The River

In honor of Tax Day I figured we would examine a song that takes a look at the burden of the working man. This may not exactly be a suicide song, but it is about the crushing weight of the world one inherits when they grow up. Today we look at "The River" by America's working class hero, Bruce Springsteen

"The River" by Bruce Springsteen from The River


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAB4vOkL6cE



"The River" is a great song about growing up and realizing your responsibilities. We might not all have it as hard as the protagonist in this song, but we all have, have had, or will have those moments when you realize that you are the only one to shoulder the weight of your world and you might not be strong enough to carry it.

The river is the metaphor for the character's formerly carefree life. Driving to the river, swimming with Mary, and wasting his days are his most treasured memory. Not only was his time at the river the best time of his life, but the river was also where he would go to escape whatever troubles he was facing. That time was both his escape and his glory days, but as we all know glory days will pass you by in the wink of a young girls eye.

I'm going to keep this one short. I don't think I need to break down all the lyrics the way I usually do. I hope I've made my point already. There are two lyrics though that I'd like to look at.

"Now I just act like I don't remember, Mary acts like she don't care." I really think it speaks for itself, but I just wanted to point it out. I think it is the most telling statement of the song. Like laughing at something that makes you uncomfortable, we all have memories that dismiss as not bothering us, yet they eat us like acid from the inside out.

"That sends me down to the river though I know the river is dry." You can't go home again. You can't go back the way you came. You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here. Things will never be the same, and they can't ever be. There is nothing I would rather do than be able to reconcile with my past, but I can't, because it is all I have left. "That sends me down to the river tonight."

I'm not one to hang on to the past, or at least I make a conscious effort to not live in it. I'll tell you one thing though, I would love to live in the summer I was 19, forever. I lived at home. I had completed a year of college and had decided that I was never going back. I was working at a local music store and making money under the table, as well as having next to no bills. I could do whatever I wanted. I remember one time in particular, riding home in a friend's car, (to identify it if he is reading: the car with the heart transplant), from a midnight movie at some local independent movie theater and thinking this is it, nothing will ever be better. Soon after, the responsibility started to pile on. They've never receded. They've always grown. Springsteen goes to the river. I go to the intersection of Woodward and Long Lake.

As always feel free to leave comments or suggestions here or at suicidesongs@communistdaycarecenter.net