As well, it nearly took him that long to find his own style. Hiatt began his solo career in 1974, and over the next decade he ran through a number of different styles from rock & roll to new wave-esque pop before he finally settled on a rootsy fusion of rock, country, blues, and folk with his 1987 album 'Bring the Family'. Though the album didn't set the charts on fire, it became his first album to gain some major commercial success, and several of the songs on the record became hits for other artists, including the aforementioned Raitt and Milsap. Following its success, Hiatt became a reliable hit songwriter for other artists, and he developed a strong cult following that continued to gain strength into the mid-90s.
While he was growing up in his hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana, Hiatt played in a number of garage bands. Initially, he was inspired by the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, and the music of those two artists would echo strongly throughout his work. Out of all the bar bands he played with in the late 60s, a group called The White Ducks was the one that received the most attention. Following his high-school graduation, he moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the age of 18, where he landed a job as a songwriter for Tree Publishing.
For the next several years, he wrote and performed at local clubs and hotels. Within a few years, his songs were being recorded by several different artists, including Conway Twitty, Tracy Nelson, and Three Dog Night, who took Hiatt's "Sure as I'm Sittin' Here" to number 16 in the summer of 1974. Eventually, his manager secured him an audition at Epic Records, and the label signed him in 1974, releasing his debut album, Hangin' Around the Observatory, later that year. Despite their critical acclaim, neither Hangin' Around the Observatory nor its 1975 follow-up Overcoats sold many copies, and he was dropped by the label. By the end of the year, Tree Publishing had let him go as well.
Following his failure in Nashville, Hiatt moved out to California. By the summer of 1978 he had settled in Los Angeles, where began playing in clubs, opening for folk musicians including Leo Kottke. With Kottke's assistance, Hiatt hired a new manager, Denny Bruce, who helped him secure a record contract with MCA Records. Slug Line, his first record for MCA, was released in the summer of 1979. Where his first two records were straight-ahead rock & roll and folk-rock, Slug Line was in the new wave vein of angry English singer/songwriters like Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, and Joe Jackson, as if Hiatt was vying for the role of the American angry young man. The new approach earned some strong reviews, yet it failed to generate any sales. Two Bit Monsters, his second MCA album, faced the same situation. Although it was well-received critically upon its 1980 release, it made no impression on the charts, and the label dropped him.
Apart from working on Two Bit Monsters, Hiatt spent most of 1980 as a member of Ry Cooder's backing band, playing rhythm guitar on the Borderline album and touring with the guitarist. Hiatt stayed with Cooder throughout 1981, signing a new contract with Geffen Records by the end of the year. Produced by Tony Visconti (David Bowie, T. Rex), his Geffen debut All of A Sudden was released in 1982, followed by the Nick Lowe/Scott Matthews & Ron Nagel-produced Riding With the King in 1983. As with his previous records for Epic and MCA, neither of his first two Geffen releases sold well. By this time, Hiatt's personal life was beginning to spin out of control as he was sinking deep into alcoholism. Around the time he completed 1985's Warming Up to the Ice Age, his second wife committed suicide. Following the release of Warming Up to the Ice Age, Hiatt was dropped by Geffen. By the end of 1985, he had entered a rehabilitation program. During 1986, he remarried and signed a new deal with A&M Records.
For his A&M debut, Hiatt assembled a small band comprising his former associates Ry Cooder (guitar), Nick Lowe (bass), and Jim Keltner (drums). Recorded over the course of a handful of days, the resulting album, Bring the Family, had a direct, stripped-down rootsy sound that differed greatly from his earlier albums. Upon its summer 1987 release, Bring the Family received the best reviews of his career and, for once, the reviews began to pay off, as the album turned into a cult hit, peaking at 107 on the U.S. charts; it was his first charting album. Hiatt attempted to record a follow-up with Cooder, Lowe, and Keltner, but the musicians failed to agree on the financial terms for the sessions. Undaunted, he recorded an album with John Doe, David Lindley, and Dave Mattacks, but he scrapped the completed project, deciding that the result was too forced. Hiatt's final attempt at recording the follow-up to Bring the Family was orchestrated by veteran producer Glyn Johns, who had him record with his touring band, the Goners. Despite all of the behind-the-scenes troubles behind its recording, the follow-up album, Slow Turning, actually appeared rather quickly, appearing in the summer of 1988.
Slow Turning, like Bring the Family before it, received nearly unanimous positive reviews and it was fairly well-received commercially, spending 31 weeks on the U.S. charts and peaking at 98. Within the next year, Hiatt successfully toured throughout America and Europe, strengthening his fan base along the way. Inspired by the success of Hiatt's two A&M albums, Geffen released the compilation Y' All Caught? The Ones That Got Away 1979-85 in 1989. That same year, other artists began digging through Hiatt's catalog of songs, most notably Bonnie Raitt, who covered "Thing Called Love" for her multi-platinum comeback album, Nick of Time.
In 1990, Hiatt returned with Stolen Moments, which was nearly as successful as Slow Turning, both critically and commercially. "Bring Back Your Love to Me," an album track from Stolen Moments that was also recorded by Earl Thomas Conley, won BMI's 1991 Country Music Award. By the time "Bring Back Your Love to Me" won that award, it had become a standard practice for artists to cover Hiatt's songs, as artists as diverse as Bob Dylan, Ronnie Milsap, Suzy Bogguss, and Iggy Pop all covered his songs in the early '90s. In 1993, Rhino Records released Love Gets Strange: The Songs of John Hiatt, which collected many of the cover versions that were recorded during the '80s and '90s.
During 1991, the group that recorded Bring the Family — Hiatt, Cooder, Lowe, and Keltner — re-formed as a band called Little Village, releasing their eponymous debut in early 1992. Based on the success of Bring the Family and Hiatt's A&M albums, expectations for Little Village were quite high, yet the record and its supporting tour were considered a major disappointment. Later, the individual members would agree that the band was a failure, mainly due to conflicting egos.
Hiatt decided to back away from the superstar nature of Little Village for his next album, 1993's Perfectly Good Guitar. Recorded in just two weeks with a backing band comprised of members of alternative rock bands School of Fish and Wire Train, the album was looser than any record since Bring the Family, but it didn't quite have the staying power of its two predecessors, spending only 11 weeks on the charts and peaking at number 47. The following year, he released his first live album, Hiatt Comes Alive at Budokan? Hiatt left A&M Records after the release of the record, signing with Capitol Records the following year.
Walk On, Hiatt's first Capitol album, was recorded during his supporting tour for Perfectly Good Guitar and featured guest appearances by the Jayhawks and Bonnie Raitt. Walk On entered the charts at 48, but slipped off the charts in nine weeks, indicating that his audience had settled into a dedicated cult following. Fittingly, after 1997's Little Head quickly came and went in the marketplace, Hiatt parted ways with Capitol, and his next album, 2000's Crossing Muddy Waters was released on the established independent imprint Vanguard Records. After a second album with Vanguard, The Tiki Bar Is Open, Hiatt alligned himself with another independent label, New West, for the release of his 2003 set Beneath This Gruff Exterior. Master of Disaster, along with CD and DVD versions of Live from Austin, TX followed in 2005.
Same Old Man followed in 2008; then The Open Road in 2010.
Cold River
John Hiatt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause the deal gone down
She was slipping on her stockings
Lord it made the sweetest sound
There was a baby in the reeds
Along the river outside of town
As he wound his pocket watch
Wasn't long they'd be forgetting
This old rainy Texas day
Little fella wasn't meant
For this old world anyway
Gambling and whoring
Hiding from plain view
Tell me which one of us rounders
Would you trust this poor child to
You just roll on cold river
Wash little Moses down
We've got business to attend to
In Chicago town, in Chicago town
They rolled out of Austin
On some kind of cattle train
She'd been with him for a year
Didn't know his second name
He worked the small towns hustling nine ball
She hooked the truck stops too
They were trying to make Chicago
Before the winter come blowing through
Some trucker sprang a leak
In California they supposed
Started working Arizona
Lord she missed the bloody rose
They rambled through the southwest
Making money and making time
But they never could find no help
Not a doctor, not that kind
You just roll on cold river
Wash little Moses down
We've got business to attend to
In Chicago town, in Chicago town
Some women love their babies
Some women won't have one
Some Texas woman found him
And we're still on the run
The kind of life we're living
He'd only slow us down
Ain't good for nothing anyway
Just rambling town to town
So, you just roll on cold river
Wash little Moses down
We've got business to attend to
In Chicago town, in Chicago town
Well he unpacked his suitcase
She pulled her stockings down
Started dreaming up a pool hall
And shooting up a round
She thought about tomorrow
When the money rolled around
That night they slept like babies
In Chicago town
John Hiatt's "Cold River" tells a vivid story of a couple on the run from their past, struggling to survive on the road. The song begins with the man and woman packing up their belongings and hitting the road after a deal gone down. They carry with them an abandoned baby they found along the river outside of town, and the lyrics depict the scene of the man winding his pocket watch as they contemplate the uncertain future ahead of them.
As they journey through Texas, Arizona, and California, trying to make it to Chicago before winter comes, they find that life on the road is not easy. They are hustling for cash, gambling and whoring to make ends meet, but the woman misses the life she had before they set out. As they continue to travel with the baby, they realize that their current lifestyle is not sustainable and that they cannot keep caring for the child. In the end, they leave the baby with a woman they meet in Texas before carrying on with their journey.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, he packed up his suitcase
He prepared to leave because the agreement was broken.
'Cause the deal gone down
Since the previous contract was void.
She was slipping on her stockings
She was getting dressed.
Lord, it made the sweetest sound
Her action created a pleasing noise.
There was a baby in the reeds
There was an abandoned infant by the river.
Along the river outside of town
Nearby the settlement by the waters.
As he wound his pocket watch
While he was winding his timepiece.
To set time spinnin' 'em all around
To get timepieces synchronized.
Wasn't long they'd be forgetting
It wouldn't take much time for people to forget.
This old rainy Texas day
The rainy day in Texas they encountered would soon be forgotten.
Little fella wasn't meant
The baby was not meant.
For this old world anyway
It wasn't fit for this world.
Gambling and whoring
Engaging in gambling and solicitation for illicit sex.
Hiding from plain view
Evading discovery.
Tell me which one of us rounders
Ask which of us drifters.
Would you trust this poor child to
Would you entrust the infant to either of us?
You just roll on cold river
Just flow, unmindful of us.
Wash little Moses down
Cleanse the baby in the river.
We've got business to attend to
We still have a task to do.
In Chicago town, in Chicago town
In the city of Chicago.
They rolled out of Austin
They left Austin.
On some kind of cattle train
On a train transporting livestock.
She'd been with him for a year
She had been his companion for twelve months.
Didn't know his second name
She was ignorant of his last name.
He worked the small towns hustling nine ball
He was making a living hustling pool in small towns.
She hooked the truck stops too
She prostituted herself at rest areas.
They were trying to make Chicago
They were hoping to reach Chicago.
Before the winter come blowing through
Before the cold season arrives.
Some trucker sprang a leak
A truck driver experienced a flat tire.
In California they supposed
They intended to fix it in California.
Started working Arizona
Soon they relocated to Arizona.
Lord she missed the bloody rose
She was yearning for what she left behind.
They rambled through the southwest
They wandered through the southwestern region of the US.
Making money and making time
They were earning a living and enjoying life.
But they never could find no help
They were unable to find assistance.
Not a doctor, not that kind
Neither medical nor any other help was to be found.
Some women love their babies
Some women are fond of children.
Some women won't have one
Some women choose not to have children.
Some Texas woman found him
A woman from Texas discovered the child.
And we're still on the run
And we must still escape.
The kind of life we're living
Our way of life.
He'd only slow us down
The child would only hinder us.
Ain't good for nothing anyway
The baby was not useful.
Just rambling town to town
Continually wandering from place to place.
Well, you just roll on cold river
River, you flow on, uncaring.
Wash little Moses down
Cleanse and carry the baby with you.
We've got business to attend to
We still have something to accomplish.
In Chicago town, in Chicago town
In Chicago, the city.
Well, he unpacked his suitcase
He unloaded his luggage upon reaching their destination.
She pulled her stockings down
She removed her stockings.
Started dreaming up a pool hall
She began envisioning a pool hall.
And shooting up a round
And engaging in a game or two.
She thought about tomorrow
She reflected on the future.
When the money rolled around
When she received funds.
That night they slept like babies
They slept well and unconcerned.
In Chicago town
In Chicago city.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JOHN HIATT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind