Hi there knowledgeable folks... when I've exhausted google and youtube I know to come to mudcat to get questions like these answered.

We were playing a gig (as we often do) for some beautiful elderly adults. We always ask for requests. One gentleman, after requesting "clementine," which of course is well known, requested a song that he referred to only as, "Why is the River so close to the shore?"

Of course that may not be the title, it may just be one line of lyric. We've been stumped before, such as when someone requested "See the Pyrenees" when what he meant was "See the pyramids along the Nile," from "You Belong to Me." That one took about a week to figure out.

But this one, "Why is the river so close to the shore" has me stumped. It isn't "Swanee," and we've also ruled out "Red River Shore," whether the Dylan version or the Kingston Trio one. And "Shenandoah" definitely doesn't fit.

"Why is the river so close to the shore?"

Ring any bells?

Whatever it is, it probably only exists as sheet music because it has avoided the internet entirely, as far as I can tell. But we'd sure love to bring it back and sing it for that gentleman.