Polly Jean "PJ" Harvey is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Prima… Read Full Bio ↴Polly Jean "PJ" Harvey is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments.

Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automatic Dlamini as a vocalist, guitarist and saxophonist. The band's frontman, John Parish, became her long-term collaborator. In 1991, she formed an eponymous trio called PJ Harvey and subsequently began her career as PJ Harvey. The trio released two studio albums called Dry (1992) and Rid of Me (1993) before disbanding, after which Harvey continued as a solo artist. Since 1995, she has released a further nine studio albums with collaborations from various musicians including Parish, former bandmate Rob Ellis, Mick Harvey and Eric Drew Feldman, and has also worked extensively with record producer Flood.

Among the accolades Harvey has received are both the 2001 and 2011 Mercury Prize for Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (2000) and Let England Shake (2011), respectively, making her the only artist to have been awarded the prize twice. She has also garnered eight Brit Award nominations, seven Grammy Award nominations and two further Mercury Prize nominations. Rolling Stone awarded her three accolades: 1992's Best New Artist and Best Singer Songwriter, and 1995's Artist of the Year. Rolling Stone also listed Rid of Me, To Bring You My Love and Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea on its list of their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. In 2011, she was awarded for Outstanding Contribution To Music at the NME Awards. In the 2013 Birthday Honours, she was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to music.

The River
PJ Harvey Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

And they came to the river
And they came from the road
And he wanted the sun
Just to call his own

And they walked on the dirt
And they walked from the road
'til they came up close

Throw your pain in the river
To be washed away slow

And we walked without words
And we walked with our lives
Two silent birds
Circled by

Like our pain in the river
And we followed the river
And we followed the road
And we walked through this land

And we called it a home
But he wanted the sun
And I wanted the whole
And the white light scatters

And the sun sets low
Like the pain in the river

Overall Meaning

The song "The River" by PJ Harvey is a reflective and meditative piece that explores themes of loss, pain, and the natural world. The song opens with the image of a group of people approaching a river from a road, and the singer expressing a desire to possess and control the sun. The next couple of lines speak of the group walking by the dirt road, and approaching the river. The river serves as a symbol of healing, where they can throw away their pain and let it be washed away slowly.

As the song progresses, it becomes clear that the singer is not at peace with the current state of affairs, and is yearning for something more. This is indicated when the lyrics mention "two silent birds, circled by, like our pain in the river". The image of the birds symbolizes the need for stillness and calm, which is often elusive in the modern world. The singer and their companions continue to follow the river and the road, looking for a place to call home.

The final lines of the song speak of the sun setting low, like the pain in the river. This echoes the earlier sentiment expressed by the singer, of wanting to possess the sun. The ultimate realization is that the pain is an inevitable part of life, just like the sun setting is an inevitable part of the natural world.

Line by Line Meaning

And they came to the river
They arrived at the river

And they came from the road
They arrived at the river after traveling on a road

And he wanted the sun Just to call his own
He longed for the sun with a desire to possess it

And they walked on the dirt
They were walking on the soil

And they walked from the road
They walked off the road

'til they came up close
Until they were near the river

Throw your pain in the river To be washed away slow
Cast your pain into the river, so it can be cleansed slowly by the water

And we walked without words
They walked silently without speaking

And we walked with our lives
They walked with the weight of their existence

Two silent birds Circled by
Two quiet birds surrounded them

Like our pain in the river
The birds circling around them resemble the way pain circles through the river