PJ Harvey - The River: Guitar Chords

Learn to play "The River" on your guitar with our detailed chord guide and lyrics. This page provides everything you need to perform this song on the guitar, including lyrics integrated with chords, chord diagrams, and a key transposer to match your vocal range.

Learn The River Guitar Chords and Lyrics by PJ Harvey

This section will guide you through each part of the song, providing the guitar chords placed directly above the lyrics for easy playing. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced player, these elements will help you perform "The River" smoothly on your guitar.

For easier playing, use our Simplify Chords feature to remove difficult chords like barre.

         Bm
And they came to the river
And they came from the road
And he wanted the sun
Just to call his own

          Bm               F# E
And they walked on the dirt
And they walked from the road
Till they came to the river
Till they came up close

Chorus:
           Bm               G F#
Throw your pain in the river
Throw your pain in the river
Leave your pain in the river
To be washed away slow

And we walked without words
And we walked with our lives
Two silent birds circled by

Chorus:
Like our pain in the river
And the pain in the river
And the white sun scattered
Washed away this slow

And we followed the river
And we followed the road
And we walked through this land
And we called it a home
But he wanted the sun
And I wanted it all
And the white light scatters
And the sun sets low

Chorus:
Like our pain in the river
Like our pain in the river
Like the white light scattered
To be washed away slow
Like our pain in the river
Like our pain in the river
Like the way life scattered
To be washed away slow


You can simplify chords by removing barre

Transpose

Reset

Font Size

Reset

Simplify chords by removing barre

Guitar Chord Diagrams

E

Guitar chord E

F#

Guitar chord F#

G

Guitar chord G

Bm

Guitar chord Bm

Here you can see detailed diagrams for each guitar chord used in the song. Utilize our key transposer to adjust the chords to a key that better fits your singing range. Simply select the desired key, and the chords throughout this page will update automatically, ensuring you can play and sing comfortably.

If you are also interested in learning how to play "The River" on the ukulele, check out the chords on our sister site: Ukulele Chords for "The River" by PJ Harvey.

PJ Harvey Song List