C             Am           Em             Am      Dm
Well, the diamond fades quickly when matched to the face of Maria
        F                G          F             G           C
All the harps they sound empty when she lifts her lips to the sky
        C            Am             Em          Am          Dm
All the brown of her skin makes her hair seem a soft golden rainfall
     F               G                F          G             C
That spills from the mountains to the bottomless depths of her eyes


[Verse 2]
      C              Am         Em               Am          Dm
Well, she stands all around me, her hands slowly sifting the sunshine
        F             G           F               G          C
All the laughter that linger down deep 'neath her smilin' is free
      C               Am            Em          Am          Dm
Well, it spins and it twirls like a hummingbird lost in the morning
    F            G              F        G            C
And caresses the south wind and silently sails to the sea


[Verse 3]
        C               Am               Em        Am              Dm
Ah, the sculptor stands stricken and the artist he throws 'way his brushes
         F           G            F             G           C
When her image comes dancin', the sun she turns sullen with shame
        C             Am              Em             Am           Dm
And the birds they go silent, and the wind stops his sad mournful singing
         F            G            F         G              C
When the trees of the forest start gently to whisperin' her name


[Verse 4]
      C          Am           Em          Am         Dm
So as softly she wanders I'll desperately follow her footsteps
         F           G            F       G            C
And I'll chase after shadows that offer a trace of her sight
         C       Am             Em       Am            Dm
Ah, they promise eternally that she lies hidden within them
      F            G               F       G        C
But I find they've deceived me and sadly I bid them goodbye


[Verse 5]
       C              Am     Em            Am          Dm
So the serpent slides slowly away with his moments of laughter
        F         G         F            G            C
And the old washerwoman has finished her cleanin' and gone
        C            Am           Em         Am          Dm
But the bamboo hangs heavy in the bondage of quicksilver daydreams
      F            G         F           G        C
And a lonely child longingly looks for a place to belong


[Outro]
C Am Em Am Dm
F G F G C