Intro: D G D GD G D On a warm summer's evenin' on a train bound for nowhereA I met up with the gambler; we were both too tired to sleepD G D So we took turns a starin' out the window at the darknessG D A D 'til boredom overtook us, and he began to speakD G D He said, "Son, I've made a life out of readin' people's facesA and knowin' what their cards were by the way they held their eyes.D G D And if you don't mind my sayin', I can see you're out of aces.G D A D For a taste of your whiskey I'll give you some advice."D G D So I handed him my bottle and he drank down my last swallowA Then he bummed a cigarette and asked me for a lightD G D And the night got deathly quiet, and his face lost all expressionG D A D Said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy, ya gotta learn to play it right ChorusD G D You got to know when to hold 'em , know when to fold 'emG D A know when to walk away and know when to runD A D G D You never count your money when you're sittin' at the tableG D A D There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's doneD G D Ev'ry gambler knows that the secret to survivin'A is knowin' what to throw away and knowing what to keepD G D 'Cause ev'ry hand's a winner and ev'ry hand's a loserG D A D and the best that you can hope for is to die in your sleep"D G D And when he'd finished speakin', he turned back towards the windowA crushed out his cigarette and faded off to sleepD G D And somewhere in the darkness the gambler, he broke evenG D A D But in his final words I found an ace that I could keep ChorusD G D You got to know when to hold 'em , know when to fold 'emG D A know when to walk away and know when to runD A D G D You never count your money when you're sittin' at the tableG D A D There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's doneD G D You got to know when to hold 'em , know when to fold 'emG D A know when to walk away and know when to runD A D G D You never count your money when you're sittin' at the tableG D A D There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done
The Glamber
Abbey Lincoln
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