ISAAC ET AL Words and music © 2003 by Paul Estin. Original draft: 2003-Feb-14 Latest version: 2003-Aug {Intro:} G F C G I was the smallest kid in seventh grade G F C G Also the smartest; the scars slowly fade... G Em F G Each day at school I would pay a harsh price G F C G Even my so-called friends weren't very nice {Verse:} C Am Dm7 G But... once I got home I could be my true self C Am F G Hundreds of friends in the books on my shelf! Em Gm Dm Fm Ray had his Martians, and Art brought The Star, C Am F G7 With Isaac and Robert, I'd travel so far... {Refrain:} C C F G Robots and Rama and rocks from the moon C C F G Open the book and I'm heading there soon! Am Em F G The worlds of tomorrow I'll visit today, C C F G with Isaac and Arthur and Ro-... bert... and C G F G7 Ray... C Am Dm7 G Here are a few tales that Isaac told me: C Am F G A man, Hari Seldon, predicts history, Em Gm Dm Fm A world ends in nightfall, the Last Question awes, C Am F G7 Foundation, Empire, the robots' Three Laws... C Am Dm7 G Then came the stories from Arthur C.'s pen: C Am F G Alien rendezvous, Childhood's End, Em Gm Dm Fm Orbital towers, God's nine billion names, C Am F G7 A sentient computer who likes to play games... ("I'm sorry, Dave.") {Refrain} C Am Dm7 G From Robert's mind there came so many notions: C Am F G New forms of government and of emotion, Em Gm Dm Fm Alien parasites, ships to the stars, C Am F G7 Religion that came from a man raised on Mars... C Am Dm7 G Tattoos that tell tales and others from Ray: C Am F G A world in which each person's life lasts eight days, Em Gm Dm Fm Martian mindreaders, books are a crime, C Am F G7 Don't step on a bug if you travel through time! {Refrain} C Am Dm7 G There were other authors I'd read after school C Am F G Like Ursula, Madeleine, Orson, and Poul Em Gm Dm Fm My dad's old anthologies, from a strange age C Am F G7 '‘Cause short stories had more ideas-per-page! C Am Dm7 G Later, when older, I'd read books by Barry, C Am F G Frederik, and Harlan, and Jerry and Larry, Em Gm Dm Fm But it's always the first four of whom I'm most fond C Am F G7 Half of them gone, but their stories live on... {Final refrain:} C C F G Robots and Rama and rocks from the moon C C F G Open the book and WE'RE heading there soon! Am Em F G The worlds of tomorrow WE'LL visit today, C C F - G - with Isaac and Arthur and Ro... bert... and C G F GC Ray! Note: For Em-Gm-Dm-Fm sequence I actually play these chords (because they're easier): Em (022000) Gm7 (xx3333) Dm7 (xx0231) Fm7 (xx1111). Thanks to James Kushner and Steve Brinich for help improving the lyrics. Melody and harmony parts (in C): Melody and harmony are shown in parentheses next to the chords. Capital letters indicate going up (^) or down (v) to the next octave: Intro: (range = vG to ^C, low4th+octave) G F C G (g dd, f cc, e cd, vG) G F C G (g dd, f cc, e cc, d vG) G Em F G (g g^A, B AA, C BA, g) G F C G (g dd, f cc, e cd, vG) I was the smallest kid in the sixth grade Also the smartest; the scars slowly fade... Each day at school I would pay a harsh price Even my so-called friends weren't very nice Verse: (range = a to ^Bb, octave+) C Am Dm7 G7 (c de, a bc, d ef, b) C Am F G (c de, a bc, f d^A, g) Em Gm Dm Fm (g eg, ^Bb BbBb, A gf, Ab) C Am F G7 (e fg, c de, f dc, b) But once I got home I could be my true self Hundreds of friends in the books on my shelf! Ray had his Martians, and Art brought The Star, With Isaac and Robert, I'd travel so far... [The other verses are sung to the same melody] Refrain: (range = b to ^C, octave+) (harmony range = c to ^D, octave+) C C F G ( e cc, e cc, fgf, d) ( g ee, g ee, ^A CA, g) C C F G ( e cc, e cc, fg^A, g) ( g ee, g ee, f ^DC, B) Am Em F G (g^C CC, B gg, Agf, g) (ec ce, g gg, f g^A, B) C C F G ( ce gg, g fe, f..., b.. d) (eg ^CC, C Bg, ^C..., g.. ^B) C G F G7 ( c...) ( C...) Robots and Rama and rocks from the moon Open the book and I'm heading there soon! The worlds of tomorrow I'll visit today, with Isaac and Arthur and Ro-... bert... and Ray... Final chorus ends with: (b to ^C, oct+) (harmony = c to ^G, oct+5th) C C F - G - (ce gg, g fe, f..., ^B.. B) (eg ^CC, C Bg, ^C..., G.. F) C G F GC ( C...) ( E...)