Unreleased song by the master of American primitivism, taken from a collection of pieces entitled 'Indian II'. This was probably the title given to the album by Vanguard as opposed to the title given to it by Basho himself.
I saw him at West Chester State college in Pa. in 1973 or 1974. There might have been 20 in the audience - I will always remember the atmosphere and feeling. Robbie told me after the concert that it was always like this- few came to see him. I am happy I did!
Robbie Basho - Death Song (Guitar Chords) (Lyrics) Tuning: C# G# C# G# C# E I don't know if this is exactly the right tuning it just sounds close to me. Also, these are just the chords I hear. Basho does some fingerstyle playing which you can listen for if you want to imitate the recording. Please consult your doctor before trying any sort of American primitivism. When making these chords you can fret the lowest three strings and leave the highest three strings open, like this E |-----0---------0----0----0----0-0-----0----| C#|-----0---------0----0----0----0-0-----0----| G#|-----0---------0----0----0----0-0-----0----| C#|-----0--------12----8----3----5-8----12----| G#|-----0--------12----8----3----5-8----12----| C#|-----0--------12----8----3----5-8----12----| C# C# A E F# A C# These are most of the chords you will need for the song. At one point there is a B (which is 10th fret) in this tuning. You get the idea. It's a bit like playing DADGAD tuning except not really. The way that Basho sings "the" sounds like "a" in some of the lines hence the lyric is sometimes transcribed "a heart is happy" although I don't think that is correct. Towards the end the lyrics are not really as transcribed but more like pained screaming with parts of words recognisable and others not. I have done my best to transcribe the lyrics with the greatest possible amount of respect to the artist. ********** [Intro] C# ... [Verse] C# A Watch the midnight sun A E F# I am riding A Riding home C# A Watch the father A E F# I am riding A Riding home B A My arms are open A E F# The heart is happy A Riding home C# A Watch the shining mountains A E F# I'll be riding A Riding home C# A And if you're passing me by A E F# As I am leaving A I'll kiss your wings, love A C# A E F# A I'll kiss your wi--------ings, I'll A C# I'll kiss your wings B A My arms are open A E F# The heart is happy A Riding home A C# A E F# A Riding ho-------ome, towards the father C# Riding home C# A E F# A Ho-------ome Ho---ome C# A E F# A (Ri-) Ah---h -ding Ah---h Ho---ome C# Riding home B A My arms are open A E F# The heart is happy A Riding home C# A Ho-------ome C# Riding home
Watch the midnight sun, I am riding, Riding home, Watch the father, I am riding, Riding home, My arms are open, A heart is happy, Riding home, Watch the shining mountains, I'll be riding, Riding home, And if you're passing me by, As I am leaving, I'll kiss your wings love I'll kiss your wings, ah I'll kiss your wings My arms are open, a heart is happy, riding home, Riding home woah, Towards the father, Riding home, Waaa ohhh ahh, Ahh ohhh ahhh, My arms are open a heart is happy, Riding home, Riding home.
Unreleased... how? One of the finest, most beautifully evocative songs I've ever heard. Basho was the master. Destroys me every time I hear this. Incredible.
damn yall i thought it couldnt get doper than blue crystal fire but this one is radder so much love for this beautiful angel - you are all made of stars! peace and love, all power to the people
@@megbee860 iget the point here but just to say... that cosmic world is this world. we are in it. Basho is what i would call a shooting star, in our cosmic world. What he produced and did with his being, came from the stars down trough him. when you listen to this its not like listeniing to music, there is more going on then just a riff to dig or something to follow. Its like the universe whispers. just like the leafs in the wind.
The guy could sing. For sure. But not just that, or the other (play the guitar), but BOTH. Both mediums are glued together in the case of Basho. Huge talent.
I listen to this song every morning before I start my day. I feel most alive, most disciplined, most on fire, if you will, when I listen to this song. This, paired with 'Cathedrals et fleur de lis' on his Bonn ist Supreme record are my favorite songs. They'll always have a special place in my heart and will always motivate me to be a better person than I was yesterday. Thank you so much Robbie Basho. And, thank you Fergus Clark for uploading this. It's had a profound impact on my life.
I Lost my father 8 days ago! I found Robbie a few months previous! This song has just destroyed me,as it could have been written about my free spirited,wondering in the wilderness,gentle souled best friend!
@@robcohen7678 depends, sometimes I can really get up there. Other times i just kind of go up into trees, on buildings or just cruise along roads above the lights. Like once i was up high looking at heards of dinosaurs and they looked pretty small. Another time a hoard of zombies came along and i was like nope, I'm taking to the skies and flew about 30 ft up until I found other survivors
@@nugsymalone1247 hah, awesome. I usually can only get what seems like a few hundred feet up for some reason. I usually just fly away from annoying people.
@@Neocasturn I'd put Abner just before Basho, like this. Abner is like when you're drunk in a loud bar of people and you get tired of that energy. Step outside for some fresh air and walk into the silence of the night with the universe just above you, thats Basho.
@@captieye i think this is right, i can understand it tho, because nobody wants to drive at home from work and suddenly the radio plays this song and you get emotionally wrecked by Basho
i always listen to this and im unsure if the higher string is out of tune or if he tuned it a microtone off deliberately, cuz it kinda adds to the song tbh, it interplayed with the “correctly” tuned strings has like an interesting interplay that reminds me of like a sitar drone or something. like he constantly plays that one “off” note with little to no alteration so my brain is telling me it was on purpose, and that seems very up his alley to do
I have taken a lot of lives in my younger years that were not mine to take. I've grown so much more peaceful and spiritual in my later years. This song is almost like a lament to god that I understand my errors and would like to go home if I still am able.
Interesting, the lyrics are similar to the ending of "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" but the guitar playing is much more complex. I suppose this was a demo / draft recording
Towards the midnight sun, I am riding - riding home / Towards the father, I am riding - riding home / My arms are open, my heart is happy - riding home / Towards the shining mountains, I'll be riding - riding home / And if you pass me by as I am leaving, I'll kiss your wings love - I'll kiss your wings - I'll kiss your wings / My arms are open, my heart is happy - riding home / Riding home, towards the father - riding home / My arms are open, my heart is happy - riding home - riding home.
ernestheimerway my god!! I am not a original english speaker so it was very hard to me to understand the whole song. Thanks a lot! I really really love Robbie Basho.
So this was either in 1969, 1975 or 1980, since those three years had April 20th on a Sunday, and the next one would have been 1986, but he had died in February of that year, so that date is out. Does anyone know which year it was he performed this? Most speculate it to be 1980, as he was living in California at that time, but I haven’t been able to find anything definitive
The concert poster doesn't really have a connection to the song. I have the poster and used it as an image for the audio upload as this was unreleased at the time and therefore had no album artwork. I think this recording is from the mid 70s.
in case you're still curious - ernestheimerway wrote it down here in the comments: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-a34ELYISVyQ.html&lc=UgjDp5vciX6r23gCoAEC.8OhDut1-OTV8hVD_zboBdQ
It's kinda off, but like as if somthing was dying, glitching , malfunctioning before it all collapses. Like a man limping away , stumbling, bleeding off into the wild.
