Bruce Springsteen - Johnny 99: Guitar Chords
Learn to play "Johnny 99" 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.
B Well they closed down the auto plant in Mahwah late that month Ralph went out lookin' for a job F# but he couldn't find none B He came home too drunk from mixin'Tanqueray and wine He got a gun shot a night clerk now they F# B call him Johnny 99 Down in the part of town where when you hit a red light, you don't stop Johnny's wavin' his gun around and threatenin' to blow his top When an off-duty cop snuck up on him from behind Out in front of the Club TipTop, they slapped the cuffs on Johnny 99 E Well the city supplied a public defender B but the judge was Mean John Brown He came into the courtroom and stared F# poor Johnny down B Well the evidence is clear gonna let the sentence son fit the crime Prison for 98 and a year and we'll call it F# B even Johnny 99 A fist fight broke out in the courtroom, they had to drag Johnny's girl away His mama stood up and shouted, "Judge, don't take my boy this way" "Well, son, you got any statement you'd like to make Before the bailiff comes to forever take you away?" "Now, judge, judge, I got debts no honest man could pay The bank was holdin' my mortgage and takin' my house away Now I ain't sayin' that made me an innocent man But it was more than all this that put that gun in my hand Well your honor, I do believe I'd be better off dead And if you can take a man's life for the thoughts that's in his head Then won't you sit back in that chair and think it over, judge, one more time? And let 'em shave off my hair and put me on that execution line" You can simplify chords by removing barre | TransposeReset Font SizeReset Guitar Chord DiagramsB  E  F#  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 "Johnny 99" on the ukulele, check out the chords on our sister site: Ukulele Chords for "Johnny 99" by Bruce Springsteen.