Van Morrison - For Mr. Thomas: Guitar Chords

Learn to play "For Mr. Thomas" 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.

A                          E
From faded newsprint used to wrap a fish
     B                             A
Inscrutably the muse selects your face
A                                E
As I sit drinking famously in an Irish bar
       B                               A
Five thousand miles and thirty years away

With all the usual ceremonial you were crowned
one night
King of the field where doctors nail the cows
To make of the cock's quill the rights of language
And the pricking heart a sword against the hours

Let smirking scholars writhe in their
favourite bondage
And hold you plaintiff to the charge of art
Exhibit A: He falls on legendary lines
Singing mother I don't want a pain here in my heart
(Alright)

The judge in me sucks eggs and jerks the sacred meat
But the boy in me still dreams in Milk Wood town
Like two provincial bastards playing the galleries
I hold your photo to the mirror upside down

And as bacon wafts through hungry streets,
your ghost prevails
Just like an old ex-boxer aged twenty-two
Staged up like Falstaff or the wild Welsh Rimbaud
You would love to see the monograms they make of you

Ah, Mr. Thomas, let us ramble through the midnight
fair
Let us throw bottles at the ferris wheels
Let us paint library on the library, let us raid
the moonlight
Let us steal whatever we're supposed to steal
(One more)

Let us watch while the days grow daily more mundane
That rough God go riding with his shears
Hack wide the belly of the swollen mountains
And rip molten heroes forth from his furious tears

Oh, Mr. Thomas, oh, Mr. Thomas
And let us steal whatever we're supposed to steal
Mr. Thomas, oh, Mr. Thomas
Why don't we feel whatever we're supposed to feel?
Oh, Mr. Thomas, Mr. Thomas
Why don't we feel whatever we're supposed to feel?

Oh, Mr. Thomas let us ramble through the midnight
Let us throw bottles at the ferris wheel
Let us paint library on the library, let us raid
the moonlight
Let us steal whatever we're supposed to steal


You can simplify chords by removing barre

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Simplify chords by removing barre

Guitar Chord Diagrams

A

Guitar chord A

B

Guitar chord B

E

Guitar chord E

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 "For Mr. Thomas" on the ukulele, check out the chords on our sister site: Ukulele Chords for "For Mr. Thomas" by Van Morrison.

Van Morrison Song List