Written by the New Zealand folk musician Paul Metzers
 
Played live by Dylan in Youngstown, OH Nov 2, 1992
 
Tabbed by Eyolf Østrem
Chords used:
Em7 xx2033 Cadd9 x32030 most often this seems to be played as a straight C
D        Em7   C                D    
Shotover River, your gold it is waning 
         C(add9)         D          G       D
And it's years since the color I've seen. 
D           Em7      C         D
No use just sitting, Lady Luck blaming 
     C(add9)     D            G       C/g  G
I'll pack up and make a break clean. 
D               Dsus4 D      G       D
Farewell to the gold    that never I found, 
    D          Dsus4 D      G          D
Goodbye to the nuggets that somewhere abound; 
         G         C             G         D
For it's only when dreaming that I see you gleaming 
     C           D         G 
Down in the dark deep underground. 
It's nearly three years since I left my old mother For adventure and gold by the pound. With Jimmy the prospector, he was another, For the hills of Otago we were bound.
Farewell . . .
We worked the Cardrona's dry valley all over Old Jimmy Williams and me. They were panning good dust on the winding shotover So we headed down there just to see.
Farewell . . .
We sluiced and we cradled for day after day Barely making enough to get by; Then a terrible flood swept poor Jimmy away During six stormy days in July.
Farewell . . .