Wonderful singing and another brilliant song. Well done guys

sad story for sure..it must have been hard to write the second last verse looking back/regret...you chose an interesting melody for the lyrics

Great lyrics, Alex!! A poignant and moving story!! Great vocal and instrumentation!! PJ is great on the guitar!!

Now THIS is my kind of stuff!! its nice to see you are very versatile :)

DIDN’T THE RIVER KNOW?
© 2022 Lucidi/Olson/O’Brien/Henry/Johnson
Music by PJ Lucidi, Hollie Olson, Brian Henry, Steve Johnson
Lyrics by Alex O’Brien

Hollie Olson: Vocals
PJ Lucidi: Rhythm and Lead Guitars
Brian Henry: Drums, Mixing and Mastering
Steve Johnson: Bass

One New Year’s Eve he walked out
In his Tux he looked so fine
We thought he was off to a party
Thought he was having a real good time
But he didn’t come home that evening
And he didn’t come home that night
They didn’t find him till the springtime
His body washed up, cold, wet, and white

Didn’t the river know?
Didn’t the river understand?
That troubles don’t last forever
And mountains wear down to sand
Why couldn’t that river refuse him?
Why couldn’t that river keep him safe?
The beach should be a place to swim
Not a holding place for graves

A sensitive man, he was a painter
So many canvases left undone
The man he was a brother
And a pool hall wayward son
Well the man he was my uncle
And he loved to go for a walk
He showed me the world of fossils
And we fished off the cottage dock

Didn’t the river know?
Didn’t the river understand?
That a pain can’t last forever
That one can always change a plan
Why couldn’t that river reject him?
Why couldn’t that river flow him home?
The water is there to give us life
Not to drown a mind that feels alone
 
With divorce my father felt guilty
He thought that he should have been there
I was a teenager and selfish
Having too much fun to show I cared
His therapist felt discouraged
And the talks and the pills and how they failed
The pool hall debts they were relieved
And the angels did they wail

Didn’t the river know?
Didn’t the river understand?
That love comes to the lonely
Every hand can find a hand
Why couldn’t the river sustain him?
Why couldn’t the river hold fast?
Why couldn’t the river restrain him?
Till all his fears and worries passed

Didn’t the river know?
Didn’t that river know?

Didn't the River Know

To celebrate 2000, I took a year off to write songs, novels, plays, and stories - and I've been doing that since. At the end of my first year, I won first prize in the USA Songwriting Contest in the Lyric Category for 'Drum Machines and Beauty Queens.' This led to co-writing songs with many excellent musicians, including those represented in songs posted here. 

More recently, I was one of seven finalists in the Crisis Lyric Category of the 2021 UK Songwriting Contest for 'Lockdown Blues,' and one of nine nominees in the 2021 International Song Awards with 'Didn't the River Know' and 'Blue and Gold.'

For the past two years, I've been collaborating with many talented musicians on Kompoz. I release many of these songs here and compile the best into albums released under Captain Stormfield's Trip on Spotify and other platforms (see links below).

Comments

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