"Riverboat Song (Revival Outtake)" lyrics - GILLIAN WELCH

[Chorus:]
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 lamplight
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 the bean fields
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

[Chorus:]
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

[Outro:]
She's a blue old girl
That no one cares to travel on these days