I come from down in the valley Where mister when your young They bring you up to do Like your daddy done Well Mary we met in high school She was just 17 We'd drive outta this valley And to where the fields were green We'd go down to the river And into the river we'd dive Oh down to the river we'd ride Well I got Mary pregnant And man that was all she wrote Before my 19th birthday I got a union card and a wedding coach We went down to the courthouse The judge brought it all to rest No wedding day smiles, no walk down the aisles No flowers, no wedding dress We'd go down to the river And into the river we'd dive Oh down to the river we'd ride I got a job working construction For the Johnstown company Lately there ain't been much work On account of the economy All those things that seemed so important Well they just vanish in the air And I act like I don't remember Mary acts like she don't care And I remember us riding in my brother's car About 10 and went around the reservoir At night on the banks i'd lye awake And pull her close to hear each breath she takes Those memories come back to haunt me Well they haunt me like a curse Is a dream a lie that don't come true, or is it something worse? We'd go down to the river And into the river we'd dive Oh down to the river we'd ride