“River Brought Me Home” Style: Swamp Southern Rock with Acadian touches Tempo: 90–100 BPM lazy swamp groove Instruments: Slide guitar, Hammond organ, electric guitar, bass, drums, fiddle/accordion fills Verse 1 Daddy said “Boy, throw that bag in the back” Snow on the highway, Pontiac packed Left that river town in a cold north wind Headed for the lights of Toronto again Mama crossed herself, said a prayer in French “Bon Dieu watch him on the road he’s went” But a river runs in a northern soul No matter how far, it still wants home Chorus Every road I rolled was a winding line Through city smoke and overtime But the Saint John River kept callin’ my bones Sayin’ someday, son, you’re comin’ home Verse 2 Came back east as a wild young man Same old river, same red land But work was thin and the bills were loud So I chased that road through another crowd Toronto steel and Ottawa stone Montreal nights where the cold winds moan But late at night when the bars closed down I’d hear that river in a fiddle sound Chorus Every road I rolled was a winding line Through city smoke and overtime But the Saint John River kept callin’ my bones Sayin’ someday, son, you’re comin’ home Bridge (Acadian flavor) Hear that old accordion cry Through a kitchen dance on a Saturday night Feet on the floor and a fiddle moan Singin’ “mon cœur revient à la maison” (My heart’s coming back home) Verse 3 Now the years rolled by like a freight train gone One day you wake and the road feels long So I turned that wheel where the river bends Back to the town where the story began Funny thing ‘bout the miles you roam Life’s just a circle you walk alone Till the wind and water finally say You were headed here anyway Final Chorus Every road I rolled was a winding line Through all those years and overtime I chased the world but the truth was known That river was always bringin’ me home Yeah the Saint John River brought me home
