D: G: A: Em:
0. 0. 0. 0
0. 0. 0. 0
2. 0. 0. 0
0. 0. 2. 2
0. 5. 0. 2
0. 5. x  2


[Verse 1]
 D
First you told us only through you could we know God
                    G               D              A
And if we dared to question then He wouldn't spare the rod
     D
For you we worked the soil, for you we dug the moors
    G                                 D             A
For you we shed our blood and fought so many pointless wars
    G                        D            A
And now try to tell us there's nothing we can do
             G                     D           A
You say the world around us belongs fairly to the few
      D                      A
But about six billion people no doubt will agree
     G                D            A
This world is our home, not your property


[Chorus]
            D                  A
It's the commons, our right of birth
    G                            D             A
And you who would enclose the land all around the Earth
Em                                 G                A
Our future is your downfall, when we cut this ball and chain
          D           G          A              D
You who'd sacrifice the public good for your private gain


[Verse 2]
D
With our sweat we built the railroads, built cities on these shores
        G                       D                A
But because you own the money you say that it's all yours
            D
We laid the phone lines and the pipelines and then right before our eyes
               G                          D           A
You say these things our taxes paid for you now will privatize
 D                       A
Privatize the hospitals, privatize the schools
  G                          D                  A
Privatize the prisons for all those who break your rules
       D                     A
And preparing for the day when all the wells run dry
            G                    D                  A
You say you own the very rain that falls down from the sky


[Chorus]
            D                  A
But it's the commons, our right of birth
    G                          D              A
And to you who'd own the water all around the Earth
Em                                 G                A
Our future is your downfall, when we cut this ball and chain
          D           G          A              D
You who'd sacrifice the public good for your private gain


[Post-Chorus]
D
You claim to own the harvest with your terminator seeds
     G                               D          A
You claim to own the genomes of every animal that breeds
     D
You claim to own our culture and the music that we play
           G                         D              A
And with each song we download to your coffers we must pay


[Verse 3]
          D                       G
You would even own my name and you say it's for the best
             D                          A
Maybe you'll let us on your radio if our songs can pass your test
 D
You own country, you own western, you say you've given us a choice
    G                              D           A
You may own the airwaves but you'll never own my voice


[Chorus]
            D                  A
It's the commons, our right of birth
    G                          D              A
And to you who'd own the music all around the Earth
Em                                 G                A
Our future is your downfall, when we cut this ball and chain
          D           G          A              D
You who'd sacrifice the public good for your private gain

            D                  A
It's the commons, our right of birth
    G                            D             A
And to you who'd own the music all around the Earth
Em                                 G                A
Our future is your downfall, when we cut this ball and chain
          D           G          A              D
You who'd sacrifice the public good for your private gain