The Chelsea Hotel Oral Sex Song chords by Jeffrey Lewis

Tuning: Standard (E A D G B E)

C F C F

     C
Walkin' up 23rd Street
   F
I was tired and alone
    C
It was late my housemate
     F
Would be asleep when I got home
     C
The sign ahead glowin' red
     F
Said the Chelsea Hotel
   C
Where Nancy and Sid Vicious
    F
And my friend Dave once dwelled

C F

        C
The street was black under my feet
     F
Which continued their walkin'
       C
Though I was vaguely interested
    F
In the folks behind me talkin'
C
 Two guys maybe gay
  F
Wearin' Reber type suits
   C
And a girl wearin' glasses
  F
Who looked kinda cute
  C
Her hair was short and curly
      F
She had a tattoo on her back
       C
Which I could see cos her red shirt
F
 Was sleeveless with straps
   C
But I only saw this later
F
Not in my first glance
      C
But I could hear her talkin' behind me
  F
And as if by chance
    C
She was tryin' to describe
 F
A song I knew well
  C
The Leonard Cohen song
     F
About the Chelsea Hotel


C F C F

   C          F
And I smiled a smile to myself

When she said
       C
That was the song where he talks about
    F
Someone giving him head
    C
On the bed that's unmade
      F
And how the song was outrageous
  C
And that's when I got
       F
Uncharacteristically courageous
       C
I could have left the three of them laughin'
  F
And just gone on home
   C
But I turned and I faced her
   F
And I said Leonard Cohen?
C       F
.....just like that....


C F

    C
She was shocked and surprised
    F
But she looked very happy
     C
That she now had a witness
  F
To back up her story
C
 She looked at me
     F
With her spectacled eyes
  C
And said, "see I told you"
    F
To the two others guys

C             F
My tale might have ending right there and then
  C            F
But we started talkin' about Leonard Cohen
    C
How his lyrics were cool
      F
And how he sang so sincere
    C
That it must have been true
    F
And it happened right here
C             F
Usually women right of the bat

Don't find me that great
       C      F
But there we were laughin', scrollin'

Like we could really relate
C
 Although we didn't mention the head line
F
 It was alluded
    C
And her conversation was better
      F
Because her friends weren't included
       C
The guys were more into each other
        F
At least that's how it seemed to me
 C              F
I heard the faint knocking of opportunity
       C
Although it's easy for me now
 F
Upon my looking back
  C
To think of all the things

I could have said
  F
To make me the mac
       C
Just keep the sad truth in mind
   F
As I tell this to you
    C
That we really only talked
   F
For a minute or two
   C
And I never got her name
    F
And she never got mine
      C
But in this couple short minutes
     F
We had a pretty good time

C F C F

C
 And on top of that
      F
Though you may not believe it
C
 You know what she says to me next
F
 As I repeat it
C
That line about gettin the blow job
  F
That Leonard sings
C
 She said it made her
      F
Want to do naughty things
C
Right about then
       F
I should have asked

If she knew
C
What the Chelsea charged
   F
If we got a room for two
   C
But I didn't and I know
   F
I'm a schmuck, don't you doubt it
C
 The only thing I did
        F
Was write this stupid song about it

  C
If I was Leonard Cohen
       F
Or some other song writing master
      C
I'd know to first get the oral sex
     F
And then write the song after
    C
You can practice writing songs
    F
About romance every day
    C
But if you haven't loved
         F
Then you'll have nothing to say
       C
We could have given each other head
      F
On Leonard same unmade bed
       C
But I was too shy to suggest it
F
And so instead
     C
When the three of them stopped
    F
To look through a pub window
C
I said good night
   F
Tho I hadn't quite meant to
  C
And waved as we walked tho
 F
I wouldn't forget her
 C               F
Especially when she mysteriously said

See you later

C F C F

    C
So now every time I'm walking
 F
I hope that we'd meet
       C
And on purpose
        F
I always go up 23rd Street
     C
Where the sign glowin' red
     F
Says the Chelsea Hotel
   C
Where Nancy and Sid Vicious
    F
And my friend Dave's once dwelled
C
 Life doesn't work out
      F
The way it does in old songs
    C
That's why we sing new ones
      F
To say what really goes on
    C
So if I ever see her again
  F
And we pick up

Right we were ended
C
 Maybe I'll play her this song
   F
Maybe she won't get too offended
C      F
 And listen I'll tell you why
    C
There's more than this situation
   F
Than miss the eyes
C
 You may think it's sad
F
 You may think it's pathetic
   C
But I sing this song
     F
And that she'll never know it
C          F
 But think a minute 'bout what that means
C               F
 And you'll realize it's actually a wonderful thing
   C
That all around the world
      F
There maybe folks singin' tunes
    C
For the love of others folks
     F
That they barely knew
C             F
And it puts a smile on my face

Yes, it do
      C
And let me tell you
        F
You ought to be smilin' too
      C
Because the next time you're feelin'
   F
Kinda lonesome and blue
        C
Just think that someone somewhere
     F
Might be singin' about you
C              F
 So who knows if I'll ever see her again
      C
Maybe we'll see this whole time
        F
She could have been singing about me
C       F
 Probably not
        C F
But it could be

C