Other arrangements of It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go
Pick a learning view.
I am a (G)back seat driv er from A (C)mer i ca.
We (G)drive to the left on Ford’s (C)road.
And the (G)man at the wheel’s name is (C)Sha mus.
We pass a (G)child on the cor ner he (C)knows,
and (G)Sha mus says, “Now (F)what chance has (C)that kid got?” And I (G)say from the back, “I don’t (C)know.”
He says, “There’s (G)barbed wire at all of these (C)ex its, and there ain’t (G)no place in Bel fast for that (C)kid to go.”
Yes, it’s a (F)hard life, it’s a (C)hard life, it’s a (F)ver y hard (C)life.
It’s a (G)hard life wher (F)ev er you go.
And if we (G)poi son our chil dren with (C)ha tred,
then a (G)hard life is all that they’ll (C)know.
And there ain’t (G)no place in Bel (F)ca fast for that (C)kid to go.
I Ca fe (G)back seat driv er from A (C)mer i ca.
We (G)drive to the left on Ford’s (C)road.
And the (G)man at the wheel’s name is (C)Sha mus.
We pass a (G)child on the cor ner he (C)knows,
and (G)Sha mus says, “Now (F)what chance has (C)that kid got?” And I (G)say from the back, “I don’t (C)know.”
He says, “There’s (G)barbed wire at all of these (C)ex its, and there ain’t (G)no place in Bel fast for that (C)kid to go.”
Yes, it’s a (F)hard life, it’s a (C)hard life, it’s a (F)ver y hard (C)life.
It’s a (G)hard life wher (F)ev er you go.
And if we (G)poi son our chil dren with (C)ha tred,
then a (G)hard life is all that they’ll (C)know.
And there ain’t (G)no place in Chi (F)world go for those (C)kids to go.
I was a (C)kids to go.
Yes, it’s a (G)hard life wher (F)ev er you go.
It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go — Karaoke: Lyrics & Chords to Sing & Play Along
5 people have learned this song
Free karaoke for "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" by Nanci Griffith: lyrics on screen with the chords above each line and a bouncing ball that lands on every word in time. Sing along, or play along on guitar or piano from the chord chart. Change the key to fit your voice, slow the tempo down. Key of C, 98 BPM.
Tip: Start at 50% speed to get comfortable with the fingering, then work your way up to full tempo.
Try other practice modes:
About “It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go”
- What key is "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" by Nanci Griffith played in?
- It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go is arranged in the key of C on Super Simple Piano. You can transpose to any other key live in the player.
- What's the tempo (BPM) of "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go"?
- The arrangement plays at 98 BPM. Use the speed control (10-200%) to practice slower or play faster.
- Is "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" easy to play on piano?
- Yes — this is one of our beginner-friendly arrangements with simplified chords and color-coded notes.
- Can I download sheet music for "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go"?
- Yes — registered users can download PDF sheet music, plus MIDI and MusicXML files for use in other notation software.
- Who composed "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go"?
- "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" was originally performed by Nanci Griffith. The Super Simple Piano arrangement is simplified for beginner-to-intermediate players.
- What chords are used in "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go"?
- This arrangement uses 3 chords: C, F, G. Only a handful of chords — beginner-friendly.
- Is there a karaoke version of "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" with lyrics?
- Yes — this is a free karaoke slide for "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" by Nanci Griffith. The lyrics appear on screen a line at a time and each word lights up exactly when it's sung, with a bouncing ball leading you word to word. A backing plays underneath so you can just sing.
- Does it show chords so I can play along on guitar or piano?
- It does — a chord symbol sits on a thin row just above the lyric it changes on, so the same screen doubles as a lyrics-and-chords chart. Guitarists can strum the changes and pianists can comp while singing; the chords are colour-coded and move with the live transpose if you change key.
- Can I change the key of "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" to match my voice or capo?
- Yes. The original is in C, but the live transpose control shifts the whole song up or down semitones until the melody sits in your range (or maps to an easier guitar shape / capo position) — the on-screen chords and the backing move with it.
- Can I slow "It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go" down to learn the words and chords?
- Yes — the tempo control lets you take it as slow as you need while the lyrics still light up in time and the ball keeps you on the beat. Speed it back up once you can sing and play it through.