Washing of the Water

There are, to date, four songs that will usually bring me to tears, and always cause me to water up. One of them is Washing of the Water by Peter Gabriel.

I'm not the biggest Peter Gabriel fan -- though I do enjoy that 16-minute live version of "In Your Eyes" (who doesn't?!)-- but I love this song. I first heard it on the Hyannis Sound CD 110. The men of The Sound sing it beautifully and slowly, and the vocal quality is fantastic.

Peter Gabriel is, well, not so much an amazing singer. His voice is raspy, and especially in this song, he can't hit all of the notes. it's real, though. It's human. His voice has a character all its own, and it adds to the pain of the song.

The lyrics are absolutely beautiful. In the live versions I've heard, he skips the first verse, but without further ado, the lyrics (and a youtube video so you can hear the song for yourself.)

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River, river carry me on
Living river carry me on
River, river carry me on
To the place where I come from

So deep, so wide, will you take me on your back for a ride
If I should fall, would you swallow me deep inside

River, show me how to float
I feel like Im sinking down
Thought that I could get along
But here in this water
My feet wont touch the ground
I need something to turn myself around

Going away, away towards the sea
River deep, can you lift up and carry me
Oh roll on though the heartland
til the sun has left the sky
River, river carry me high
til the washing of the water make it all alright
Let your waters reach me like she reached me tonight

Letting go, its so hard
The way its hurting now
To get this love untied
So tough to stay with thing
cause if I follow through
I face what I denied
I get those hooks out of me
And I take out the hooks that I sunk deep in your side
Kill that fear of emptiness, loneliness I hide

River, oh river, river running deep
Bring me something that will let me get to sleep
In the washing of the water will you take it all away
Bring me something to take this pain away

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