[Verse]
I come from down in the valley where, Mister, when you're young
They bring you up to do like your daddy done
Me and Mary met in high school when she was just seventeen
We'd ride out of that valley down to where the fields were green

[Chorus]
We'd go down to the river
And into the river, we'd dive
Oh, down to the river we'd ride

[Verse 2]
Then I got Mary pregnant and, man, that was all she wrote
For my nineteenth birthday, I got a union card and a wеdding coat
We went down to the courthousе and the judge put it all to rest
No wedding day smile, no walk down the aisle
No flowers, no wedding dress

[Chorus]
That night, we went down to the river
And into the river, we'd dive
Oh, down to the river we did ride

[Verse]
I got a job working construction for the Johnstown Company
But lately there ain't been much work on account of the economy
Now all them things that seemed so important
Well, Mister, they vanished right into the air
Now I act like I don't remember and Mary acts like she don't care
[Bridge]
But I remember us riding in my brother's car
Her body tan and wet down at the reservoir
At night on them banks, I'd lie awake
And pull her close just to feel each breath she takes
Now those memories come back to haunt me
They haunt me like a curse
Is a dream a lie if it don't come true?
Or is it something worse?

[Chorus]
Sends me down to the river
I know the river is dry
Sends me down to the river tonight

[Outro]
Down to the river
My baby and I
Oh, down to the river
We dive