Hear that whistle,
there goes the bell,
that means we're on our way.
All aboard, boy, I'm feeling swell,
this is my happy day.
Paddle wheel, you're mighty,
mighty slow.
That's why I keep shouting,
let her go.
Roll on, you Mississippi roll on.
Come on, you lazy sting of
the thong.
Clear the river, here we come.
Watch us, my boys,
when we hear that engine coming,
take a look and be sure.
Soon I'll be with the folk
s I adore.
There's a spot round our bend,
that's my home.
The journey's end,
come on you old man river, come on.
Roll on you Mississippi, roll on.
New Orleans, hello, bye -bye,
New Orleans St.
Captain, tell me what's
the next big town we'll see
I get so excited I forget
my geography
Natchez Town,
do tell Farewell Natchez Town,
getting along and getting upset
I want to holler so the
hearing minds survive.
I want the world to know
I'm Memphis fun.
Oh, Lordy, take a look at the shore.
Soon I'll be with the folk
s I adore.
There's a spot round the bend
that's my home.
Put your knees in,
come on you old man river, come on.
Roll on you Mississippi, roll on.
When I was a youngster, a teenager,
we used to hear the calape
play on the riverboats,
and Andy's band would play on that boat.
So we'd all go down to the bluff
and sit on the ground
behind the Cossack library
And we'd listen to Handy play his tunes
until the boat went so far out
in the river
We couldn't hear him anymore