In The Heat Of The Summer

by Phil Ochs

Intro: Dm Gm Dm Gm Dm 

       Gm          Dm
In the heat of the summer
F                       A
When the pavements were burning
    Dm        C        Dm 
The soul of a city was ravaged in the night
          Gm           Dm
After the city sun was sinkin'


Dm         Gm           Dm
Now no one knows how it started
F                    A
why the windows were shattered
Dm          C         Dm              
But deep in the dark, someone set the spark
           Gm         Dm 
And then it no longer mattered.

Dm       Gm                Dm
Down the streets they were rumbling
F                    A
All the tempers were ragin
Dm          C            Dm
Oh, where, oh, where are the white silver tongues
              Gm            Dm
Who forgot to listen to the warnings?

Dm     Gm          Dm
On and On come the angry 
F                   A
No longer following reason
Dm      C               Dm 
And all the stores were the target now
               Gm                  Dm
Where just the other day they were buyin

Dm             Gm            Dm 
Drunk with the memory of the ghetto
F                          A
Drunk with the lure of the looting
Dm                C            Dm
And the memory of the uniforms shoving with their sticks
             Gm              Dm
Asking, "Are you looking for trouble?"

Dm       Gm              Dm
"No, no, no," moaned the mayor.
F                    A    
"It's not the way of the order.
 Dm         C                  Dm 
"Oh stay in your homes, please leave us alone
               Gm             Dm
"We'll be glad to talk in the morning."

Dm              Gm                Dm
"For shame, for shame," wrote the papers.
F                      A
"Why the hurry to your hunger?
Dm           C            Dm     
"Now the rubble's resting on your broken streets
                 Gm              Dm
"So you see what your rage has unraveled."

Dm        Gm         Dm
Baricades sadly were risin 
F                   A
Bricks were heavily flyin 
Dm          C                    Dm
And the loudspeaker drowned like a whisperin' sound
              Gm             Dm
when compared to the angered emotions   

Dm           Gm       Dm
And when the fury was over
F                               A
And the Shame was replacing the anger.
Dm        C             Dm    
So wrong, so wrong, but we've been down so long
           Gm               Dm
And we had to make somebody listen
       Gm          Dm        Gm Dm Gm Dm
In the heat of the summer......

Notes:

Chords and lyric corrections supplied by Cody Gillespie-Lynch.

Jan Hauenstein tells me that this song is in C#m, though. The easiest way would be to play in Am and capo up 4th fret. Like this: Intro: (Am) (Dm) (Am) (Dm) (Am)In the (Dm)heat of the (Am)summer (C)When the pavements were (E)burning The (Am)soul of a (G)city was (Am)ravaged in the night After the (Dm)city sun was (Am)sinking. (Dm) (Am) (Dm)...