Well, I was eighteen, my brother was twenty-one.
One Saturday evenin' when all the work was done,
We went down to the river. Had some trot lines we'd run.
My brother Walter had a fight the week before.
Knocked a boy name Wilson through the pool hall doors.
They said you don't mess with Wilson unless you want a war.
I put the boat in the water and I made the engine run.
I loaded the lantern against the sinkin' sun.
And my brother Walter was loadin' his gun
And we went down the river
Down past the coal docks we were runnin' our line.
Heard some drunken boaters racin' up behind.
It was Wilson and his cousin, had trouble on their mind.
They passed on by us, probably goin' to tend their pot.
We headed up the river with the fish that we'd caught but,
Before we made the landing, I thought I heard a shot
Back down the river
Well my brother Walter fell over the side.
I couldn't find him no matter how I tried
And I looked along the bank but couldn't find where they hide.
Well the drugged the river, they searched it up and down.
Couldn't find his body so they decided that he'd drowned,
But I knew better and Wilson bragged around town.
So one night I floated down right above Wilson's shack.
I hid in the woods til I saw him walk out back.
I put a bullet in his head, dropped him in his tracks
And we went down the river
Down below the tressel, where the water runs slow,
I chained him to an anvil then I let him go.
And five years later, I ain't told a soul.
I ain't done much fishin', hardly wet a line.
The death of my brother is still heavy on my mind.
I've been thinkin' Wilson's cousin better find a place to hide
Cause I'm goin' down the river yeah, I'm goin' down the river.