Chords
I Shot The Sheriff

I Shot the Sheriff was written by Bob Marley and speaks to the repression and injustice suffered by the black people at the time. The lyrics tell the story of a man who admits to shooting the sheriff but denies shooting the deputy. The song has been interpreted as a metaphor for the fight against the oppressive colonial and police system in Jamaica. Marley explained that the lyrics also reflect personal conflicts and the defense of self-defense.

Key: Gm

Introduction:

 Gm 
 I shot the sheriff,
 Cm                      Gm 
 But I didn' t shoot no deputy, oh no! Oh!
 Gm 
 I shot the sheriff,
 Cm                      Gm 
 But I didn' t shoot no deputy. Ooh, ooh, oo-ooh.

 Eb      Dm7       Gm 
 All a-round in my home town,
         Eb         Dm7       Gm 
They' re tryin'  to track me down 
 Eb              Dm7                  Gm 
 They say they want to bring me in guilty,
         Eb            Dm7   Gm 
For the killing of a depu-ty,
         Eb         Dm7  Gm 
For the life of a dep-uty. But I say...
*(Riff):

 Gm 
 I shot the sheriff,
 Cm                      Gm 
 But I swear it was in self-defence. (Oh, no! Yeah!)
        Gm                      Cm 
I say  I shot the sheriff, oh Lord!
                      Gm 
And they say it is a capital offence. Yeah!

 Eb        Dm7                Gm 
 Sheriff John Brown always hated me,
     Eb      Dm7       Gm 
For what... I don' t know.
       Eb      Dm7      Gm 
Every time I plant a seed,
         Eb          Dm7      Gm 
He said kill it be-fore it grow,
         Eb            Dm7        Gm 
He said kill them be-fore they grow. And so, and so...
*(Riff):

 Gm 
 I shot the sheriff,
 Cm                      Gm 
 But I swear it was in self-defence. I say 
 Gm 
 I shot the sheriff,
 Cm                      Gm 
 But I swear it was in self-defence. (Yeah!)

 Eb                Dm7      Gm 
 Freedom came my way one day,
       Eb       Dm7      Gm 
And I started, out of town, yeah!
 Eb         Dm7           Gm 
 All of a sudden I saw Sheriff John Brown,
 Eb          Dm7       Gm 
 Aiming to shoot me down,
      Eb       Dm7               Gm 
So I shot, I shot, I shot him down. And I say...
*(Riff):

 Gm 
 I shot the sheriff,
 Cm                      Gm 
 But I didn' t shoot no deputy, oh no! Oh!
 Gm 
 I shot the sheriff,
 Cm                      Gm 
 But I didn' t shoot no deputy. Ooh, ooh, oo-ooh.

    Eb              Dm7        Gm 
Re-flexes had the better of me,
     Eb          Dm7      Gm 
And what is to be must be.
       Eb        Dm7            Gm 
Every day, the bucket a-go a-well,
 Eb            Dm7          Gm 
 One day the bottom a-go drop out,
 Eb            Dm7          Gm 
 One day the bottom a-go drop out.
*(Riff):

     Gm 
I-I-I, I shot the sheriff,
 Cm                             Gm 
 Lord, I didn' t shot the depu-ty. No!
   Gm 
I-I...(shot the sheriff),
 Cm                      Gm 
 But I didn' t shoot no deputy. Yeah! So, yeah!

 Gm 
(Repeat to Fade)
CHORD DIAGRAMS:
    Gm       Cm       Eb       Dm7 
 EADGBE  EADGBE  EADGBE  EADGBE
 355333  x35543  x68886  x57565