G: 320003                                       
C: x32010
Csus4: x33010                                           
D: xx0232               
Gsus4: 330003                                                   

Verse:
G
One of my fondest memories
    C
Was sittin' on my daddy's knee
G
Listenin' to the stories that he told

He pulled out that old photograph
       C                Csus4    C
Like a treasured memory from the past, and said
 G           D               G
"Child, this is the Van Lear Rose"

G Gsus4 G

Verse:
Now, the Van Lear Rose coulda had her pick
And all the fellas figured rich
Until this poor boy caught her eye
The fellas would all laugh and say
"You're dreaming, boy, she'll never look your way
You'll never, ever own the Van Lear Rose"

Chorus:
            C
She was the belle of Johnson county
     G
Ohio river to Big Sandy
  D                       G
A beauty to behold like a diamond in the coal
        C
All the miners they would gather 'round
    G
And talk about the man that came to town
D                                                      G
Right under their nose stole the heart of the Van Lear Rose

Verse:
Then one night in mid-July
Underneath that old blue Kentucky sky
Well, that poor boy won that beauty's heart
Then my daddy would look at my mommy and smile
As he brushed the hair back from my eyes and he'd say
"Your mama, she's the Van Lear Rose"

Chorus:
            C
She was the belle of Johnson county
     G
Ohio river to Big Sandy
  D                       C              G
A beauty to behold like a diamond in the coal
        C
All the miners they would gather 'round
    G
And talk about the man that came to town
      D                                                G
Right under their nose stole the heart of the Van Lear Rose
      D                                                G
Right under their nose stole the heart of the Van Lear Rose