New River Train
Bobby Helms Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

I'm leaving on that new river train
I'm leaving on that new river train
That same old train that brought me here
It's gonna take me away again

Oh darling you can't love but one
Oh darling you can't love but one
You can't love but one and have any fun
Oh darling you can't love but one

I'm leaving on that new river train...

Oh darling you can't love two
Oh darling you can't love two
You can't love two and your little heart be true
Oh darling you can't love two

Oh darling you can't love three
Oh darling you can't love three
You can't love three and still love me
Oh darling you can't love three

Oh darling you can't love four
Oh darling you can't love four
You can't love four and love me any more
Oh darling you can't love four





I'm leaving on that new river train...
I'm leaving on that new river train

Overall Meaning

The song "New River Train" by Bobby Helms is a traditional American folk song which talks about leaving a former love behind and moving on via a train. The song's chorus comes in the form of a repetition of lyrics, "I'm leaving on that new river train, that same old train that brought me here, it's gonna take me away again." This line is repeated throughout the song to emphasize the singer's intention to move on, leave their lover behind, and start a new chapter.


The verses provide a list of instructions from the singer to their lover about how to love someone properly. The initial message is that "darling, you can't love but one," highlighting the idea of monogamy. The following verses carry on with this theme, using increasing numbers to make the point that the more one loves, the less devotion they can have with a specific person. This could be interpreted as the singer's way of letting their former flame know that they have exceeded their limit on lovers, and therefore it is time for them to leave town and move on.


In summary, "New River Train" is an American folk song that deals with love, heartbreak, and the idea of leaving someone behind to start a new life. The chorus is catchy, and the lyrics simplistic, yet they convey the message of the song well.


Line by Line Meaning

I'm leaving on that new river train
I'm departing on the New River Train to get away


That same old train that brought me here
The New River Train that's taking me away is the same one that brought me here before


It's gonna take me away again
The train will take me away once more


Oh darling you can't love but one
You can only love one person at a time


You can't love but one and have any fun
You can't have any fun if you're trying to love more than one person


Oh darling you can't love two
You can't expect to love two people and be true to either of them


You can't love two and your little heart be true
Your heart can't be true to one person if it's split between two


Oh darling you can't love three
You can't possibly love three people and still love me


You can't love three and still love me
You can't divide your love between three people and still give any to me


Oh darling you can't love four
You can't truly love four people and still claim to love me


You can't love four and love me any more
If you're trying to love four people, there's no way you can love me any more


I'm leaving on that new river train
Once again, I'm departing on the New River Train




Contributed by Chase A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Comments from YouTube:

Marianne Menon

Awesome! I love this one by Bobby Helms...Just great! Thanks so much for sharing and I'd like to thank you for subscribing to my channel!! :) ~Marianne..

Justin Daniel Dunn

love this so much  :)

cadjunk

Love this one! And the New River runs thru my home town (smile). Take care. Gwen

john sandiford

Nice song,thanks for sharing Pat

Pat Halsted

Thank Gwen for listeninig !

Pat Halsted

Thank you for listening and you are welcome for the subscrib

Stephen Mahala

23 December 1958 [14:30-18:00] Bradley Film and Recording Studio, 804 16th Ave. South, Nashville, TN - Bobby Helms (Bobby Helms [vcl], Harold Bradley [gt], Hank Garland [gt], Grady Martin [gt], Ray Edenton [gt], Bob Moore [bass], Buddy Harman [drums], Owen Bradley [piano] + vocal chorus. Producer: Owen Bradley)

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