Tom Russell - Gallo Del Cielo
CAPO: 4th Fret
[Intro]
C Dm G C
[Verse 1]
Dm
Carlos Zaragoza left his home in Casas Grandes when the moon was full
G C
No money in his pocket, just a locket of his sister framed in gold
Dm
He rode into El Sueco, stole a rooster called Gallo Del Cielo
G F G C
Then he swam the Rio Grande with that fighter nestled deep beneath his arm
[Verse 2]
Dm
El Gallo Del Cielo was a rooster born in heaven, so the legends say
G C
His wings they had been broken, he had one eye rolling crazy in his head
Dm
And he'd fought a hundred fights, and the legends say that one night near El Sueco
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They'd fought Gallo seven times, and seven times he'd left brave roosters dead
[Chorus]
F G
Hola, my Theresa, I am thinking of you now in San Antonio
Dm G Dm G
I have 27 dollars and the good luck of your picture framed in gold
F G
Tonight I'll put it all on the fighting spurs of Gallo Del Cielo
Dm G F G C
And then I'll return to buy the land Villa stole from father long ago
[Verse 3]
Dm
Outside of San Diego, in the onion fields of Paco Monteverde
G C
The Pride of San Diego lay sleeping on a fancy bed of silk
Dm
And they laughed when Zaragoza pulled the one-eyed del Cielo from beneath his coat
G F G C
But they cried when Zaragoza walked away with a thousand dollar bill
[Chorus]
F G
Hola, my Theresa, I am thinking of you now in Santa Barbara
Dm G Dm G
I have fifteen hundred dollars and the good luck of your picture framed in gold
F G
Tonight I'll put it all on the fighting spurs of Gallo Del Cielo
Dm G F G C
And then I'll return to buy the land Villa stole from father long ago
[Verse 4]
Dm
Now the moon has gone to hiding and the lantern light spills shadows on a fighting sand
G C
Where a wicked black named Zorro faces Gallo del Cielo in the night
Dm
But Carlos Zaragoza fears the tiny crack that runs across his rooster's beak
G F G C
And he fears he has lost the fifty thousand dollars riding on the fight
[Chorus]
F G
Hola, my Theresa, I am thinking of you now in Santa Clara
Dm G Dm G
Yes, the money's on the table, I am holding to your good luck framed in gold
F G
And everything we've dreamed of is riding on the spurs of Del Cielo
Dm G F G C
I pray that I'll return to buy the land Villa stole from father long ago
[Verse 5]
Dm
Then the signal it was given, and the cocks rose together far above the sand
G C
El Gallo del Cielo sunk a gaff into Zorro's shiny breast
Dm
They were separated quickly but they rose and fought each other thirty-seven times
G F G C
And the legends say that everyone agreed that del Cielo fought the best
[Verse 6]
Dm
Then the screams of Zaragoza filled the night outside the town of Santa Clara
G C
As the beak of del Cielo lay broken like a shell within his hand
Dm
And they say that Zaragoza screamed a curse upon the bones of Pancho Villa
G F G C
When Zorro rose up one last time and drove del Cielo through the sand
[Chorus]
F G
Hola, my Theresa, I am thinking of you now in San Francisco
Dm G Dm G
I have no money in my pocket, I no longer have your good luck framed in gold
F G
I buried it last evening with the bones of my beloved Del Cielo
Dm G F G C
And I'll not return to buy the land Villa stole from father long ago
[Verse 7]
F G
Do the rivers still run muddy outside of my beloved Casas Grandes?
Dm G Dm G
Does the scar upon my brother's face turn red when he hears mention of my name?
F G
Do the people of El Sueco curse the theft of Gallo del Cielo?
Dm G F G C
Well, tell my family not to worry, I will not return to cause them shame
Outro
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