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GOOFUS

Words by Gus Kahn, Music by Wayne King and William Harold - 1930

Intro:
D7	-	-	-
Chorus:
D7             Bm	D7            Bm	G              Em	G            Em
D7             Bm	D7            Bm	G              Em	G           Gdim
D7             Bm	D7            Bm	G              Em	G            Em
E7	A7	D7	G
Bridge:
G	-	F#	-
F	-	E7             A7	D            D7
G	-	F#	-
F	-	E7             A7	D            D7
Chorus:
D7            Bm	D7            Bm	G              Em	G            Em
D7            Bm	D7            Bm	G              Em	G           Gdim
D7            Bm	D7            Bm	G              Em	G            Em
E7	A7	D7	G    (repeat chorus)
Ending:
D7	-	-	G          (End)

8-beat intro.  Play 4-beats for each cell, reading from left to right.

This song is in the key of G.

_______

 

Intro:

(No Lyrics)

 

Chorus:

I was born on a farm out in Ioway,  A flaming youth who was bound that he'd fly away,

I packed my grip and I grabed my old banjo.

Can't read notes, but I play anything by ear,  I make up tunes on the sounds that I used to hear.

When I'd start to play folks always say, "Sounds like Goofus to me."

 

Bridge:

Cornfed chords appeal to me,  I like rustic harmony,

Hold the note and change the key,  That's called "Goofus."

Not according to the rules,  That you learn at music schools,

But the folks just dance like fools,  They go "Goofus."

 

Chorus:

Got a job but I just couldn't keep it long,  The leader said that I played all the music wrong,

So I stepped out with an outfit of my own.

Got together a new kind of orchestree,  And we all played just the same "goofus" harmony,

And I must admit we made a hit, "Goofus" has been lucky for me.

 

Ending:

(No Lyrics)

_______

 

Listen to Jim play and sing "Goofus" on the 5-string banjo (mp3)

 

Watch Jim and Barbara Faustine play "Goofus" {youtube)

 

Listen to the Bayou Banjo Club play "Goofus" (time-stamp 0.30, youtube)

_______

 

Arranged by Jim Bottorff

 

This Chord Chart may not appear correctly with some browsers.  It should be viewed with a full size window.

The chord names should appear in single rows.   Let me know of any problems.

 

email: jbott@ix.netcom.com