Missy Higgins (born Melissa Morrison Higgins on August 19, 1983, in Melbour… Read Full Bio ↴Missy Higgins (born Melissa Morrison Higgins on August 19, 1983, in Melbourne, Australia) is one of Australia's most popular female singer-songwriters. Missy (Melissa) was thrust into the limelight in her homeland when her sister entered Missy into a competition, which she won. The competition was conducted by the national alternative broadcaster, Triple J. Although she was still in high school, her song All For Believing quickly became one of the station's most requested tracks of 2001. In 2005, Missy took out 5 major ARIA Awards: Album of the Year (for The Sound Of White), Best Female Artist, Best Pop Release, Breakthrough Artist - Album (for The Sound Of White) and Highest Selling Album.

The River
Missy Higgins Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

She ran until her face was numb with cold and
Wore a cotton gown that blazed the night untold.
She ran until her feet refused to hold
So heavy a heart for someone merely ten years old.
And when she reached the river her knees began to shiver,
Her head with pounding voices from home.
Behind her was a vision, a painful apparition
Of a darker world that no-one should know.

Somebody's bed will never be warm again,
The river will keep this friend.
Yeah somebody's bed will never be warm again,
No never again.

She dived beneath the water's icy skin,
Hoping the cold would kill the smell of angry gin,
And her eyes grew wider than they'd ever been
Just wishing the numbness to cut deeper with its pins.
And as her body lay there she decided to stay there
Till darkness came to pull her away.
And beautifully she sank as up river was the bank
Where some bodiless troubles would stay.

Somebody's bed will never be warm again,
The river will keep this friend.
Yeah somebody's bed will never be warm again,
No never again.

Somebody's bed will never be warm again,
The river will keep this friend.

Yeah somebody's bed will never be warm again,
No never again.

Overall Meaning

Missy Higgins's song "The River" is a poignant and somber reflection on the traumatic experiences of childhood. The singer of the song is a young girl who is running away from a dark and painful reality that she can no longer bear. She runs until her face is numb with cold and her feet refuse to hold her up. She wears a cotton gown that blazes the night untold, a symbol of the intense emotions she is trying to escape. When she reaches the river, her knees begin to shiver, and she hears pounding voices from home. She dives beneath the water's surface and lets the cold numbness wash over her, hoping it will make the pain go away. As she sinks deeper into the river, she realizes that she will never return to the life she left behind.

The song suggests that the young girl has suffered some sort of trauma, most likely abuse or neglect, which has left her feeling hopeless and alone. She is so desperate to escape her reality that she is willing to risk her life by diving into the icy river. The lyrics are both heartbreaking and haunting, evoking a sense of sadness, isolation, and loss.

Overall, "The River" is a powerful and moving song that speaks to the experiences of those who have suffered trauma in their lives. It is a reminder that there are people in the world who go through unspeakable pain, and that we should all do our part to help those who are struggling.

Line by Line Meaning

She ran until her face was numb with cold and
The girl in the story was running so fast, she ended up losing sensation in her face due to the extreme cold she was exposed to.

Wore a cotton gown that blazed the night untold.
The girl was wearing a cotton gown that stood out in the dark, symbolizing her innocence and purity that was at risk of being tainted by the experiences she was going through.

She ran until her feet refused to hold
The girl kept running until her feet gave up on her, which conveys how resilient she was in spite of her young age while at the same time indicating a state of hopelessness.

So heavy a heart for someone merely ten years old.
Despite being only 10 years old, the girl was carrying a heavy burden in her heart, which speaks to the traumatic experiences she must have been subjected to.

And when she reached the river her knees began to shiver,
Upon reaching the river, the girl's body began to betray her as her knees started to quiver, which indicates how much she was dreading what was about to happen next.

Her head with pounding voices from home.
The girl was haunted by the voices of family members or people from her past, which indicates that she was escaping from an abusive or troubled household.

Behind her was a vision, a painful apparition
The girl was being followed by a haunting memory that represented her painful past, which was driving her to run away from it.

Of a darker world that no-one should know.
The girl had gone through a profound trauma that was leaving a lasting impact on her, which was something she was struggling to cope with and which no one should ever have to experience.

Somebody's bed will never be warm again,
The girl's fate was inevitable: someone was going to pay the ultimate price for her pains and sufferings, which is symbolized by the coldness of the river that will keep one more soul.

The river will keep this friend.
The river is personified as a fearful entity with its own consciousness that takes those who cross its path, in a way that's reminiscent of the grim reaper.

She dived beneath the water's icy skin,
The girl chose to end her pain by diving inside the cold waters of the river, where nobody could ever hurt her again.

Hoping the cold would kill the smell of angry gin,
The girl associated the smell of the river with her abuser or her abductors, which is why she hoped the cold would wash away the traumatic memories that were associated with it.

And her eyes grew wider than they'd ever been
The girl was struggling to keep up with the events that were happening too fast for her to grasp, which made her more aware of everything going on around her.

Just wishing the numbness to cut deeper with its pins.
At this point, the girl doesn't care anymore about anything else except feeling numb, which is why she wishes the pain would take over so she wouldn't have to feel anything anymore.

And as her body lay there she decided to stay there
The girl gave in to her wishes and stayed in the water, where she found peace from the violence and abuse that was part of her life.

Till darkness came to pull her away.
The girl's fate was sealed the moment she jumped into the river; it was only a matter of time before she succumbed to the cold, dark waters that would claim her forever.

And beautifully she sank as up river was the bank
Even in death, the girl's beauty was preserved and she sank peacefully, which is in stark contrast to the terrible things she had suffered while alive.

Where some bodiless troubles would stay.
Her troubles were left behind and they would stay, unable to follow her because she had finally found a place where nothing could hurt her again.

Somebody's bed will never be warm again,
This line is repeated to reinforce the idea that the girl's tragic fate will have a ripple effect that will affect other people's lives, like the absence of warmth in somebody's bed due to her death.

The river will keep this friend.
The song ends with the same line as before to drive home the point that the river is an unforgiving force of nature that will keep the girl's memory alive, long after she is gone.

Lyrics © WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: CLIF MAGNESS, MISSY HIGGINS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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