[STYLE: Swamp Blues, hypnotic Louisiana groove, dark humid atmosphere, slow rolling rhythm with deep Southern character] [INTRO: 8 bars, tremolo electric guitar riff, deep bass, sparse drums, distant Hammond organ, low harmonica response] [VERSE 1] Black water rising underneath the moon Black water rising underneath the moon Something in the darkness tells me trouble's coming soon There's a mist across the bayou and a cold wind through the trees There's a mist across the bayou and a cold wind through the trees I hear something moving in the shadows by the reeds [PRE-CHORUS: Guitar tremolo intensifies] The night is getting darker The river's running high I can feel the storm coming I can hear it in the sky [CHORUS: Deep swamp groove] Black water rising And the moon is turning red Black water rising Got these voices in my head I've been running from the darkness But it's following me instead Black water rising Like the river wants me dead [INSTRUMENTAL BREAK 1: 16 bars, hypnotic tremolo guitar solo, sparse harmonica fills, deep bass groove] [VERSE 2] I saw your old house standing where the cypress trees grow I saw your old house standing where the cypress trees grow The windows were all broken, but there was a light below I knocked upon the doorway but nobody replied I knocked upon the doorway but nobody replied Then I heard your voice whisper from the other side [PRE-CHORUS: Arrangement becomes sparse] You said, "Don't come looking" You said, "Leave me alone" But I could hear the sorrow In every word you spoke [CHORUS: Full swamp blues groove] Black water rising And the moon is turning red Black water rising Got these voices in my head I've been running from the darkness But it's following me instead Black water rising Like the river wants me dead [INSTRUMENTAL BREAK 2: 24 bars, tremolo guitar and harmonica call-and-response, Hammond organ sustained underneath] [VERSE 3] I turned around and walked away beneath the Spanish moss I turned around and walked away beneath the Spanish moss Every step I took felt like another thing I'd lost The rain began to thunder and the river started to roar The rain began to thunder and the river started to roar I knew that old black water wouldn't let me leave no more [BRIDGE: Half-time feel, bass and Hammond, intimate vocal] Maybe every river Carries something from the past Maybe every shadow Is a memory that lasts Maybe I was chasing ghosts Maybe ghosts were chasing me Maybe all this darkness Is the price of being free [CHORUS: Extended, heavier] Black water rising And the moon is turning red Black water rising Got these voices in my head I've been running from the darkness But it's following me instead Black water rising Like the river wants me dead Black water rising Hear the thunder in the trees Black water rising Moving closer to my knees If the river takes me under I'll surrender to the tide Black water rising With the whole night on my side [FINAL VOCAL AD LIBS] Black water... Keep on rising... I ain't afraid no more... Let that river roll... [OUTRO: 16 bars, tremolo guitar reprises main riff, harmonica slowly fades] [ENDING: Deep final bass note, sustained guitar tremolo and natural decay]
