The Trinity Session is perhaps their best known record, recorded live in a single day on a single microphone in a church in Toronto. This album also included a unique cover version of Lou Reed's "Sweet Jane". Reed reportedly liked the Junkies' version of the song better than his own, and began performing their version in concert.
None of the band's subsequent albums have been hits outside of Canada, although the band has maintained a dedicated following and have continued to have chart hits in their native country. Following their 1998 album Miles from Our Home, Cowboy Junkies were dropped from their major label contract. They have continued to release albums on their own independent label, Latent Records.
River
Cowboy Junkies Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And strike a deal with her I'll say,
"I'll fold you in two and I'll carry you away
To a place where your headwaters will flow
Clean through to your mouth."
In return I'll request a small sanctuary
By her banks where we will live with our small family
While the world clamours at our door
We will dance and not let them in.
And if one day we wake up to a bed dry as a bone
Find our river stolen, find our sanctuary gone
We will stand and take stock and be grateful
For what we've not lost.
We will pack up our bags, pack our small family
Head across the valley to where the aspen trees
Shiver as they ascend - the green hills rising to blue.
At the edge of the chopping we will turn
And bid fond "adieu".
All that I know to be true
Is the touch of your hand on my skin.
One look from you can so easily soothe
All this turmoil within
As we dance cheek to cheek
With our feet so completely
Locked in a time all our own.
I stop to speak
But you gently keep me
Moving in time to the song.
And in a voice that is sloppy with gin
You say, "let the world spin."
I'm going to find me a dying river
And strike a deal with her I'll say,
"I'll fold you in two and I'll carry you away
To place where your headwaters will flow
Clean through to your mouth."
In return I'll request a small sanctuary
By her banks where we will live with our small family
She will water our garden and clean the dirt from our skin.
While the world clamours at our door
We will dance and not let them in.
The lyrics of Cowboy Junkies' song "River" talk about finding a dying river and making a deal with her to carry her away to a place where her headwaters will flow clean to her mouth again. In exchange, the singer asks for a small sanctuary by her banks where they can live with a small family. The river will water their garden and clean the dirt from their skin, while the world clamors at their door. They will dance and not let them in. If they wake up one day to find their river stolen or their sanctuary gone, they will be grateful for what they haven't lost. They will pack up their bags and move on to a place where the aspen trees shiver as they ascend, and where the green hills rise to blue.
The lyrics of "River" are about the importance of finding a sanctuary, a place where one can go to escape from the chaos and noise of the world. The river is a metaphor for life, and the singer's desire to find a dying river and restore it to its former glory represents his desire to find meaning and purpose in life. The song is also about the importance of appreciating what we have and not taking things for granted.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm going to find me a dying river
I will search for a river on its last legs
And strike a deal with her I'll say,
Negotiating an agreement with her I will say
"I'll fold you in two and I'll carry you away
"I will wrap you up and take you to
To a place where your headwaters will flow
A location where the source of the river can flow
Clean through to your mouth."
All the way down until reaching the sea
In return I'll request a small sanctuary
Offering compensation, I will ask for a small place of refuge
By her banks where we will live with our small family
Living alongside the river with our close-knit family
She will water our garden and clean the dirt from our skin.
Functioning as a source of irrigation and a way to cleanse ourselves
While the world clamours at our door
Despite the persistent noise of the outside world
We will dance and not let them in.
We will joyfully move to the music and not be disturbed
And if one day we wake up to a bed dry as a bone
In the event of the stream drying out
Find our river stolen, find our sanctuary gone
If discovering the river has been taken away and our refuge has vanished
We will stand and take stock and be grateful
We'll take inventory and be appreciative
For what we've not lost.
For what we still possess.
We will pack up our bags, pack our small family
We will gather our things and our children
Head across the valley to where the aspen trees
Travel across the entire valley to where the aspen trees are situated
Shiver as they ascend - the green hills rising to blue.
The trees quiver as they move upwards, blending into the rising blue hills.
At the edge of the chopping we will turn
We will stop cutting through the trees at the boundary
And bid fond "adieu".
And say our heartwarming goodbyes.
All that I know to be true
Only one thing remains certain in my mind
Is the touch of your hand on my skin.
That is the only thing I can be confident about
One look from you can so easily soothe
A single glance from you can comfortably calm me
All this turmoil within
The inner unrest and anxiety in me
As we dance cheek to cheek
As we sway in each other's embrace
With our feet so completely
Our feet locked in pace together
Locked in a time all our own.
Completely absorbed in our own world, with time standing still.
I stop to speak
I pause to say something
But you gently keep me
But you tenderly guide me
Moving in time to the song.
Merging our movements seamlessly with the melody.
And in a voice that is sloppy with gin
With speech that is slurred from drinking gin
You say, "let the world spin."
You say, "let the world continue to move."
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Sister Freeja
This song is on my top 5, maybe 3, like for life. I've been listening to for some good 15 years now, and I always find new layers to the music and the lyrics as I grow older. It has different meanings in different parts of my life, you know? If that makes any sense.
Amazing, amazing song.
Eve Laing
same. life long fan since I stumbled on this.
Lisa R
I've loved this song ever since I heard it back in 2002 on the movie Lost and Delirious.
john sandiford
It is a great song,thanks for listening Lisa.
danylively
It sounds so sweet and so sad at the same time 😢, really reminds me when Paulie was indeed lost and delirious for Tory had left her
Jeannette Müller
Fantastisch, ein Lied zum Träumen 🥰🥰🥰
J.R. Hoover
Lost and delirious.This song is really beautiful.
Collin Kirkbright
"As the world clamors at our door we will dance and not let them in."
This line epitomizes Michael Timmin's songwriting philosophy: Keep it simple, honest and speak to and from the human heart. It's a universal language that this cynical world might find clichéd, which only is evidence of how degenerate it's become.
This band would be more well-known in a more sane world. We don't deserve them. It's proof of some kind of higher grace that they're still around playing and recording.
Shirley Mcclintock
Yes, I loved this song from the movie "Lost and Delirious"
Michael Johnson
Listen to this at least three times a day. Very nice.