The River (Live at Madison Square Garden, New York City, NY - September 1979)

I come from down in the valley, where mister, when you're young

They bring you up to do like your daddy done

Me and Mary, we met in high school, when she was just 17

We drive out of this valley, down to where the fields were green

We'd go down to the river, and into the river we'd dive

Oh, down to the river we'd ride

But I got Mary pregnant, and man, that was all she wrote

And for my 19th birthday, I got a union card and a wedding coat

We went down to the courthouse, and the judge put it all to rest

No wedding day smiles, no walk down the aisle

No flowers, no wedding dress

We went down to the river and into the river we'd dive

Oh, down to the river we'd ride

I got a job working construction for the Johnstown Company

But lately, there ain't been no work on account of the economy

And all that things that seemed so important

Well, mister, they vanished right into the air

I just act like I don't remember, Mary acts like she don't care

But I remember us riding in my brother's car

Her body tan and wet down at the reservoir

At night on them banks I'd lie awake

And pull her close just to feel each breath she'd take

Now the memories come back to haunt me

They haunt me like a curse

Is a dream a lie if it don't come true, or is it something worse?

That sends me down to the river, though I know the river is dry

Oh, down to the river, we did ride

Down to the river, my baby and I

Oh, down to the river we ride

Oh-oh-ooh, ooh-ooh-oh

Ooh, ooh-ooh-ooh, ooh

Oh-oh-ooh, ooh-ooh-oh

Ooh, ooh-ooh-ooh, ooh