Down by the River

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Down by the River is a song composed by Neil Young. It was first released on his 1969 album with Crazy Horse, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere. Young has since frequently performed the song live. Live performances vary from (comparatively) short solo acoustic performances, as on the Crosby Stills Nash & Young release Four Way Street to nearly twenty minutes long, as on the Live at the Fillmore East release featuring Crazy Horse. At the Rock Am Ring in Germany in 2002, Neil Young, backed by Booker T Jones, Donald "Duck" Dunn and Frank Sampedro, played "Down by the River" for over 27 minutes.

In the liner notes of his 1977 anthology album Decade, Young states that he wrote "Down by the River" and "Cowgirl in the Sand" while lying in bed in Topanga Canyon with a 103° (39,5°C) fever.

Guitarist Roy Buchanan recorded a cover version of "Down by the River" on his 1978 album You're Not Alone. Dave Matthews Band and The Indigo Girls also cover this song.