Chely Wright - Emma Jean's Guitar Lyrics






I found it in a pawn shop in a ragged cardboard case
With the guns and dusty watches it looked so out of place
With a Trailways baggage sticker yellow frayed and torn
Destination Nashville September '64

[Chorus:]

And you could tell by the fingerboard her painted nails were long
She only needed three chords to play those good ole country songs
And her name's etched in the finish like a fading battle scar
And this 1950 Gibson was Emma Jean's guitar

I wonder if she played it in a small town talent show
With her hair teased to perfection in a dress her mamma sewed
And for a little inspiration she pasted on a star
Here up on the head stock of Emma Jean's guitar

[Chorus]

I wouldn't even know her if I saw her face to face
But there's a little bit of Emma Jean in every song I play
She passed along these hopes and dreams cradled in my arms
And I am just a guardian of Emma Jean's guitar

[Chorus]





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Chely Wright Emma Jean's Guitar Comments
  1. A.... L....

    Cost me a fortune. I already had a couple of superb Martins, but because of this haunting song I wanted a Gibson, tried a lot. No, not really. One day I got off the bus a stop early to go into the music shop to get a few flatpicks. I walked out with  Gibbson J45, on board Baggs pick-up. Took me through a summer season in Spain. The power of music is that it is powerful, simple as that.

  2. K.... P....

    That is just a lovely song. So evocative, it captures so much of what country hopefuls must start out with until they run into reality.

  3. H.... ....

    Beautiful. Thank you.

  4. d.... ....

    Without a doubt one of the very best country tunes of all time - Chely's voice is just so gorgeous as is she...

  5. L.... B....

    What a great song you can just feel the "back story".

  6. J.... C....

    Perfekt. 

  7. B.... M....

    Right, @Alex. Emma Jean was a dreamer hoping to make it in Nashville, like so many others. She didn't make it, and ended up pawning her guitar, like the song says in the beginning. She's a completely fictional character, and I doubt that Chely Wright really had a guitar with "Emma Jean" labeled on it. I added the "Emma Jean"s to the guitar pictures via picture editing software.

    B.... M....

    no offense but the text was somewhat obvious due to the angles. i get this isnt a professional thing but my OCD kicked in when i say it lol. good slideshow though. helps you visualize it

  8. A.... A....

    Oooooooh, she's a no-name, she was just hoping to make it in Nashville... lol, all this time I kept thinkig she was some big name whose guitar Chely found and now she's treasuring it. :P

  9. A.... A....

    Lovely song, but who's Emma Jean?

  10. M.... L....

    hello...i love this song too...I'm looking for the karaoke version. Do you know where I can get it? Or maybe do you have it? ....I'm desperately search for it...

  11. B.... M....

    Yeah, I would say it's pretty close to tenor. Or deep alto. She's got a rich yet fragile voice. Unique combination.

  12. J.... R....

    I didn't realize until I sang along with this song how deep Chely's voice is - the vocal range this falls into is tenor, isn't it?

  13. d.... ....

    My very favorite song of Chely's - thnks for getting it youtube.

  14. H.... ....

    Wonderful song, love it.

  15. d.... ....

    My favorite Chely song....what a fabulous tune...

  16. B.... M....

    @BipolarForJesus Well, I *didn't* find a photo of a guitar with "Emma Jean" on it; I cheated - I added that myself in PowerPoint. Same with the Trailways sticker.

  17. B.... ....

    Sweet! Love the 'country' sound, & am wondering where on earth did you find a
    photo of a guitar with the name 'Emma Jean' on it?? Very nice mix of photos!