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Nick Drake — River Man
Album: Five Leaves Left
Avg rating:
8

Your rating:
Total ratings: 2608









Released: 1969
Length: 4:16
Plays (last 30 days): 1
Betty came by on her way
Said she had a word to say
About things today
And fallen leaves.

Said she hadn't heard the news
Hadn't had the time to choose
A way to lose
But she believes.

Going to see the river man
Going to tell him all I can
About the plan
For lilac time.

If he tells me all he knows
About the way his river flows
And all night shows
In summertime.

Betty said she prayed today
For the sky to blow away
Or maybe stay
She wasn't sure.

For when she thought of summer rain
Calling for her mind again
She lost the pain
And stayed for more.

Going to see the river man
Going to tell him all I can
About the ban
On feeling free.

If he tells me all he knows
About the way his river flows
I don't suppose
It's meant for me.

Oh, how they come and go
Oh, how they come and go.
Comments (206)add comment
Such a wonderful song. And the only song I know with my name in it. 
Reminds me of McHendree Spring.
 coloradojohn wrote:

I have always loved how he made his music so timelessly transcendent, but on this song, especially, it's heartbreaking -- and prophetically apropos--  how he talks of going to see the river man (the ferry-man that carries souls between this world and the next), and that though Betty has given hints about her fate, he's wondering and sorely aching to find out more about his own. Oh, how they come and go, he laments -- and although I do lament that he passed so young, I can rejoice in his eternally rich legacy, grateful for his Divine gift of expressing and accepting such human feelings and frailties so cleverly, for we ourselves also must inevitably somehow someday make our own way across. 


Somehow someday indeed my friend,  I'll see you on the other side. 
Till then, LLRP!!
I have always loved how he made his music so timelessly transcendent, but on this song, especially, it's heartbreaking -- and prophetically apropos--  how he talks of going to see the river man (the ferry-man that carries souls between this world and the next), and that though Betty has given hints about her fate, he's wondering and sorely aching to find out more about his own. Oh, how they come and go, he laments -- and although I do lament that he passed so young, I can rejoice in his eternally rich legacy, grateful for his Divine gift of expressing and accepting such human feelings and frailties so cleverly, for we ourselves also must inevitably somehow someday make our own way across. 
 burmson wrote:

Takes me back to late 60s early 70s when this was a oft played selection on WNEW FM in NY. Miss all those DJs......Pete Fornatel, Alison Steele, Vin Scelsa and of course Jonathan Schwartz. 



Sadly in the UK, where he came from, I don't ever remember hearing him on the 'main' Radio station - Radio 1, late 60's thru 70's. 

The radio and the weekly TV prog only covered 'the charts' aka Top 20 plus a few others making their way up the charts.  😢

If we wanted to hear music that wasn't 'top 20' then that's where 'The Old Grey Whistle Test'  (1971-88) - Bob Harris - BBC2 entered our lives.  🛐  This prog concentrated on albums rather than the charts. ❤️  It was commissioned by the guy who ran the BBC at that time - the phenominal David Attenborough.
(David was a senior manager at the BBC, having served as controller of BBC Two and director of programming for BBC television in the 1960s and 1970s.). Thanks to him we got to know people like Nick Drake, we saw Tom Petty etc etc etc.  A wonderful TV prog that opened our minds.


By 1972 he'd left the BBC to follow his dreams ..............................  thank you David for all you did for us 'kids' back then, and for all you're doing for the planet right now.  ❤️

 ajeremic wrote:

For those who would like to hear how the perfection of this song could be magnificently emphasized, I would recommend to listen to The Swingle Singers performing this. A really worthy homage to the brilliant Nick Drake.
Swingle Singers - River Man



It's a really impressive rendtion but I prefer Drake's lack of warble!
Nick Drake (or at least his music) has been quietly accompanying me on my Earthly journey for the past 13 or so years, and I'm so grateful. This album in particular speaks to me.
Such a tragic story. Never felt appreciated , never found his place.
A Skin Too Few
I have a "Summer" playlist that starts with Nick Drake's Hazy Jane I and Hazy Jane II. Perfect start to one of my favorite playlists.

ND is an artist we lost way too soon.
Bien Cool la musique.
Stop everything. Sit back and drift into the wonderful vision created by Nick Drake's voice and music. Pure bliss. Thank you
11
This is the first Nick Drake song I ever heard and I quickly became obsessed, blissfully obsessed 
 burmson wrote:

Takes me back to late 60s early 70s when this was a oft played selection on WNEW FM in NY. Miss all those DJs......Pete Fornatel, Alison Steele, Vin Scelsa and of course Jonathan Schwartz. 


Back before it went into all tight playlists 
The cumulative superlatives amassed in the posts here still don't do him justice. 
 ajeremic wrote:

For those who would like to hear how the perfection of this song could be magnificently emphasized, I would recommend to listen to The Swingle Singers performing this. A really worthy homage to the brilliant Nick Drake.
Swingle Singers - River Man



Oh wow, that was some performance - thank you!
For those who would like to hear how the perfection of this song could be magnificently emphasized, I would recommend to listen to The Swingle Singers performing this. A really worthy homage to the brilliant Nick Drake.
Swingle Singers - River Man
All these decades later and I still think I'm living in this Nick Drake song. When the reality is Capitol invasion and Marjorie Taylor Greene's Q-infused Georgia. Think I got off on the wrong exit. 
Takes me back to late 60s early 70s when this was a oft played selection on WNEW FM in NY. Miss all those DJs......Pete Fornatel, Alison Steele, Vin Scelsa and of course Jonathan Schwartz. 
 Kaw wrote:
If I have to make a choice to bring back one musician back from the death I probably choose Nick Drake. Not only he would be delighted to see the positive feedback his music would get in 2020, but also he wasn't finished yet.

Freddy Mercury is very high on the list too. But that's just me being curious about what he would be able to produce. He had his fame during his lifetime. Nick did not have that.
 

Nick Drake was a fragile soul. I would like to believe that he would receive the medical help and support today to make your thoughts be true.
If I have to make a choice to bring back one musician back from the death I probably choose Nick Drake. Not only he would be delighted to see the positive feedback his music would get in 2020, but also he wasn't finished yet.

Freddy Mercury is very high on the list too. But that's just me being curious about what he would be able to produce. He had his fame during his lifetime. Nick did not have that.
Up to 10. Calming, lovely, beautiful and soo hope inducing.
Gone too soon but the music that he left us is simply timeless and golden☺️
Wish Nick Drake had lived long enough to score today's "Welsh noir wave" of cop procedurals-series (Amazon Prime/Netflix). Dark could go to a whole new level of dark. 
One more godlike RP discovery, and addictive chords.
 (anonymous) wrote:
This is among my top 5 favorite songs ever. The time signature is something strange (haven't figured it out yet) and I'm not convinced that the vocals are the same time sig. as the strings. Nick's phrasing is also very interesting - almost *never* "on" the beat, always close. The chords in the strings are beautiful. It just works on so many different levels and takes me downstream somewhere every time I hear it...
 

It's in 5/4, with the occasional 4/4 bar.
 dublanica wrote:
Have never heard him until now.  Pity!  What a great song.
 
It's always "wait, what did I just hear? who? play it again. How did I not know of this guy?"
 (anonymous) wrote:
This is among my top 5 favorite songs ever. The time signature is something strange (haven't figured it out yet) 
 
Yep one on my fav list too.
Signature seems to be 5/(4/8)th most of the time. Sometimes switching back to 3/4 or 4/4 if you use his guitar as a drum machine for an indication on the rhythm.
Long may Nick rest happily knowing his music is very much appreciated
I definitely declare myself a fan of Nick Drake
What a great song.
 (anonymous) wrote:
This is among my top 5 favorite songs ever. The time signature is something strange (haven't figured it out yet) and I'm not convinced that the vocals are the same time sig. as the strings. Nick's phrasing is also very interesting - almost *never* "on" the beat, always close. The chords in the strings are beautiful. It just works on so many different levels and takes me downstream somewhere every time I hear it...
 

I concur.
Also, I had to like this post as it was written 17 years ago!
 dublanica wrote:
Have never heard him until now.  Pity!  What a great song.
 

You have many treats in store.  Try "Under a northern sky" next.
The slide show that goes with this music just enhances it even more. The two together transport you to such a lovely, peaceful place.
 alanrh wrote:
It's in 10/4 or 2 bars of 3 followed by a bar of 4.

 

Thanks for that. 
The string arrangements are really sublime. 
Have never heard him until now.  Pity!  What a great song.
 radioparadise9 wrote:
"I know this sounds corny."
No, it's more conceited.

"I went from Nick Drake to Molly Hatchet."
You were nobody when you started and nobody when you finished.
 
Why the hate?
Lovely song regardless. 
It's in 10/4 or 2 bars of 3 followed by a bar of 4.

(anonymous) wrote:
This is among my top 5 favorite songs ever. The time signature is something strange (haven't figured it out yet) and I'm not convinced that the vocals are the same time sig. as the strings. Nick's phrasing is also very interesting - almost *never* "on" the beat, always close. The chords in the strings are beautiful. It just works on so many different levels and takes me downstream somewhere every time I hear it...
 

 boober wrote:
I know this sounds corny.....but I recently went into a recording studio and laid down 13 vocal tracks over various karaoke tracks. This was one of them. I did this to hand out to other musicians to show my vocal capabilities. I went from Nick Drake to Molly Hatchet.
 
"I know this sounds corny."
No, it's off topic. 

I went from Nick Drake to Molly Hatchet."
You didn't go anywhere .... you were boober when you started and boober when you finished.


He was so ahead of his time, and this is good music, incidentally, for nighttime road trips...
not even close. alexi murdoch i can see
 trekhead wrote:
Ray LaMontagne/Nick Drake,
interchangeable?

9.
 
They're not very interchangeable to me.  Ray LaMontagne is certainly influenced by Nick Drake, but his music often comes across as affected or contrived to me, not nearly as sincere and alienated as Nick Drake's music seems, but it's all individual perception anyhow.
Nick Drake's songs always leave me in a state of existential dread... in the best way possible.Nick Drake
Timeless and wonderful.
this song aged really well. this as well could be a 2016 release.
My God. So beautiful.
 rocklandlove wrote:
One of the most exquisite pieces of music ever written, with a string arrangement by Robert Kirby to match. And the 5/4 time signature adds to the mystery and timelessness of the song.

 
I agree with you!
The strings are exquisite.
One of the most exquisite pieces of music ever written, with a string arrangement by Robert Kirby to match. And the 5/4 time signature adds to the mystery and timelessness of the song.
The rating I give this song is directly proportional to the number of times I hear it.
 ISteely_D wrote:

This is important. This means something.

    
It means that an artist has succeeded in a primary mission to reach the still beating heart     {#Idea}
There is something magical in the frequencies, the resonances, all the Quantum-boosted things going on in this man's voice and strings!  Immortal...
I cannot believe I have not rated this most outstanding song/artist      yes a 9       {#Cheers}
 MJdub wrote:
Never noticed this is in 5/4.  Another masterpiece by Nick Drake

 
The melody and arrangement really make it sway, so it doesn't sound as "choppy" as 5/4 can sound sometimes.  Nice song.
Heard a Nick Drake song on an italian tv commercial...I could't believe it.
I know this sounds corny.....but I recently went into a recording studio and laid down 13 vocal tracks over various karaoke tracks. This was one of them. I did this to hand out to other musicians to show my vocal capabilities. I went from Nick Drake to Molly Hatchet.
 Cynaera wrote:
It's early morning. The sky is blue, the air is cold, there's frost on the rooftops and two ring-necked doves perched on the telephone wire outside my window. I'm drinking my first cup of coffee, and this song is playing.  How could things possibly get better?  I agree with those who say that this song makes everything quiet around them. I'm peaceful and content, for the first time in weeks.  Mr. Drake, you were ahead of your time - a Renaissance Man in a world of cretins.  Thank you for your music.

 
This is important. This means something.
Never noticed this is in 5/4.  Another masterpiece by Nick Drake
This clearly shows the influence Nick Drake had on Ray Lamontagne and his "Be Here Now" song, another RP fav.
 Peter_Bradshaw wrote:
{#Bananapiano} ... One of the best albums ever made - this track is something else.  Anything less than "Godlike" is a crime against music.
 
Absolutely... few tracks are as evocative as this.
Very nice!
{#Bananapiano} ... One of the best albums ever made - this track is something else.  Anything less than "Godlike" is a crime against music.
 TheLib wrote:
I've been listening to Nick Drake since the mid-70s.  His music really is timeless.

Ilona Knopfler does a cover of this that I like quite a bit.  You can check it out on iTunes:  https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/river-man/id339951085?i=339951275

 

That's really cool.  Seriously.  I started around 2000.  I bought one CD, and then another, and I liked them both.  But when I became a regular listener of RP.  Well.  Fuck.  I am a Nick Drake Drone now.
I am a bit dumbfounded, I thought this was relatively recent music, but it was made before I was born even 0_0
I've been listening to Nick Drake since the mid-70s.  His music really is timeless.

Ilona Knopfler does a cover of this that I like quite a bit.  You can check it out on iTunes:  https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/river-man/id339951085?i=339951275
nice wintry song.
Shimmering and floating like a Rothko!
Well, that was beautiful.
Majestic artist!

I think if I could only listen to one song forever....  this would be it.


File Under:

lots of fuss...decent artist.

(see Elliot Smith)
Beautiful song. {#Clap}
gorgeous.
 Bleyfusz wrote:
Ain't it strange how beauty can hurt?
 
bump

twelve
Eleven
Another 1969 release. What a year and this one shows the broad range of music that exploded that year.
{#Yes} jagdriver wrote:
Quite a loss here. I think his stuff is incredible.
 


 Jamunca wrote:


Does that mean you give 9s to Ray's stuff too? BTW, I saw him live in Asheville, NC and he had all the stage presence of a statue. Definitely better recorded than in person. I wonder if Nick would've been the same, given his personal issues.
  From what I've seen and heard in the documentary(that is not fully funded)his friends say his live performances were not nearly as good as his live shows.....and it hurt him.Boy was he good in the studio!


It's early morning. The sky is blue, the air is cold, there's frost on the rooftops and two ring-necked doves perched on the telephone wire outside my window. I'm drinking my first cup of coffee, and this song is playing.  How could things possibly get better?  I agree with those who say that this song makes everything quiet around them. I'm peaceful and content, for the first time in weeks.  Mr. Drake, you were ahead of your time - a Renaissance Man in a world of cretins.  Thank you for your music.
Ain't it strange how beauty can hurt?
 sirdroseph wrote:


How bout this? No, they definitely are NOT!!!!{#No}
 
Actually I love NIck, but if I didn't know any better sometimes, Ray sounds a lot like him.{#Yes}

 trekhead wrote:
Ray LaMontagne/Nick Drake,
interchangeable?

9.
 

How bout this? No, they definitely are NOT!!!!{#No}
To quote the astronauts as they viewed the pretty unidentified lights in orbit; "Beautiful....just beautiful!"{#Sunny}
The tortured soul rides downriver, rolling his own...
Quite a loss here. I think his stuff is incredible.
The shift back and forth between major and minor key just hypnotises me. The atmosphere is so thick you could cut it with a knife. A stunning song. Remember folks it's Ray LaMontagne ripping off Nick Drake, not the other way round.

 trekhead wrote:
Ray LaMontagne/Nick Drake,
interchangeable?

9.
 

Does that mean you give 9s to Ray's stuff too? BTW, I saw him live in Asheville, NC and he had all the stage presence of a statue. Definitely better recorded than in person. I wonder if Nick would've been the same, given his personal issues.

solid 10, awesome!


 jagdriver wrote:
{#Boohoo} {#Guitarist}

Really great arrangement.

 
Might go nicely with The City by Mark-Almond.
It sounds as though this is someone i should have heard of but i haven't.  I couldn't get above 6 for this one though.  Felt it was OK but a bit long for the lack of variation in the song.
What a great song; one of ND's best, and that's saying a lot.
This song makes everything quiet around me...a truly outstanding song.

Andy Bay made an excellent cover of this song. You can find it on the album "Incredible Sound of Gilles Peterson" (1999) from the eclectic DJ/Producer Gilles Peterson. A great album too, from a great DJ.


{#Boohoo} {#Guitarist}

Really great arrangement.

 theanniewithin wrote:


I could have said that exact thing!  Perfect.{#Good-vibes}
 
Ditto.

 fuace wrote:
never fails; his voice always makes me just stop and listen.

 

I could have said that exact thing!  Perfect.{#Good-vibes}
never fails; his voice always makes me just stop and listen.
Ray LaMontagne/Nick Drake, interchangeable? 9.
This selection works for me real nice this time of the day...... Mid morning
Having put pen to paper many times in an effort to capture and convey a moment . . . or two, I find deep admiration for those that also blend the music and deliver the message however it is received. Nick Drake . . . fantastic and sad all at once
coolpeople_rule wrote:
This guy has more than a normal dose of talent!!! Like Beck on roids....
Had... sadly.
Nick's music makes my soul feel clean
This song has so much going for it: intriguing and beautiful lyrics, interesting musical form, a stunning strings arrangement, and Nick's uniquely moving voice. A 10 if there ever was one.
This guy has more than a normal dose of talent!!! Like Beck on roids....
wow, 2 Nick Drake tunes in half a day. Love it.
kazuma wrote:
How in the wide world of sports does a 21 year old come up with something like this? In 1969?? Wow.
Yes, couldn't agree more. Stupendous talent. Quite a few similar originals around that era........
Ngoziman wrote:
Nice video here - River Man - just click the Watch link and choose your media. Ghostly black and white stills - very evocative.
Thank you. That was perfect for a cold, windy November day in upstate NY. Winter's coming, all is lost, tucked away for a warmer day far away.
blissssssss
Snoodle wrote:
A painfully beautiful song from a beautiful record – probably his "happy" record from the three he recorded.
Don'y you think Bryter Layter is the "happy" one?
Ngoziman wrote:
Nice video here - River Man - just click the Watch link and choose your media. Ghostly black and white stills - very evocative.
Well, it was you whom I wanted to answer: the ambient sounds are a bit disturbing, in my opinion.
Kokoloco53 wrote:
Nice, very nice, reminds a bit of an old Joni Mitchell song's melody, can't place it though. Thanks Radio Paradise for continually upgrading my horizons.
Maybe Songs to aging children, which is the one she sings during the funeral scene in the Alice's Restaurant movie?
MtnGoat wrote:
Indeed. Hope you're still around to get this, thanks for that link. C.
They should have just left out the ambient sounds.
kazuma wrote:
How in the wide world of sports does a 21 year old come up with something like this? In 1969?? Wow.
See: Neil Young
The kind of beauty that hurts inside.
First time I heard this I gave it an 8, after checking out his other albums this is now a 10! Clearly a very troubled man, but truly gifted.
Something about this song is making me think of Gordon Lightfoot, but I like it. Very soothing...
kazuma wrote:
How in the wide world of sports does a 21 year old come up with something like this? In 1969?? Wow.
No doubt..it's timeless.
Wadro13 wrote:
I enjoy this, but it sounds so much like everything he does. Having not explored his music extensively, it is a disappointment that the few songs I've heard from him would have such a remarkable similarity!
This is a lot heavier than most of his stuff - musically speaking, at least. (His mood isn't always exactly "sun-shiny day"). Great track though, I love it.
woozurdaddy wrote:
Nick Drake is a 10 all around. A shame he didn't live...
Totally! Had to give a 10 myself, because every song Nick Drake made is divine. But must say that there are many other of his songs I like better. Also agreeed that there is a big Nick-Drake-shaped-hole-in-the-universe; it's sad that he was so unhappy in life and died so young