Wilco › Misunderstood Guitar Tab

Being There [Disc 1] Tabs:

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Send "Misunderstood" Ringtone to your Cell Phone

Band - Wilco
Song - Misunderstood

Intro: Severely distorted and bent D and G chords with tape effects.

Verse: D G D G D G D G D G ... (This continues for the whole song.)

Lyrics:

Back in your old neighbourhood,
cigareetes taste so good,
so misunderstood,
you're so misunderstood.

There something there that you can't find,
honest when you're tellin' a lie,
you hurt her but you don't know why,
you love her but you don't know why.

Short and long term goals,
there's a party there and we oughta go to,
if you still love rock n roll,
if you still love rock n roll.

It's only a quarter to three,
reflecting off of your CD,
you're looking at a picture of me,
starin' at a picture of me.

Take the guitar player for a ride,
cause he ain't never been satisfied,
he feels he owes some kinda debt,
be years before he gets over it.

Fortune inside you're head,
all you touch turns to lead,
you think you might just crawl back in bed,
the fortune inside your head.

You know you're just a mamas boy,
positively unemployed,
so misunderstood,
so misunderstood.

( Bang real damn loud and yell )
Repeat: D D D D D D D D

( Make up two lines , cause I can't understand what the hell Tweedy says. )
So misunderstood,
so misunderstood.
so misunderstood
so misunderstood.

I'd like to thank you all, for nothin' at all - X 3

I'd ike to thank you all for nothin'
I'd like to thank you all for nothin, nothin , nothin at all
Repeat
Outro:
Eb|------------------------------------|
Bb|-10-10-10-12-8-5/7-7-7-7-7-8-7-5-3--|
F#|------------------------------------|
Db|------------------------------------|
Ab|------------------------------------|
Eb|------------------------------------|

End on G.

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Tab Discussion, Comments, and Critiques


No Picture ashley Wanna Be	#1 by ashley pudding at Jul 15, 1971 at 7:26 PM EST
	Sunken Treasure that is ;)

No Picture Your account ha Average	#2 by Your account has been hacked into by Bkid23 Stupid.... at Aug 8, 1972 at 10:24 AM EST
	how wonderfully intense that this song - one of Tweedy's finest moments - is so very misunderstood.

No Picture Average	#3 by vix at Nov 2, 1973 at 7:29 AM EST
	Amazing song. I saw wilco live last night in Philly and they repeat the word "nothing" at the end for almost 2 minutes. It was pretty cool.

No Picture Mistress Cheyen Rhythm Player	#4 by Mistress Cheyenne at Jun 6, 1977 at 10:26 AM EST
	This song, for those of you who may be confused, is about a Rock star who claims that most of his lyrics are "misunderstood". This is Jeff's way of making fun of himself and other rock stars, and the whole "tortured artist" BS that comes with it. I could go line by line, but they're pretty easy to figure out and, once you think about it, the song really shows the genius of Tweedy's writing. My favorite lines are Think you might just crawl back in bed, with a fortune inside your head which refers to how the rock star has some song in his head that could make him millions, but because he's so misunderstood, he just goes to sleep. Also great is "positively unemployed", because musicians don't have real jobs but make alot of money, thus positively unemployed. A great song, especially off of Kicking Televison. Hope this helps.

No Picture Drennan Professional Badass	#5 by Drennan Bragg at Dec 16, 1983 at 9:02 AM EST
	He's not saying "Reflecting off your old CD", he's saying "Reflecting off the OCD" As in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. I heard him say it clearly at a show, and it just makes sense anyway given the type of person the song describes. To me this song describes the type of guy who never really had anything going for him. He's not motivated and has no drive. He has a "fortune inside his head" but he lacks the motivation and determination to get things rolling. He never gets a real job, and he lives at home with his mom. All he does is go from day to day feeling like a loser because nobody understands him. Nobody understands that he has vision, and that he's capable of more than he actually does. People label him a loser because they simply don't understand him. He had a good life before, but things have certainly gone south.

No Picture David Average	#6 by David Eldridge at Sep 5, 1992 at 6:07 PM EST
	i sort of agree with it being about a rock star, and tweedy is the kind of guy who would make fun of himself in song, but i think that this has a deeper meaning. i really think it's about a guy coming home and expecting to be able to fit into his same old lifestyle, but things are so different that to everyone he sees and gets reacquainted with, he's just misunderstood. i guess it sort of makes me think of Garden State...because that's got a similar story to it

No Picture Kempy Lead Player	#7 by Kempy at Oct 7, 1992 at 7:14 AM EST
	i'd like to think it isn't drug related, but i certainly relate to the most powerful lines of the song as pointed out by people before me. you hurt her but you don't know why/you love her but you don't know why. seeing it live earlier in the year (only the 2nd time Wilco have come to Australia) was even more powerful. Especially the end when Tweedy SCREAMED "nothing" about twenty times. Nerve-tingling.

No Picture brandon Rhythm Player	#8 by brandon q at Jul 14, 1994 at 1:24 AM EST
	I love this song for so many different reasons. I love hearing it in concert since Jeff screams "NOTHING" for like 5 min. straight. It also reminds me of people that I can see this song relating to. I think this song is about a guy who is reflecting on this girl he loved, but she wasn't sure if she loved him. After nothing comes of the relationship the guy dreams of, he gets angry at her and his love turns the hate. Very powerfull stuff!! Wilco wrote the soundtrack to my life.

No Picture John Wanna Be	#9 by John Agopian at Aug 6, 1997 at 3:45 AM EST
	According to the main Wilco lyric site I go to (bemydemon.org), the lyrics after the "heavy part" are: I know you've got a god-shaped hole You're bleeding out your heart full of soul I think those might be accurate, and even if they aren't, I really really like them. Great song.

No Picture Berenice Average	#10 by Berenice Issaris at May 11, 1998 at 4:12 PM EST
	I like the whole idea of the rock star. But I just love shouting "I'd like to thank you all for nothing, nothing at all. Nothing Nothing Nothing Nothing at all!" It reminds me of all the people I grew up with and, even though I got away from them, it still leaves a bitter feeling. This song is cathartic.

No Picture Nyle Average	#11 by Nyle Leddy at Dec 14, 1998 at 10:33 PM EST
	I love the line "You hurt her but you don't know why / you love her but you don't know why."

No Picture Jarrett Lead Player	#12 by Jarrett Sandlin at Dec 9, 2000 at 6:24 PM EST
	I think this is about a guy who never really got to know the people in his neighborhood, so when he returns he feels very distant. And he feels bitter about it, so he becomes a musician to channel all of his feeling and regret of misspent youth.

No Picture Cicely aka Icic Badass	#13 by Cicely aka Icicles and CSkank Shankle (if u stalk me i will shoot you.) at Sep 16, 2003 at 9:50 AM EST
	i just wanted to mention that the first "Do you still love rock and roll?" should be "If you still love rock and roll." and then towards the end he says "I know you've got a God shaped hole, bleeding out your heart full of soul." Favorite Wilco song. This and Sunkin Treasure were really the turning point from the alt country. Very powerful, great stuff.

No Picture micheal Lead Player	#14 by micheal mceachern at Oct 12, 2005 at 7:38 PM EST
	There isn't a doubt in my mind that this song is about Heroin. It describes the indulgence of a junkie's life, right down to his dependence on his mother, the short term goals(getting high, not worried about the long term)) coupled with the fortune inside is head.(One big score...someday) Being back in the old neighborhood comes along with the fact that junkies always go back to using, and thanking everyone for nothing, along with idea of bein misunderstood sums up the disease of addiction. In an addicts head, they think everyone is judging them, assuming that non-users find it easy to quit. The reason I say all this is because this song is like an auto-bio for me.It really touches a nerve, but I love it so much

No Picture Jer Average	#15 by Jer at Oct 20, 2007 at 8:13 AM EST
	Why so few posts? What an absolutely amazing song! How could it just be overlooked like this? This is a work of art that everyone should know about. Wilco has brought greatness to the music world, and this song is amazing. And, wow, those vocals.... good stuff.