In December 2007, David Byrne announced on the BBC Radio music show, The Weekender, that he was working Brian Eno on a brand new album of "proper songs", describing it as a "completely different thing" from My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, which was mostly experimental. Eno had invited Byrne to finish some songs that he had written but that did not have lyrics, some of which were eight years old. The resulting album, Everything That Happens will Happen Today, was self-released on August 18, 2008 through the official album's website. No record label was involved, and it available for stream or download at EverythingThatHappens.com.
The River
Brian Eno & David Byrne Lyrics
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Sleep, dark as the night
Somehow it seems it was all another dream
Soon dissolved in the light.
Oh, we were by the waterline.
Vague, the song of the night.
Innocent to all the peasant gods with you,
So, we drink to be renewed.
On the long, deep river
Where the moorhens cry
As the first sun quivers in the open sky,
Oh, she came down the river.
Soon, all the leaves were still.
The current was strong and the river was so long.
So, we drink to be renewed.
In the long cool evening,
Where the peacocks shiver
And the boat starts down the silver river way
I remember you saying,
As her deep eyes opened,
In the first light seeing her,
Here is someone new.
The River by Brian Eno and David Byrne is a dream-like song that speaks of a surreal experience that seems to have taken place in the midst of a river. The lyrics speak of the darkness and mystery of the river, and the feeling of being lost in its depths. The song begins with the lines "So deep in the water, sleep, dark as the night, somehow it seems it was all another dream, soon dissolved in the light," setting the tone for the rest of the song. The dream-like quality of the lyrics is further emphasized with lines like "Vague, the song of the night" and "Soon, all the leaves were still."
The song also speaks of the sense of renewal that comes with being close to nature, with lines like "So, we drink to be renewed" and "Where the moorhens cry, as the first sun quivers in the open sky." The idea of being close to nature is further emphasized with the line "Innocent to all the peasant gods with you."
As the song progresses, it becomes clearer that it is about a romantic encounter that has taken place in the midst of the river. The line "Oh, she came down the river" speaks of the arrival of a woman. The lines "The current was strong and the river was so long" speak of the intensity and the vastness of the experience. The song ends with the lines "Here is someone new," emphasizing the transformative power of the experience.
Line by Line Meaning
So deep in the water
We are completely immersed in the water
Sleep, dark as the night
The water is so still that it looks like darkness
Somehow it seems it was all another dream
It feels like what we experienced was just a dream
Soon dissolved in the light
As soon as the light hits the water, the darkness disappears
Oh, we were by the waterline.
We were standing near the edge of the water
Vague, the song of the night.
The sounds of the night are unclear and distant
Innocent to all the peasant gods with you,
We are unaware of the folk gods in this area, as we are with each other
So, we drink to be renewed.
We are drinking water to rejuvenate ourselves
On the long, deep river
We are on a river that is very long and deep
Where the moorhens cry
We can hear the sound of moorhens in the distance
As the first sun quivers in the open sky,
The sun is just rising and the sky is starting to light up
Oh, she came down the river.
We saw a woman floating down the river
Soon, all the leaves were still.
As she floated by, the leaves on the trees stopped moving
The current was strong and the river was so long.
The river was powerful and seemed to go on forever
In the long cool evening,
As the evening gets cooler
Where the peacocks shiver
We can see peacocks shaking in the cold
And the boat starts down the silver river way
A boat begins its journey down the river, which looks silver in the light
I remember you saying,
I recall you saying
As her deep eyes opened,
As the woman opened her eyes
In the first light seeing her,
Seeing her first thing in the morning light
Here is someone new.
She looks like someone we've never seen before
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BRIAN ENO, DAVID BYRNE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind