Transcribed by Jon Nott 

  D* is the progression: Dsus - D - Dsus4 - D - Dsus - D (arpeggiated)

  A* is the progression: Asus - A - Asus4 - A - Asus - A (arpeggiated)

Intro: D* A* D* A*

D*                               A*
  i got my first real six string - brought it at the five & dime
D*                              A*
  played it til my fingers bled - was the summer of '69
D*                            A*
  me and some guys from school had a band and we tried real hard
D*                                A*
  jimmy quit and jody got married - shoulda known we'd never get far

Bm          A              D                      G
  oh when i look back now - that summer seemed to last for ever
Bm         A               D              G
  and if i had the choice - ya i'd always wanna be there
Bm               A               D*   A*
  those were the best days of my life

D*                         A*
  ain't no use complaining - when ya gotta job to do
D*                                       A*
  spent my evenings down at the drive in - and that's when i met you - ya
Bm                 A              D                       G
  standing on your mamma's porch - you told me that you'd wait forever
Bm           A               D                   G
  and when i held your hand - i knew that it was now or never
Bm               A               D*   A*                       D*  A*
  those were the best days of my life - back in the summer of '69

F             Bb
  man we were killin' time
          C                       Bb
  we were young and reckless - we needed to unwind
F         Bb                  C
  i guess nothing can last forever...

  D* A* D* A*

D*
  and now the times are changin'
A*
  look at everything that's come and gone
D*
  sometimes when i play my old six string
A*
  i think about you wonder what went wrong

Bm                 A              D                 G
  standing on your manna's porch - you told me it'd last forever
Bm           A               D                   G
  and when i held your hand - i knew that it was now or never
Bm               A                    D* A*                       D*  A*
  those were the best days of my life -    back in the summer of '69

     continue on D* A*

Chords:

Bm     - x24432
A      - x02220
G      - 320033 or 320003
D      - xx0232
F      - 133211
Bb     - x13331
C      - x32010