Verse
[D] [G] [D]
On a warm summer's evenin' on a train bound for nowhere,
[A7]
I met up with the gambler; we were both too tired to sleep.
[D] [G] [D]
So we took turns a starin' out the window at the darkness
[G] [D] [A7] [D]
'til boredom overtook us, and he began to speak.
Verse 2
[D] [G] [D]
He said, "Son, I've made a life out of readin' people's faces,
[A7]
and knowin' what their cards were by the way they held their eyes.
[D] [G] [D]
So if you don't mind my sayin', I can see you're out of aces.
[G] [D] [A7] [D]
For a taste of your whiskey I'll give you some advice."
Verse 3
[D] [G] [D]
So I handed him my bottle and he drank down my last swallow.
[A7]
Then he bummed a cigarette, and asked me for a light.
[D] [G] [D]
And the night got deathly quiet, and his face lost all expression.
[G] [D] [A7] [D]
Said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy, ya gotta learn to play it right.
Chorus
[D] [G] [D]
You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em,
[G] [D] [A7]
know when to walk away and know when to run.
[D] [G] [D] [G] [D]
You never count your money when you're sittin' at the table.
[G] [D] [A7] [D]
There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done.
[Verse 4] (Key change)
[E] [A] [E]
Every gambler knows that the secret to survivin'
[A] [E] [B7]
is knowin' what to throw away and knowing what to keep.
[E] [A] [E]
'Cause ev'ry hand's a winner and ev'ry hand's a loser,
[A] [E] [B7] [E]
and the best that you can hope for is to die in your sleep."
Verse 5
[E] [A] [E]
And when he'd finished speakin', he turned back towards the window,
[B7]
crushed out his cigarette and faded off to sleep.
[E] [A] [E]
And somewhere in the darkness the gambler, he broke even.
[A] [E] [B7] [E]
But in his final words I found an ace that I could keep.
Chorus
[E] [A] [E]
You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em,
[A] [E] [B7]
know when to walk away and know when to run.
[E] [A] [E] [A] [E]
You never count your money when you're sittin' at the table.
[A] [E] [B7] [E]
There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done.
