Small town on the river – Bill Morrissey

They used to come to town from the naval base
looking for a stiff drink and a pretty face
hang around the whorehouses all night long
Some were drifters and some were bums
some just waited for the war to come
out behind the factory with a bottle and a factory girl
in that small town on the river
just small town on the river

That December war broke out, many a woman lost her man
some wrote from overseas, some didn’t
and their women didn’t understand
And the whores left for the harbor towns where the business was still good
and the factory girls put in double shifts
worked as much time as they could
in that small town on the river
just small town on the river

Well, some men came home aces and some were carried hone
all of them were heroes,
no man was left alone
Some took jobs, some went to school, some found they’d fathered kids
most men tried but could not forget
and some wound up on the skids
in that small town on the river
just small town on the river

Thirty years later the town remains the same
one mill burnt down another one was built
the paychecks now come from a different name
And at the Eagles and the Legion halls no one seems to age
with the same jokes told and the TV on
the paper open to the sports page
In the small town on the river
just a small town on the river

And I was talking with the bartender last night at the P.A.C
a navy man from World War Two
smart dresser though he don’t have to be
And over a double bourbon he said, « I’ll tell you man to man,
this town died thirty years ago, son,
get out while you can.
it’s just a small town on the river
nothing but a small town on the river
nothing but a small town on the river. »