Intro: C | Em | Am | G


C            Em
All men kill the thing they love
    Am                       G
 By all let this, by all let this be heard


     C
   I never saw a man who looked with such a wistful eye
    Em
   Upon that little tent of blue which prisoners call the sky
       Am                                     G
   And at every drifting cloud that went with sails of silver by
      C                                  Em
   In Reading Gaol by Reading town there is a pit of shame
       Am                            G
   And in it lies a wretched man all eaten by teeth of flame


     C       Em         G        Am
 The man had killed the thing he loved
     C     Em     G
 And so he had to die


C            Em
All men kill the thing they love
    Am                       G
 By all let this, by all let this be heard

        C
   Some kill their love when they are young
   And some when they are old
        Em
   Some strangle with the hands of Lust
   Some with the hands of Gold
       Am
   The kindest use a knife, because
                       G
   The dead so soon grow cold
       C
   And there till Christ call forth the dead,
      Em
   In silence let him lie
      Am
   No need to waste the foolish tear
       G
   Nor heave the windy sigh


     C       Em         G        Am
 The man had killed the thing he loved
     C     Em     G
 And so he had to die


C           
All men kill (All men ki-i-ill)
    Em
the thing they love (The thing they lo-o-ove)
    Am                       G
 By all let this, by all let this be heard [x2]


C Em Am G


   C
   Some do it with a bitter look
               Em
   Some with a flattering word
       Am
   The coward does it with a kiss
           G
   And the brave man with a sword
 
       C       Em         G        Am
   The man had killed the thing he loved
       C     Em     G
   And so he had to die


C           
All men kill (All men ki-i-ill)
    Em
the thing they love (The thing they lo-o-ove)
    Am                       G
 By all let this, by all let this be heard

C           
Oh-o-oh (All men ki-i-ill)oh
    Em
Oh-Oh-o(The thing they lo-o-ove)oh
    Am        G
 Oh-oh-o,o Oh-Oh-o