All Along The Watchtower | Chords + Lyrics (tune down 1/2 step)
Intro
| N.C G ||: C#m B | A B :|| x4
Verse 1
||: C#m B | A B :||
There must be some kind of way outta here.
Said the joker to the thief.
There’s too much confusion.
I can’t get no relief.
Verse 2
||: C#m B | A B :||
Businessmen they, they drink my wine.
Plowmen dig my earth.
None will level on the line.
Nobody offered his word, hey, hey.
Solo 1
||: C#m B | A B :|| x4
Verse 3
||: C#m B | A B :||
No reason to get excited.
The thief, he kindly spoke.
There are many here among us.
Who feel that life is but a joke. But, uh.
Verse 4
||: C#m B | A B :||
But you and I, we’ve been through that.
And this is not our fate.
So let us stop talkin’ falsely now.
The hour’s getting late, hey.
Solo 2
||: C#m B | A B :|| x16
Verse 5
||: C#m B | A B :||
Oh, all along the watchtower.
Princes kept the view.
While all the women came and went.
Barefoot servants, too. Well, look.
Verse 6
||: C#m B | A B :||
Outside in the cold distance.
A wildcat did growl.
Two riders were approaching.
And the wind began to howl, hey.
Solo 3
||: C#m B | A B :|| x8 repeat to fade
All along the watchtower…
All Along The Watchtower’s chords and progressions
Jimi Hendrix‘s version of Bob Dylan‘s All Along The Watchtower is, in my opinion, the best recording ever made. At the time it came out, the way the guitars were layered was groundbreaking.
There are so many licks in there to learn from, it can only be compared with other great tunes such as Wish You Were Here, Stairway To Heaven, Sultans Of Swing, and Hotel California.
Played over the super simple, and common, chord progression of VI – V – IV – V (incidentally, the same as Stairway (Am) and Sultans (Dm)!) in the key of C#m, this spells:
||: C#m B | A B :||
This type of chord progression is very popular for guitar solos, look up any Iron Maiden tune and you’ll hear them wailing over this, usually in Em. It just works so well for blanket-scale solos.
Jimi wasn’t the only artist to cover All Along The Watchtower, although it would probably be fair to say that everyone else did it because of him! Even Bob admitted he preferred Jimi’s version over his own.
In the playlist above, I’ve included Dave Matthews Band, U2, Jeff Healey, Eric Clapton with Lenny Kravitz, and of course, Bob’s original version!
There’s also a lesson in there on how to play all those little licks that Jimi so perfectly crafted on this legendary recording.
Should you be playing along to Jimi’s version, I’ve found that apart from tuning down a 1/2 step, setting the tuner slightly sharp, to 444 Hz really got me to the same frequency as Jimi.
If you don’t want to tune down your guitar, try the Digitech drop pedal, it’ll get the job done.
All Along The Watchtower chords | Related pages
Intermediate Acoustic
Most intermediate acoustic tunes can’t be played using just basic open-position chords. We have to move up the fretboard and play CAGED barre chords as well.
We incorporate bass lines, add licks, extend chords, and play vocal melodies. Most importantly, we’ll invent second guitar parts and play these songs together.
Five similar tunes with chords and lyrics
Bob Dylan
Widely regarded as the most influential artist in popular culture, Bob Dylan has been covered and copied by almost everyone who ever attempted to write a song. His famous tunes are so many it’s impossible to pick just a few.
Some say, Dylan invented modern songwriting.
Bob Dylan on the web
Jimi Hendrix
The world’s most famous guitarist, Jimi Hendrix had a short career spanning only 4 years and as many albums before he joined the 27 Club following misadventure.
His best tunes include Hey Joe, All Along The Watchtower, Little Wing, Foxy Lady, Purple Haze, Crosstown Traffic, The Wind Cries Mary, and Voodoo Chile.
Jimi Hendrix on the web
Pop & Rock
Whenever a tune doesn’t fit into a specific genre, it tends to end up here, in the Pop & Rock section.
Learn tunes from Tom Petty, Eagles, Toto, Oasis, Elvis, Clapton, John Mayer, Kings Of Leon, R.E.M., Radiohead, Bruno Mars, and more.
