Ewan MacColl - The Manchester Rambler Chords
Before you play, tune your guitar and use the tools below to set up your view and flow. Using the Transpose tool, switch to D,A,G keys to play this song with easier chords.
Guitar C chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram
[Opening]
[C] [C]
[C]I’ve been over Snowdon, I’ve slept upon Crowdon
I’ve camped by the Waynestones as [G]well
[G]I’ve sunbathed on Kinder, been burned to a cinder
And many more things I can [C]tell
[C]My rucksack has oft been me [G]pillow, The heather has oft been me [C]bed
And sooner than part from the [G]mountains, I think I would rather be [C]dead
[chorus]
[C]I’m a rambler, I’m a rambler from [G]Manchester way
I get all me pleasure the [C]hard moorland way
I may be a wage slave on [G]Monday
But I am a free man on [C]Sunday
[verse 2]
The [C]day was just ending and I was descending
Down Grinesbrook just by Upper [G]Tor
[G]When a voice cried “Hey you” in the way keepers do
He’d the worst face that ever I [C]saw
The things that he said were un-[G]pleasant, In the teeth of his fury I [C]said
“Sooner than part from the [G]mountains, I think I would rather be [C]dead”
[chorus]
[C]I’m a rambler, I’m a rambler from [G]Manchester way
I get all me pleasure the [C]hard moorland way
I may be a wage slave on [G]Monday
But I am a free man on [C]Sunday
[verse 3]
He [C]called me a louse and said “Think of the grouse”
Well I thought, but I still couldn’t [G]see
[G]Why all Kinder Scout and the moors roundabout
Couldn’t take both the poor grouse and [C]me
He said “All this land is my [G]master’s”, At that I stood shaking my [C]head
No man has the right to own [G]mountains, Any more than the deep ocean [C]bed
[chorus]
[C]I’m a rambler, I’m a rambler from [G]Manchester way
I get all me pleasure the [C]hard moorland way
I may be a wage-slave on [G]Monday
But I am a free man on [C]Sunday
[verse 4]
I [C]once loved a maid, a spot welder by trade
She was fair as the Rowan in [G]bloom
[G]And the bloom of her eye matched the blue Moreland sky
I wooed her from April to [C]June
On the day that we should have been [G]married, I went for a ramble in-[C]stead
For sooner than part from the [G]mountains, I think I would rather be [C]dead
[chorus]
[C]I’m a rambler, I’m a rambler from [G]Manchester way
I get all me pleasure the [C]hard moorland way
I may be a wage slave on [G]Monday
But I am a free man on [C]Sunday
[Closing]
So I’ll [C]walk where I will over mountain and hill, and I’ll lie where the bracken is [G]deep
[G]I belong to the mountains, the clear running fountains
Where the grey rocks lie ragged and [C]steep
I’ve seen the white hare in the [G]gullys, And the curlew fly high over[C]head
And sooner than part from the [G]mountains, I think I would rather be [C]dead
[chorus]
[C]I’m a rambler, I’m a rambler from [G]Manchester way
I get all me pleasure the [C]hard moorland way
I may be a wage-slave on [G]Monday
But I am a free man on [C]Sunday
[chorus]
[C]I’m a rambler, I’m a rambler from [G]Manchester way
I get all me pleasure the [C]hard moorland way
I may be a wage slave on [G]Monday
But I am a free man on [C]Sunday
How to play The Manchester Rambler on Guitar (Step-by-step)
Ewan MacColl - The Manchester Rambler on guitar requires 2 chords and 1 core chord transitions. You can find the full step-by-step guide below. Before you start, tune your instrument. The song uses the ↓-↓↑-↑↓↑ pattern; practice it muted first, or simplify to downstrokes while you learn the changes.
The Manchester Rambler uses these transitions most often: C → G (27) and G → C (27). These transitions may feel a little challenging at first, but with steady practice you can play this song quickly.When you are ready, begin with C - G chord transition.
1. C → G chord transition
To move from C to G;
- Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 2.
- Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
- Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 3.
The Manchester Rambler chord transition analysis
A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in The Manchester Rambler.
- The Manchester Rambler includes 54 chord transitions, 1 of them unique.
- These transitions represent 0.01% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
- The Manchester Rambler contains 1 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
- These transition patterns show how The Manchester Rambler connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.After C, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (35%), F (16%), and D (11%).
- C → G: 35%
After G, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (25%), D (24%), and Am (13%).- G → C: 25%