Intro:
| C | C | C | C |
[G] I discovered the valley of the shifting, whispering sands
While prospecting in a western state.
I saw the silent windmills, the crumbling [C]water tanks,
The bones of the cattle picked clean by buzzards, bleached by the desert sun.
I stumbled over a c[G]rumbling buckboard nearly covered by the sand.
And stopping to rest, I heard a tinkling, whispering sound,
And sudd[C]enly realized that even though the wind was quiet,[F]
The sand did not lie still.[C]
I seemed to be surrounded by a mystery
So heavy and oppresive I could sca[D7]rcely breathe.
For weeks I wandered aimlessly in the valley,[G]
Seeking answers to t[C]he many questions that raced through my mind.
Where was ev'ryone? Why the white bones, the dry wells,
[G] The baron valley where the people must have lived and died?
I sat down and buried my face in my hands.
And resting, I[C] learned the secret of the shifting, whispering sands.
How I managed to escape from the valley, I don't know.
But now[G] to pay my debt for being saved, I must tell you
What I learned out on the desert so many years ago.
[C]
(When the [G7]day is hardly quiet and the breeze seems not to blow,
One would t[C]hink the sand was resting but you'll find this is not so.
It is whisp'ring, softly whisp'ring, as it slowly moves a-long.[G7]
And those who stop and listen, it will sing this mournful song.[C]
Of side-winde[F]rs and the horn toad on the thorny chaparral,[C]
In the sun[D7]ny days and the moonlight nights, the lonely coyotes yell.)[G]
[C]
How the stars seem they co[G7]uld touch you as you lay and gaze on high
At the hea[C]vens where you're hoping you'll be going when you die.
For more Johnny Cash chords, see www.unofficial-johnnycash.com!
| C | C | C | C |
[G] I discovered the valley of the shifting, whispering sands
While prospecting in a western state.
I saw the silent windmills, the crumbling [C]water tanks,
The bones of the cattle picked clean by buzzards, bleached by the desert sun.
I stumbled over a c[G]rumbling buckboard nearly covered by the sand.
And stopping to rest, I heard a tinkling, whispering sound,
And sudd[C]enly realized that even though the wind was quiet,[F]
The sand did not lie still.[C]
I seemed to be surrounded by a mystery
So heavy and oppresive I could sca[D7]rcely breathe.
For weeks I wandered aimlessly in the valley,[G]
Seeking answers to t[C]he many questions that raced through my mind.
Where was ev'ryone? Why the white bones, the dry wells,
[G] The baron valley where the people must have lived and died?
I sat down and buried my face in my hands.
And resting, I[C] learned the secret of the shifting, whispering sands.
How I managed to escape from the valley, I don't know.
But now[G] to pay my debt for being saved, I must tell you
What I learned out on the desert so many years ago.
[C]
(When the [G7]day is hardly quiet and the breeze seems not to blow,
One would t[C]hink the sand was resting but you'll find this is not so.
It is whisp'ring, softly whisp'ring, as it slowly moves a-long.[G7]
And those who stop and listen, it will sing this mournful song.[C]
Of side-winde[F]rs and the horn toad on the thorny chaparral,[C]
In the sun[D7]ny days and the moonlight nights, the lonely coyotes yell.)[G]
[C]
How the stars seem they co[G7]uld touch you as you lay and gaze on high
At the hea[C]vens where you're hoping you'll be going when you die.
For more Johnny Cash chords, see www.unofficial-johnnycash.com!
