Where the runoff meets the coal-black sand
And the waters of life spill forth from the belly of the land
When that old ghost strikes up the whippoorwill choir
Glory in your spark, and watch the river catch fire

In the shadow of the cathedral, I watched her blue eyes spark
At the saints beaming in the windows, and singing in the park
Through the piney curtain, across that long black lake
The thick air that weighed her down at home here made her body sweat and shake

So, if you find yourself down around there

Find a place for me and mine
Where a rebel son can make his peace
And the folks are good and sweet and kind:

In the Mississippi bottomland
Mississippi, y’all
Sure enough

When the river folds in on itself, be ye not afraid
For, though she wanders like a lamb and crawls like a babe
Fret not over why she floods and how she flows
Just keep your cheek to her waters, and your wheels on the road

So, if you find yourself down around there
Find a place for me and mine
Where a rebel son can make his peace
And the folks are good and sweet and kind:
In the Mississippi bottomland
Mississippi, y’all
Sure enough