Billy Joel - The Downeaster 'Alexa': Guitar Chords

Learn to play "The Downeaster 'Alexa'" on your guitar with our detailed chord guide and lyrics. 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.

Learn The Downeaster 'Alexa' Guitar Chords and Lyrics by Billy Joel

This section will guide you through each part of the song, providing the guitar chords placed directly above the lyrics for easy playing. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced player, these elements will help you perform "The Downeaster 'Alexa'" smoothly on your guitar.

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

         C          G        Am
Well I'm on the Downeaster Alexa
          C                G            F
And I'm cruising through Block Island Sound.
         F        C             Dm
I have charted a course to the Vineyard,
       C          G          F   C F
But tonight I am Nantucket bound.
F            G             C             F
We took on diesel back in Montauk yesterday,
F              G               Am
And left this morning from the bell in
         G/B
Gardiner's Bay.
F             G                C              F
Like all the locals here I've had to sell my home,
F             G                  Am            G/B
Too proud to leave, I worked my fingers to the bone

So I could own my downeaster "Alexa"
And I go where the ocean is deep
There are giants out there in the canyons
And a good captain can't fall asleep
I got bills to pay and children who need clothes
I know there's fish out there,
but where God only knows
They say these waters aren't what they used to be
But I got people back on land who count on me

So if you see my downeaster "Alexa"
And if you work with the rod and the reel
Tell my wife I am trolling Atlantis
And I still have my hands on the wheel

Now I drive my downeaster "Alexa"
More and more miles from shore every year
Since they told me I can't sell no stripers
And there's no luck in swordfishing here
I was a bayman like my father was before
Can't make a living as a bayman anymore
There ain't much future for a man who works the sea
But there ain't no island left for islanders like me


You can simplify chords by removing barre

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Simplify chords by removing barre

Guitar Chord Diagrams

Am

Guitar chord Am

B

Guitar chord B

C

Guitar chord C

Dm

Guitar chord Dm

F

Guitar chord F

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 Downeaster 'Alexa'" on the ukulele, check out the chords on our sister site: Ukulele Chords for "The Downeaster 'Alexa'" by Billy Joel.

Billy Joel Song List