Watching The River Flow (1971) – Bob Dylan

This little bluesy rocker from Dylan certainly kicks the day into gear with its toe-tap-inducing rhythm, screeching guitar and saloon bar piano. And wouldn’t you know it? This was recorded in 1971 at Blue Rock Studio in New York City.

It seems like Dylan is having a rollicking good time on this one too. I recently wrote about how the likes of Bob Dylan and John Lennon tried to emulate pioneering artists such as Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino and Jerry Lee Lewis. Well, this is one of Dylan’s many forays into that style.

I love the laid-back writing in this one too, and what’s astounding is that producer Leon Russell recalled that when developing the song, the basic track was formed and Dylan then wrote the lyrics in several minutes.

It makes me recall that conversation when Dylan and Leonard Cohen were sitting in a cafe in Paris. Dylan asks him, ‘How long did it take you to write Hallelujah?’ Cohen responds, ‘Oh you know, a couple of years.’ Cohen then returned the favour and asked, ‘How long did it take you to write Just Like a Woman?’ and Dylan said, ‘Fifteen minutes.’

In Watching The River Flow, Dylan finds himself at dawn in an all-night cafe. He’s out in the middle of nowhere, watching trucks roll by until he sits down on a bank and watches the river flow. He misses the city and wishes he had wings and could fly, but for now he’ll just have to be content and watch the river flow.

Dylan is pretty chill here, like the river flowing by. It represents, both artistically and privately, his more relaxed nature after settling down with Sara and having kids. He doesn’t want to get caught up in petty disagreements or changing the world anytime. It’s interesting that he’s growing fond of just sitting there watching the river flow while all this stuff is swirling around in his brain.

For someone who initially wanted to leave the river and get back to the city quick smart, he gradually finds after some contemplation that the river is bringing a state of serenity and calm. For those of us who live in the hustle and bustle of the city, I think every now and again we need to reunite with Mother Nature.

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Wikipedia:

Dylan in March 1971 asked Leon Russell, who made his name with Joe Cocker, to assist in finding a new sound after a period of immersion in country rock music. Watching the River Flow was recorded with Dylan singing live with the band. The next day he recorded When I Paint My Masterpiece.

Four and a half months after the recording session, Russell backed Dylan on bass at the Concert for Bangladesh, organized by George Harrison. Then in November 1971, Russell accompanied Dylan into a studio again to record Dylan’s next single, George Jackson. 

Watching the River Flow has been interpreted as Dylan’s wish to deliver less politically engaged material and to find a new balance between public and private life.

The journalist Bob Spitz has likened it to Dylan’s Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat.

[Verse 1]
What’s the matter with me
I don’t have much to say
Daylight sneaking through the window
And I’m still in this all-night café
Walking to and fro beneath the moon
Out to where the trucks are rolling slow
To sit down on this bank of sand
And watch the river flow

[Verse 2]
Wish I was back in the city
Instead of this old bank of sand
With the sun beating down over the chimney tops
And the one I love so close at hand
If I had wings and I could fly
I know where I would go
But right now I’ll just sit here so contentedly
And watch the river flow

[Chorus]
People disagreeing on all just about everything, yeah
Makes you stop and all wonder why
Why only yesterday I saw somebody on the street
Who just couldn’t help but cry
Oh, this old river keeps on rolling, though
No matter what gets in the way and which way the wind does blow
And as long as it does I’ll just sit here
And watch the river flow

[Outro]
Watch the river flow
Watching the river flow
Watching the river flow
But I’ll sit down on this bank of sand
And watch the river flow

References:
1. Watching the River Flow – Wikipedia