Eric Clapton - River Of Tears

River of Tears - Eric Clapton

It's three miles to the river
That would carry me away,
And two miles to the dusty street
That I saw you on today.

It's four miles to my lonely room
Where I will hide my face,
And about half a mile to the downtown bar
That I ran from in disgrace.

Lord, how long have I got to keep on running,
Seven hours, seven days or seven years?
All I know is, since you've been gone
I feel like I'm drowning in a river,
Drowning in a river of tears.
Drowning in a river.
Feel like I'm drowning,
Drowning in a river.

In three more days, I'll leave this town
And disappear without a trace.
A year from now, maybe settle down
Where no one knows my face.

I wish that I could hold you
One more time to ease the pain,
But my time's run out and I got to go,
Got to run away again.

Still I catch myself thinking,
One day I'll find my way back here.
You'll save me from drowning,
Drowning in a river,
Drowning in a river of tears.
Drowning in a river.
Feels like I'm drowning,
Drowning in the river.
Lord, how long must this go on?

Drowning in a river,
Drowning in a river of tears.

나를 인도 해 줄 강까지는 3 마일이 떨어진 곳이고
당신을 보았던 회색빛 거리는 2 마일 떨어진 곳에 있지요.

내 모습을 숨길 수 있는 외로운 내 공간은 4 마일 거리이고
부끄러움으로 도망친 그 다운타운 술집은
반마일 정도 떨어진 곳에 있지요.

신이시여, 저는 언제까지 이렇게 도망을 쳐야 하는지요.
7시간...7일...아니면 7년 동안?
제가 오로지 아는 것이라고는 당신이 떠난 이후
나는 강물에 빠진 듯 혼란을 느낍니다.
깊은 슬픔의 강에 빠져서
익사할 것 같은
혼란에 빠진 나는
죽고 싶을 뿐입니다.

3일만 있으면 나는 아무런 흔적 없이 이도시를 떠나
일 년 후에는 아무도 모르는 곳에서 정착을 할지도 모릅니다.

나의 고통을 덜기 위해서라도
한번쯤은 당신을 붙잡고 싶지만
그러나 떠나야 할 시간이 다 되어서
나는 다시 또 가야 만 합니다.

언젠가는 이곳에 다시 돌아 올 생각을 하면서
당신이 나를 구해 줄 거라 생각 해 봅니다
익사할 것 같은
이 슬픔의 강에서
절망으로
죽고 싶은 나를...
신이시여, 얼마나 더 방황을 해야 할까요?

절망하며
깊은 슬픔에 빠집니다

RIVER OF TEARS
This song was recorded very early in the Pilgrim sessions.

Eric Clapton believes this song is as good as anything he’s ever done before.

In fact, it became the standard for the rest of the album.

“Lyrically, it is about a specific person. My impulse for writing the song was initially very manipulative.

I was always toying with the idea that when she’d hear this song there would be a reconciliation or something.

It had a purpose. Then it started getting vindictive and at some point I started feeling like the lyrics were becoming too melodramatic.

I realized that the way to save it was to bring it back to talking about me and that maybe I’m an unavailable person.

Maybe it’s me that’s unavailable. That whole thing in the song about just drifting from town to town and not really being able to fit in,

takes the blame off somebody else and places in on myself.” (From May 1998 Guitar World)