Down the River
Chris Knight Lyrics

i was eighteen
At the age of eighteen, I had a youthful vibe.

my brother was twenty-one
My brother was three years older than me.

one saturday evening when all the work was done
On a Saturday evening, after finishing all the work, we decided to go down the river.

we went down to the river, had some trot lines to run
We went to the river to set up fishing lines called trot lines.

my brother walter had a fight the week before knocked a boy named wilson through the pool hall door they said you don't mess with wilson unless you want a war
My brother Walter had a physical altercation with a boy named Wilson, whom he knocked down through a pool hall door. Wilson was someone who was not to be messed with.

we put the boat in the water, i made the engine run loaded the lantern against the sinking sun and my brother walter was loading his gun and we went down the river
We put the boat in the water, turned on the engine, and loaded the lantern as the sun began to set. My brother Walter was also preparing his gun. We then embarked on our journey down the river.

down past the coal docks we were running our lines heard some drunken boaters racing up behind it was wilson and his cousin, they had trouble on their minds
As we were setting our lines past the coal docks, we heard some drunken boaters coming up behind us at a high speed. It was Wilson and his cousin, and it seemed like they had something in mind.

they passed on by us, probably going to tend their pots we headed up the river with the fish we'd caught but before we made the landing, i thought i heard a shot back down the river
Wilson and his cousin passed us by, as they were probably going to check on their own fishing pots. We were heading up the river with our own catch, but suddenly, I thought I heard a gunshot coming from back down the river.

my brother walter fell over the side i couldn't find him no matter how i tried and looked along the bank but i couldn't find where they'd hide
My brother Walter fell over the side of the boat, and I couldn't find him even after searching along the bank.

they drug the river, they searched it up and down couldn't find his body so they decided that he'd drowned but i knew better and wilson bragged around town
They searched the river thoroughly, but still couldn't find Walter's body, so they assumed that he'd drowned. However, I knew the truth, and Wilson bragged about his wrongdoings in town.

so one night i floated down right above wilson's shack i hid in the woods till i saw him walk out back i put a bullet in his head and dropped him in his tracks and we went down the river
One night, I went down the river and floated right above Wilson's shack. I hid in the woods and waited until I saw him walking out the back. I then shot him in the head, and we went down the river.

down below the trestle where the water runs slow i chained him to an anvil and then i let him go and five years later i ain't told a soul
I chained Wilson to an anvil in the area below the trestle, where the water runs slow, and then let him go. It's been five years since then, and I have not spoken to anyone about it.

and i ain't done much fishing, i hardly wet a line the death of my brother is still heavy on my mind i've been thinking wilson's cousin better find a place to hide cause i'm going down the river yeah i'm going down the river
I haven't been fishing much ever since my brother's death, as it still weighs heavily on my mind. I've been thinking that Wilson's cousin better find a place to hide, as I plan to go after him, and I'm going down the river.