John Prine Beyond Words

by John Prine

The first official book from award-winning songwriter, John Prine. In this book, John Prine curates a selection of his best loved songs. Included are lyrics, guitar chords, commentary from John and over 100 photographs - may never before published - from his personal collection.

John Prine has written songs that have become central to the American musical heritage. This former Maywood, Illinois mailman came to prominence with his debut record, 'John Prine' in 1971, which includes classics like, "Angel from Montgomery," "Sam Stone," "Paradise," and "Hello in There." His lyrics speak to the everyday experience of ordinary people, with a simple honesty and an extraordinary ability to connect with the heart.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Poetry, Biography, Memoir

180 pages, Paperback

First published April 18, 2017

Reviews

[David Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Prine: Beyond Words by John Prine (Oh Boy Records 2017)
(780.92) (3589).

I absolutely adore John Prine’s music. I have been a fan of his lyrics, his attitude, and his persona since the 1960’s. The former Chicago mail carrier is a legend for the countless funny songs he has penned. His talent extends to poignant songs as well but not to his gravelly singing voice or his guitar playing.

This is a book of Prine's memories. It features the lyrics and chords to sixty-five of his songs and photos from his boyhood through the date of publication.

If you’re familiar with John Prine, then you are already a fan, and you will already know his music. If you don’t know him yet, here are the lyrics to a representative Prine tune by way of introduction:

Dear Abby - words and music John Prine

Dear Abby, Dear Abby
My feet are too long
My hair's falling out and my rights are all wrong
My friends they all tell me that I've no friends at all
Won't you write me a letter, won't you give me a call
Signed, Bewildered

Chorus:
Bewildered, Bewildered
You have no complaint
You are what your are and you ain't what you ain't
So listen up buster, and listen up good
Stop wishing for bad luck and knocking on wood
Signed, Dear Abby

Dear Abby, Dear Abby
My fountain pen leaks
My wife hollers at me and my kids are all freaks
Every side I get up on is the wrong side of bed
If it weren't so expensive I'd wish I were dead
Signed, Unhappy

Unhappy, Unhappy
You have no complaint
You are what your are and you ain't what you ain't
So listen up buster, and listen up good
Stop wishing for bad luck and knocking on wood
Signed, Dear Abby

Dear Abby, Dear Abby
You won't believe this
But my stomach makes noises whenever I kiss
My girlfriend tells me it's all in my head
But my stomach tells me to write you instead
Signed, Noise-maker

Noise-maker, Noise-maker
You have no complaint
You are what your are and you ain't what you ain't
So listen up buster, and listen up good
Stop wishing for bad luck and knocking on wood
Signed, Dear Abby

Dear Abby, Dear Abby
Well I never thought
That me and my girlfriend would ever get caught
We were sitting in the back seat just shooting the breeze
With her hair up in curlers and her pants to her knees
Signed, Just Married

Just Married, Just Married
You have no complaint
You are what your are and you ain't what you ain't
So listen up buster, and listen up good
Stop wishing for bad luck and knocking on wood
Signed, Dear Abby

I enthusiastically recommend John Prine to everyone who needs a smile.
My rating: 7.5/10, finished 11/13/21 (3589).

[Re-read 9/30/23. There’s nobody else like the ol’ mailman from Chucago!]

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

What is amazing about John Prine is that most of the songs have about 5 major chords. The same 5. But so many of them are so much better than those of any other songwriter. If you don’t know him, get his first album and start there. Once you know what he sounds like, you can savor the words and terrific pictures of this book. Featured: Paradise and the world’s largest shovel; the automobile from “Automobile.”; the storm window and snowstorm from “Storm Windows.”
Only a couple of the song lyrics made me cry. This time.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book if you love John Prine and guitar playing (I do, so 5 stars). Most of the text is similar to what is in "Great Days: The John Prine Anthology," but its the pictures that are worth the buy if you're a fan.

[Jody Whelan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The written out lyrics give a great insight into how these classic songs were written

[Thomas Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Prine Beyond Words, 2017, 179 pages, Dewey 782.42164

Lyrics and chords to 65 John Prine songs. Photos. Includes
Dear Abby
Fish and Whistle
In Spite of Ourselves
Please Don't Bury Me
Spanish Pipedream
Speed of the Sound of Loneliness
Full song list:
https://search.library.wisc.edu/catal...

Pretty soon I met a woman, pretty soon she done me wrong
Pretty soon my life got sadder than any country song.
--Crazy as a Loon

John Prine songs:
https://www.jpshrine.org/lyrics/alpha...

[Jay Gabler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A smart hybrid of a songbook and a memoir, with Prine's self-deprecating humor shining throughout.

[Dotty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved every word. If you’re a true John Prine fan you’ll love this book. If you’re not - what the hell is wrong with you?

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was basically a scrapbook curated by Prine. Not surprisingly, he played with everybody. Tom Waits is in here, Steve Goodman is here, among others. Many of the pictures are family photos as well as candid photos of Prine doing all sorts of things. He includes complete lyrics (often original drafts w/ chord changes) to a number of songs too. My one complaint is that a lot of the photos that take up whole pages don't have a caption so you have to guess who's in it and what the context is. All in all, I will say that he's one of those musicians - like a lot of jazz players, actually - that I'm very intimidated by due to the size of his catalog. There are just so many songs. He's definitely up there with Dylan, Waits, and those guys. I've never heard a bad John Prine song. Anyway, this was a nice, light afternoon read and I'm inspired to listen to some JP right now.

[Connor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic for Prine, folk, country, or music fans in general. I'd mainly recommend it if you play guitar, as it is a chord book, however John stuffed the book with rare pictures, fun anecdotes and commentary, and copies of the original lyrics to show how the songs evolved. Whole-heartedly recommended.

[Evan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, it seems silly to say I read this book, but I did read it cover to cover, playing though just about every song on guitar on the way. Boy, I'll miss John Prine's music and his stories. If one thing comes out of this quarantine, I'm going to be able to play a decent version of "Souvenirs."

[Bret Hammond · Rating 5 out of 5]

2020 took John Prine from us. No matter what anyone says about Covid-19, that was too much!

I'm glad to finally have this book. The song lyrics and pictures are amazing. I think I'll be looking this one over a lot in the coming years.

[Larry Bonura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like all things John Prine, this is elegant, short, sweet, and whimsically alert.

[Phil Griffin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book for hard-core fans, but it’s really a compilation lyrics and photographs with a few captions thrown in for the shots.

[Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mostly pictures, lyrics (with guitar chords), pictures of hand written lyrics, and occasional comments by John Prine. It's basically perfect.

[Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been a huge John Prine fan since 1973. His music has changed my life and I have listened to him every day during our current pandemic. He soothes your heart and soul and brings a smile to your day and often a tear or two. A beautiful songwriter, I don't think that I will ever find another like him and my heart just broke when he lost the fight with Covid-19.
This lovely book is filled with photographs, song lyrics, and snapshots into his wonderful, rich life.
Thanks for the memories, John Prine. You are missed so much already.

[Tim Norris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did miss the Barbara Lewis lyrics

[Tommy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great coffee table books for fans of songwriting/Prine.

[Mervyn Kelso · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars but in this case I’m so biased ❤️🤠

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a beautiful book.