Belle and Sebastian - The Boy With the Arab Strap: Guitar Chords

Learn to play "The Boy With the Arab Strap" on your guitar with our chord guide. This page provides everything you need to perform this song on the guitar, including lyrics integrated with chords, chord diagrams, and a key transposer to match your vocal range.

G
A mile and a half on a bus takes a long time,
The odour of old prison food
                      C
takes a long time to pass you by
G
Day upon day of this wandering gets you down
Nobody gives you a chance or
              C
a dollar in this old town

Hovering silence from you is a giveaway
Squalor and smoke's not your style
I don't like this place, we better go
Then I compare notes with your older sister
I am a lazy git, she is as pure as the cold
driven snow

Chorus:
G
What did you learn from your time in the solitary
Cell of your mind?
                                    C
There was noises, distractions from anything
good and the old prison food
G
Colour my life with the chaos of trouble
Cause anything's better than posh isolation,
C
I missed the bus, You were laid on your back
                              D
With the boy with the arab strap
                              G
With the boy from the arab strap

It's something to speak of the way you are feeling
To crowds there assembled
Do you ever feel you have gone too far?
If everyone suffers in silence a burden
The man who drives minicabs down in Old Compton
The Asian man with his love/hate affair
with his racist clientele

A central location for you is a must
As you stagger about
Making free with your lewd and lascivious boasts
We all know you're soft 'cause we've all
seen you dancing
We all know you're hard 'cause we've all
saw you drinking
From noon until noon again
You're the boy with the filthy laugh
You're the boy with the Arab strap

Strapped to the table with suits from
the Shelter shop
Comic celebrity takes a back seat
As the cigarette catches and sets off
the smoke alarm
What do you make of the cool set in London?
You're constantly updating your hit parade
Of your ten biggest wanks
She's a waitress and she's got style
Sunday bathtime could take a while

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Guitar Chord Diagrams

C

Guitar chord C

D

Guitar chord D

G

Guitar chord G

Here you can see detailed diagrams for each guitar chord used in the song. Utilize our key transposer to adjust the chords to a key that better fits your singing range. Simply select the desired key, and the chords throughout this page will update automatically, ensuring you can play and sing comfortably.

If you are also interested in learning how to play "The Boy With the Arab Strap" on the ukulele, check out the chords on our sister site: Ukulele Chords for "The Boy With the Arab Strap" by Belle and Sebastian.

Belle and Sebastian Song List