[Verse 1]
When I was young, maybe seven or eight years old
Looking for you‚ Dad‚ it's getting so late and cold
And you still hadn't come home
Mum was yelling at you‚ said you couldn't stay
You took a hit from the bottle and drove away
But I knew where you'd go

[Chorus]
You built a tower 'round your heart
Four walls of cardboard in the dark
I know you slept there once
Down where the river runs
You told me, "Son, you'll learn one day
Sometimes‚ you try to run away"
I thought you'd given up
Down where the river runs
Down where the river runs

[Verse 2]
All alone, you were gone for three, four days
By the bridge 'cause the water made you feel safe
Like your problems would wash away
They all said I was a victim of a broken home
You built this castle‚ but it crumbled, so I made my own
But it fell down anyway

[Chorus]
You built a tower 'round your heart
Four walls of cardboard in the dark
I know you slept there once
Down where the river runs
You told me, "Son, you'll learn one day
Sometimes, you try to run away"
I thought you'd given up
Down where the river runs

[Bridge]
Where the river runs, where the river runs
Where the river runs, where the river runs
Where the river runs, where the river runs
Down where the river runs

[Verse 3]
You were a god just holding me in your arms
You dried my eyes in the strongest of thunderstorms till the sky turned back to blue
Now I'm older, I've been wanting to turn back time
Say all the words that I needed to by your side
Now you're gone and I miss you
[Chorus]
You built a tower 'round your heart
Four walls of cardboard in the dark
I know you slept there once
Down where the river runs
You told me, "Son, you'll learn one day
Sometimes, you try to run away"
I thought you'd given up
Down where the river runs
Down where the river runs