Songs I Love - "Riverbank" by Jeff Bates

Posted by: Pat Watters
August 14, 2015

I discovered this song on a CD called "The Country Way, Vol. 1" It was a free sampler CD produced by CMT back when they still cared about music. I got the CD for free inside a magazine I had bought. I think it was called "Country Guitar Player" or something like that. The magazine didn't last, but the CD was awesome.  Some of the best songs in the world are songs most people have never had the pleasure of hearing. This is one of them. What I love about Jeff Bates' "Riverbank" is the raw emotion. When second line of the chorus hits your ears, you don't see it coming. At least I didn't. And my heart sank the first time I heard it. That simple phrase hit me harder than almost any lyric I have heard. Hear for yourself...



As a songwriter, the power encapsulated in this little song is EXACTLY what you want to do. That simple line "I wish this was a riverbank, instead of a graveyard" blows my mind to this day. Great, great song. 

 
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