Written by brother, Barry Cowsill, who died in the aftermath of Katrina. The Los Angeles Times rated this track as one of the "25 Best Songs of 2010." Susan started performing it with her band during the 4 months after Katrina when Barry was missing. Brothers Bob, Paul, and John, siter-in-law Vicki Peterson, and long-time family friend and guitar ace, Waddy Wachtel, all lend their talents to this track.
Americana United Kingdom had this to say about this track: "Cowsill gives a searing rendition of her lost brother’s song, ‘River of Love’ complete with soaring electric guitar by Waddy Wachtel."
Huffington Post wrote, "There is a fury to this recording and the coda affirms the pain, the agony and the final letting go. It is a profound goodbye and Cowsill's husband, Russ Broussard, pounds out the final drum roll with a vengeance."
lyrics
She had to leave me
Said she had some place to go
I knew her heart was searching for its home
So what’s to do when you let go of flying falcons
Except to watch them disappear ‘til there are no more
And as she flew well I called out
And I knew she heard her lover shout
‘Cause she tipped her wings before the fade
Oh the sun may set yet another day
I’ll be there for the rising one
And maybe it’s true you’ve gone away
But I’ll be waiting by the River of Love
I’ll be waiting by the River of Love
The heart’s a funny thing
Sometimes it never shakes
What happened to that friend that went before
And it may ponder it may wander ‘til it finds
Love’s secret phone to call upon that soul
And just sometimes you never know
You may be dreaming but you feel aglow
And you hope one day she will return
Chorus
Another day goes rolling through my heart
As if it was another empty cup
And though I’ve wandered through these fields I’ve known before
I will never give up ‘til I see you again
I may never give up at all
And so I will take my precious time to hang around
And I’ll count the beats of my heart one by one
And even if it’s just some silly game I’m playing
Deep down I know it isn’t just for fun
‘Cause when there’s a will then there’s a way
And if I have to kneel and pray
Then I’ll kneel here and pray away
Chorus
We criticized you
We recognized you
I memorized you
And I eulogized you
I loved you more than you’ll ever know
Man I hated to see you go
I’ll be waiting by the River of Love
credits
from Lighthouse,
released May 18, 2010
(B. Cowsill, Bug Music/BMI)
Susan Cowsill, Barry’s guitar & vocal
Russ Broussard, drums
Waddy Wachtel, electric guitars
Aaron Stroup, electric guitars & vocal
Tad Armstrong, bass & vocal
Alex McMurray, acoustic guitar
Janson Lohmeyer, Hammond B3
Bob Cowsill, vocal
Paul Cowsill, vocal
John Cowsill, vocal
Victoria Peterson Cowsill, vocal
John Drumbo French from Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band worked with Thompson on two albums along with Fred Frith and Henry Kaiser.
Those two French, Frith, Kaiser and Thompson albums led me to this.
Also, Richard Thompson taught Hugh Cornwell (of The Stranglers) how to play the bass guitar in a band when they were both at the same school (Emil and The Detectives?).
With a career spanning 50 years and playing with two of my heroes (French and Cornwell) Thompson has produced a fascinating EP. yellowcakeuf6
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