this song! i think its just about all the shit you go through in life | |
|
No Picture
Kyle Average |
#5 by Kyle Lester at Feb 18, 1976 at 3:26 AM EST |
| I think he's talking about his personal addiction to Heroin and how many of his friends try to help him over-come it. This is definitely a song that relates to others with similar additions and problems. It is truely sad to see such an extraordinary talent lose his battle with his addition. You'll be missed Layne. | |
|
No Picture
ed Average |
#6 by ed lubecki at Mar 15, 1976 at 4:31 PM EST |
| I like my version of God... gawd. Thank you very much | |
|
No Picture
cody Wanna Be |
#7 by cody westermier at Jun 21, 1976 at 1:08 PM EST |
| I believe this more to be about personal enlightenment rather than drugs.. Its clear though that anything with his life in truth was attached to drugs it seems. I think his consciousness has been raised above most and he sees everything covered in lies. The lies attach to himself because there is nobody to witness it with him. The burden of carrying this weight pulls his soul down while his own consciouss rises. He is accepting the decisions he has made and accepting the consequenses. It seems to be he is always faced with the choice of living with the lies or separating them from himself and drowning. | |
|
No Picture
marvin Lead Player |
#8 by marvin at Dec 21, 1977 at 7:44 PM EST |
| I think he's talking about his personal addiction to Heroin and how many of his friends try to help him over-come it. This is definitely a song that relates to others with similar additions and problems. It is truely sad to see such an extraordinary talent lose his battle with his addition. You'll be missed Layne. | |
|
No Picture
chOxY Rhythm Player |
#9 by chOxY at Sep 9, 1978 at 2:54 PM EST |
| Iv'e read Khalil Gilbran, but didn't make that connection. My thought was that he was sarcastically refering to himself when he said "the profit". In the second stanza he says "I believe it to be" instead of profit. | |
|
No Picture
kyle Average |
#10 by kyle sharpshooter at Mar 26, 1980 at 2:52 PM EST |
| The most beautiful song and lyrics that any member of Mad Season has written in or out of the group. A true song about the pain and decisions that come with the effects of addiction. Rest in peace Layne. | |
|
No Picture
Peter Wanna Be |
#11 by Peter Lambden at Sep 24, 1980 at 10:15 AM EST |
| Yes this song is fuckin amazing, such a beautiful song. Layne had a great voice ;( | |
|
No Picture
Bloody Mess All Musical Thunder |
#12 by Bloody Mess All Over My Clothes at Nov 1, 1980 at 11:56 PM EST |
| This song is about self-reflection regarding a deceitful lifestyle. It can be generally placed under the umbrella of simple existential thought. For those of you unaware, when Layne writes/sings: 'My pain is self-chosen At least, so The Prophet says', he is referring to the book "The Prophet" by Khalill Gibran. The Prophet is about a man's journey toward enlightenment on the meaning of existence on this planet, in this realm, for this time. He is met with several of life's characters, they who have been impacted by his very existence, and begins to understand why and how a person is impacted upon and impacts upon others with just his or her very existence. it's a great read, and given Layne's penchant for philosophical study (toward the end of the 1990s, he began to read quite extensively on existential philosophy and the expansion of thought), it's a wonderful idea for a song. The Prophet is worth your time, and I believe you'll understand the song's meanings (line for line, they're brilliant in their references to thought and life's purpose) once you complete the book. Of course, that isn't the only influential tome in the song, but The Prophet is obviously quite a large influence. | |
|
No Picture
Mikel Average |
#13 by Mikel A. at Nov 15, 1984 at 2:34 PM EST |
| gawd? is that a word? i think the song all apologies has the saddest cobain lyrics. | |
|
No Picture
dimebag 66' Average |
#14 by dimebag 66' at Feb 18, 1985 at 4:01 AM EST |
| It is unreal that Layne could have done this song...... It is so out of this world, Honestly look at it.... the lead singer of Alice in Chains, 90's grunge metal the king of nihlistic sound, performing a Bluesy feeling almost country styled song, and incredibly..... words do nothing to describe this song This song is about Self sacrifice and eventual salvation: I could either drown Or pull off my skin and swim to shore - Layne sings how in order to save himself he needs to give up a part of himself..... in this case drug addiction..... he believes he can do it..... Now I can grow a beautiful shell for all to see - His hopeful salvation..... if he can over come his addiction then the world would know just what a wonderful artist he was..... but he didnt and now all that is left is a memory and the music he made...... | |
|
No Picture
a Average |
#15 by a a at Jul 11, 1985 at 8:21 PM EST |
| It's about knowing that you're already too far gone. Such a sad sad song. Much akin to one of the saddest Kurt Cobain lyrics: "I miss the comfort in being sad"... gawd thats sad!!! | |
|
No Picture
chris Average |
#16 by chris jenko at May 21, 1987 at 4:12 AM EST |
| this song is absolutely breath-taking,awesome lyrics.Layne,you rule,RIP | |
|
No Picture
Alyssa Professional |
#17 by Alyssa at Sep 10, 1988 at 1:28 AM EST |
| to begin with... rest in peace Layne... this song to me is really about all the lies and pain we all go through in life and how it really all traces back to ourselves... as with most all of Staley's writings, this one is just beautiful... though he may no longer be with us, his words & music will live on forever! | |
|
No Picture
Austin Rhythm Player |
#18 by Austin at Jun 14, 1990 at 11:42 AM EST |
| Yes this song is fuckin amazing, such a beautiful song. Layne had a great voice ;( | |
|
No Picture
Ricky Rhythm Player |
#19 by Ricky Cribb at Nov 8, 1990 at 5:01 AM EST |
| to begin with... rest in peace Layne... this song to me is really about all the lies and pain we all go through in life and how it really all traces back to ourselves... as with most all of Staley's writings, this one is just beautiful... though he may no longer be with us, his words & music will live on forever! | |
|
No Picture
Jimmy Average |
#20 by Jimmy Dresbach at Jul 30, 1991 at 4:18 PM EST |
| this song owns me?! lol what a CREEPY ass mother fucker! this song owns us all!!! muah ha ha!! anyways i think laynes way of writing lyrics is great... he dont directly relate 2 what hes talkin about (my opinion) so people who listen 2 it can use it 4 their own personal use. "my pain is self chosen" could mean alot of things... in alot of ways.. we all choose our pain.. like we choose 2 get hurt... he chose 2 do drugs.. it was hurtin him... i chose 2 get with the wrong girl.. it hurt me. bad ass singer/person | |
|
No Picture
Jay Dizzle Wanna Be |
#21 by Jay Dizzle holden at Jul 29, 1992 at 1:51 PM EST |
| Well, I think moste of the Mad Season stuff is songs that he wanted to publish and record but didn't want to be under AIC's name since it is more of his personal feelings here in a more intimate way. | |
|
No Picture
Klint Average |
#22 by Klint flowers at Jan 24, 1993 at 11:54 PM EST |
| This song owns you all. | |
|
No Picture
Mike Wanna Be |
#23 by Mike at Jun 28, 1993 at 6:44 AM EST |
| I like my version of God... gawd. Thank you very much | |
|
No Picture
Dylan Average |
#24 by Dylan Ruiz at Apr 28, 1998 at 4:02 PM EST |
| Don't know why this came to me but it did one night while I was "under the influence." It seems like Layne Staley, even in Alice in Chains with Jerry Cantrell writing, seems to sing about songs with very vague words. It doesn't talk about specific pains. But it looks as if he's giving you only a partial picture of what he understands. It seems that a lot of these bands, Mad Season are so underrated. These people are in a state of mind that is so ahead of the rest of us. But alas, as the brightest flame burns quickest, Layne made a sacrifice to know these things and to communicate them. Heroin took him down, but God bless him for he belongs in a higher place. | |
|
No Picture
Aaron Wanna Be |
#25 by Aaron Frederick at Oct 9, 1998 at 9:21 PM EST |
| This song owns you all. | |
|
No Picture
Oliver Average |
#26 by Oliver Taylor at Dec 17, 1998 at 1:00 PM EST |
| This was the first Mad Season song I ever stumbled across. It was, as per the norm, misattributed to Alice In Chains on Napster (RIP) and all I could say was: Wow. This is absolutely fucking amazing. Why wasn't it released? And then in a conversation I was having with a friend he was like, "Oh, that plays on the radio all the time here." That was how I was introduced to Mad Season. I couldn't believe my ears when I picked up my copy of "Above." Layne Staley's beatiful voice on a blues sounding album. I fell in love and was waiting for the second album that I was hoping would come. It never came. Mad Season fell apart, and Staley died. Man, that was a total let down for me. | |
|
No Picture
Max Average |
#27 by Max Benton at Aug 20, 1999 at 3:13 PM EST |
| this song owns me?! lol what a CREEPY ass mother fucker! this song owns us all!!! muah ha ha!! anyways i think laynes way of writing lyrics is great... he dont directly relate 2 what hes talkin about (my opinion) so people who listen 2 it can use it 4 their own personal use. "my pain is self chosen" could mean alot of things... in alot of ways.. we all choose our pain.. like we choose 2 get hurt... he chose 2 do drugs.. it was hurtin him... i chose 2 get with the wrong girl.. it hurt me. bad ass singer/person | |
|
No Picture
Ben Rhythm Player |
#28 by Ben Formica at Sep 15, 1999 at 9:44 PM EST |
| another beautiful song:) i think in this, he's admitting to knowing that his problems are his own fault and of his own lies and deciet. he's saying if he swims to shore from this river he can truely become the beautiful person he knows he is (like how we see him). he knows this river only goes in one direction, down. | |
|
No Picture
Euroynmous Average |
#29 by Euroynmous at Dec 7, 2001 at 11:25 PM EST |
| I have always thought that this song is about lies. right? | |
|
No Picture
cody Wanna Be |
#30 by cody westermier at Dec 31, 2001 at 7:48 AM EST |
| This song is about self-reflection regarding a deceitful lifestyle. It can be generally placed under the umbrella of simple existential thought. For those of you unaware, when Layne writes/sings: 'My pain is self-chosen At least, so The Prophet says', he is referring to the book "The Prophet" by Khalill Gibran. The Prophet is about a man's journey toward enlightenment on the meaning of existence on this planet, in this realm, for this time. He is met with several of life's characters, they who have been impacted by his very existence, and begins to understand why and how a person is impacted upon and impacts upon others with just his or her very existence. it's a great read, and given Layne's penchant for philosophical study (toward the end of the 1990s, he began to read quite extensively on existential philosophy and the expansion of thought), it's a wonderful idea for a song. The Prophet is worth your time, and I believe you'll understand the song's meanings (line for line, they're brilliant in their references to thought and life's purpose) once you complete the book. Of course, that isn't the only influential tome in the song, but The Prophet is obviously quite a large influence. | |
|
No Picture
hey u by the th Average |
#31 by hey u by the that thing. SHUTUP!! at Jul 31, 2003 at 12:02 AM EST |
| Well, I think moste of the Mad Season stuff is songs that he wanted to publish and record but didn't want to be under AIC's name since it is more of his personal feelings here in a more intimate way. | |
|
No Picture
cody Average |
#32 by cody jay at Mar 26, 2004 at 4:48 AM EST |
| It's about knowing that you're already too far gone. Such a sad sad song. Much akin to one of the saddest Kurt Cobain lyrics: "I miss the comfort in being sad"... gawd thats sad!!! | |
|
No Picture
bethan Average |
#33 by bethan jones at May 15, 2006 at 6:20 AM EST |
| The most beautiful song and lyrics that any member of Mad Season has written in or out of the group. A true song about the pain and decisions that come with the effects of addiction. Rest in peace Layne. | |
|
No Picture
Josh Average |
#34 by Josh Sanchez at Sep 23, 2007 at 2:57 PM EST |
| I have always thought that this song is about lies. right? | |
Top 7 Mad Season Guitar Tabs
Popular Guitar Tabs