Lyrics Riverboat Song - Gillian Welch

Riverboat Song

Thought I’d sing to the river
Just cheer her on her way
She’s a blue old girl
That no one cares to travel on these days
I know some say she’s lazy
She was fast enough before
Half of every cotton crop
Came floating past my door
And there used to be a dance hall
When the gambling boat still ran
The air was full of lamp light
And the sound of dixieland
But the river men are gone now
She’s a melancholy girl
She never sees the delta queen
Or the Alabama pearl
And she looks like she’s lonely
As she tumbles to the sea
She’s headed down to Mexico
To find some company
Well the only time I cursed her
Was the spring of '65
She rolled across my bean field
Looking more than ten miles wide
Well I shoulda seen it comin'
As it does from time to time
Women’s gonna make a fuss
When no one pays her any mind
So thought I’d sing to the river
Just cheer her on her way
She’s a blue old girl
That no one cares to travel on these days
She’s a blue old girl
That no one cares
To travel on these days