“Where Does An Old Time River Man Go”

---John Hartford---

Where does an old time river man go after he’s passed away?
Does his soul keep a watch on the deep for the rest of the river days?
Does he then come back as a channel cat
Or the wasps that light on the wheel
Or the birds that fly in the summer sky
Or the fish swimming under the keel

Where does an old time pilot go after he’s stood his last watch?
Does he fall by the ear of the man who steers?
Saying hold er’ on that notch

There’s a gentle sneeze in the river breeze
Saying son I’m going to bed
Then they light there pipes and go off in the night
Or was that fireflies instead?

Where does an old time engineer go after he’s cooled er’ down?
Gone up the hill to never come back
From the quiet side of town
Does his soul live on in the engines song while the striker checks the gear?
Is he still afloat on an old steamboat after he’s gone from here?

Where does a poor old love song go after it’s off the charts?
Does it hang around like the distant sound of last years broken hearts?
Does it then come back on a brand new track? 
That’s sure to bend your head
It might be old but it just went gold by the * Grateful Dead instead!


(insert any band you want—Hartford usually just said a popular band at that time” 

Lyrics transcribed by Mike Abb ( m.s.abb@tcu.edu )

“Wish I had a nickel, Wish I had a dime, Wish I had Hartford playing all the time”