Rolled on Columbia

By Andy Kerr (with no apologies to Woody Guthrie)

    Green Douglas-fir where the waters cut through,
    Down the wild canyons and valleys she flew;
    But now you are stagnant and we are so blue,
    Rolled on Columbia, rolled on.

    Chorus:

    Rolled on, Columbia, rolled on;
    Rolled on, Columbia, rolled on.
    Your damns have turned our lifeline to pus,
    So rolled the Columbia, rolled on.

    Many great rivers added water to you:
    Yakima, Snake, and the Klickitat, too;
    Sandy Willamette and Hood River too,
    Rolled on Columbia, rolled on. (Chorus)

    At Bonneville now there's a damn in the path,
    the waters have risen and buried the grass;
    Most of the salmon now fail to pass,
    Rolled on Columbia rolled on. (Chorus)

    And on up the river are many more damns,
    The biggest slackwater ever built by man;
    To make aluminum foil and all those beer cans,
    It's rolled on Columbia, rolled on. (Chorus)

    Barges of wheat float by on the muck,
    While the few salmon ride in a government truck.
    It's simply another corporate ----,
    So rolled the Columbia, rolled on. (Chorus)

    Those mighty bastards labored by day and by night,
    Matching their greed 'gainst the river's wild flight;
    The rapids and falls they lost the hard fight,
    Rolled on, Columbia, rolled on. (Chorus)

    Conservationists labored by day and by night,
    Seeking to restore the river's wild flight;
    So Celilo Falls may again be in sight,
    Roll on Columbia, roll on! (New Chorus)

    New Chorus (with gusto):

    Roll on Columbia, roll on;
    Roll on Columbia, roll on.
    Your waters again will flow free and clear,
    So roll on, Columbia, roll on.

    At Bonneville soon there'll be a hole in the locks,
    The waters will lower and clear all the rocks;
    And salmon again will build up their stocks,
    Roll on Columbia, roll on. (New Chorus)