Billy Joel - Famous Last Words: Guitar Chords

Learn to play "Famous Last Words" 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.

For easier playing, use our Simplify Chords feature to remove difficult chords like barre.

C              C/A#  F/A
Sitting here in Avalon, looking at
    Fm/G#
the pouring rain
C               C/A#       F/A
Summertime has come and gone
                Fm/G#
and everybody's home again
G                                         F
Closing down for the season, I found the last
of the souvenirs
G
I can still taste the wedding cake and
      Am7
it's sweet after all these
 A#  F/A C/G
years

Chorus:
F     F/A      A#           C       C/A#
These are the last words I have to say
F/A            A#               C  C/A#
That's why it took so long to write
F/A           A#               C        C/A#
There will be other words some other day
F/A              A#
But that's the story of my life

Comfort in my coffee cup
Apples in the early fall
They're pulling all the moorings up
And gathering at the Legion hall

Swept away all the streamers
After the labor day parade
There's nothing left for a dreamer now
Only one final serenade

Chorus:
And these are the last words I have to say
Before another age goes by
With all those other songs I have to play
But that's the story of my life

D#           A#             F          C/F
And it's so clear standing here where I am
D#               A#         F
Ain't that what justice is for?
Fm          D#       A#           F/A     C
Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn anymore

Stacked all the chairs on the table tops
Hanged the sheets on the chandeliers
It slows down, but it never stops
Ain't it sweet after all these years

Chorus:
And these are the last words I have to say
It's always hard to say goodbye (Ho, oh-oh)
But now it's time to put this book away
Then that's the story of my life (Hey, yeah-oh)
These are the last words I have to say
That's why it took so long to write
There will be other words some other day
Ain't that the story of my life? (Oh-oh-oh-oh)
These are the last words I have to say
Before another age goes by
With all those other songs I have to play
Yeah that's the story of my life...


You can simplify chords by removing barre

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Simplify chords by removing barre

Guitar Chord Diagrams

A

Guitar chord A

A#

Guitar chord A#

Am7

Guitar chord Am7

C

Guitar chord C

D#

Guitar chord D#

F

Guitar chord F

Fm

Guitar chord Fm

G

Guitar chord G

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 "Famous Last Words" on the ukulele, check out the chords on our sister site: Ukulele Chords for "Famous Last Words" by Billy Joel.

Billy Joel Song List