Gotta Serve Somebody

Words and music Bob Dylan
Released on Slow Train Coming (1979) and on Biograph (1985). Played in a new arrangment during the summer 2001 tour
Tabbed (a tremendous achievement, indeed...) by Eyolf Østrem

The A should be treated “bluesily”, which means that Am sounds just as good.

A 
You may be an ambassador to England or France, 

You may like to gamble, you might like to dance, 

You may be the heavyweight champion of the world, 

You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls 

 D
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
  A
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
 E D7
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
   A
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.  

You might be a rock 'n' roll addict prancing on the stage,
You might have drugs at your command, women in a cage,
You may be a business man or some high degree thief,
They may call you Doctor or they may call you Chief

You may be a state trooper, you might be a young Turk, 
You may be the head of some big TV network, 
You may be rich or poor, you may be blind or lame, 
You may be living in another country under another name 

You may be a construction worker working on a home, 
You may be living in a mansion or you might live in a dome, 
You might own guns and you might even own tanks, 
You might be somebody's landlord, you might even own banks 

You may be a preacher with your spiritual pride, 
You may be a city councilman taking bribes on the side, 
You may be workin' in a barbershop, you may know how to cut hair, 
You may be somebody's mistress, may be somebody's heir 

Might like to wear cotton, might like to wear silk, 
Might like to drink whiskey, might like to drink milk, 
You might like to eat caviar, you might like to eat bread, 
You may be sleeping on the floor, sleeping in a king-sized bed 

You may call me Terry, you may call me Timmy, 
You may call me Bobby, you may call me Zimmy, 
You may call me R. J., you may call me Ray, 
You may call me anything but no matter what you say 

Your gonna have to serve somebody.