in the black night river

We were in Virginia. We we in Virginia; The men of The High and Mighty Brass Band and me. Virginia, West Virginia.. right on a border or some thing. Right on a river. We had driven there. In our new old Korean church bus band van. It broke down about 30 miles past Newark airport. We had beers in the slighty fancy joint down the road. An engagement party was happening. E Train midly stressed, Barnez mysteriously disappearing and hanging with the mechanics. I'm having the best time. We lined up a possible replacement band. The van is fixed, we're on the road. Drive into the night and end up there right on time to unload. We've got 2 tents and a pop up trailer for ourselves. super nice. On the river. We're ready to play. We're closing down this blue grass festival. We start out blowin on a small stage and second line with all these hippies, bare footed with  mason jars of moonshine, to a main stage and just throw down. such good people. hipppies freaking out dancing. to anything man. and with the biggest smiles you ever saw. It was so fun to play there with them and smile with them and dance and shake and meet the kids with wet pants, they didn't pay. They just crossed the river, rolled up their cuffs and went. And then it was over and they wanted more and I'm handed moonshine outta jars. Never a drink in hand did I have but little sippers out of heavy jars being passed around. And I was drunk , boy! And the river was so black. It was dark in the center, dark and as if voodoo were bubbling just below, feeding on the bottom. So I marched OUT. Out to the center of that river, in my tap shoes, well one black boot and one white tap and golden legs and I did march to that river center cause I heard I could make it all the way across with no problem too much. "I went down to St. James Infirmary. I saw my baby there. She was stretched out on a long white table. So white, so cold, so fair. Let her go. let her.. god bless her, wherever she may be, if the devil don't get her. You can search this whole world over but she'll never find a sweet man like me." I sang in that river, with people calling me back trepidatiously smiling, and I sang the whole song as it was and marched on  back. .. And, oof, I felt Good! And that white boot on the one foot is still covered in that river mud. That murky upside down frog in the mud voodoo thing happenin on the bottom of that river is now soaked into that shoe. Seeping in to the beat my feet make. Just on that one side, Oooo. So every floor I dance on after that has a little bit of that Virginia voodoo on it. And this is why we go on the road, or at least why I do, to take a bit from every place with me. Making home wherever I tap my feet.  Wherever I tap my feet I'll call home.