Old Man River
Southern eternal waterway
Old Man River is a personification of the Mississippi River, from the 1927 musical *Show Boat*.
The song portrays the river as an eternal, indifferent force that "just keeps rolling along" while human suffering continues on its banks.
The phrase evokes the river's vast, slow, unstoppable quality: He don't say nothing, but he must know something—that Old Man River.
Ostentatious performer, or floating theater
- BroadwayManhattan theatrical district
- musicalSung theatrical production
- baritoneMid-range male voice
- bassDeep pitch or fish
Paul Robeson · Oscar Hammerstein II · melody · chorus · ballad · lyrics · refrain · performance
Symbol denoting variation
- New OrleansLouisiana's largest city
- steamboatEngine-powered watercraft
- leveeRiver flood barrier
- floodplainFlood-prone riverside lowland
Mark Twain · Huckleberry Finn · bayou · catfish · sediment · tributary · Memphis · St. Louis
Show Boat
Ostentatious performer, or floating theater
Paul Robeson · Oscar Hammerstein II · bass · melody · chorus · ballad · lyrics · refrain · performance · vocal
delta
Symbol denoting variation
- New OrleansLouisiana's largest city
- steamboatEngine-powered watercraft
- leveeRiver flood barrier
floodplain · Mark Twain · Huckleberry Finn · bayou · catfish · sediment · tributary · Memphis · St. Louis · Vicksburg
perseverance
Sustained resolve despite obstacles
- burdenOppressive weight or duty
- struggleLabored effort against resistance
- wearinessState of being drained
rolling · timeless · endurance · suffering · labor · toil · resilience · sorrow · dignity · passage of time
- river nicknamesMighty Mississippi, Blue Danube