Take Me to the River (Drop Me in the Blood)

[Hand-clapping. Foot-stomping. A joyful piano. Brother Sammartino's voice — bright, inviting, ecstatic:]

"Brothers and sisters! Severed and saved! The river is calling! The blood is warm! The water is waiting! Take me to the river! Drop me in the blood!"

[The choir claps. The piano swings. The hymn begins.]

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[VERSE 1 — SUNG, GOSPEL, JOYFUL]

Take me to the river. Drop me in the blood.
Wash me in the crimson. Pull me through the mud.
I've been walking in the desert. I've been walking in the dust.
Take me to the river. In the river I will trust.

Take me to the river. Let me feel the red.
Let it wash away the voices. Let it clear my head.
The river is my savior. The river is my home.
Take me to the river. Let me never roam.

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[CHORUS — FULL CHOIR, GOSPEL, TRIUMPHANT]

Take me to the river! Drop me in the blood!
Wash me in the crimson! Pull me through the mud!
The river is calling! The river is deep!
Take me to the river! The river is the promise we keep!

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[VERSE 2 — SUNG, BUILDING]

The river is red. The river is warm.
The river is the only thing that keeps me from the storm.
I lay my axe down. I lay my blade.
In the river of the blood. In the river that the Destroyer made.

The river flows. The river sings.
The river is the only thing that gives me wings.
I float. I fall. I let go.
In the river of the blood. In the river that I know.

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[BRIDGE — SPOKEN OVER SOFT PIANO]

[Brother Sammartino's voice, quiet, reverent:]

"You ever been in the river? Felt the blood on your skin? Felt the weight lift? Felt the voices quiet? That's the river. That's the grace. That's the blood gospel."

[The choir returns. Joyful. Swelling.]

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[VERSE 3 — SUNG, FULL CHOIR, TRIUMPHANT]

Take me to the river. Drop me in the flood.
The river is the only thing that washes off the mud
Of the dust. Of the desert. Of the faces on the shelf.
Take me to the river. Take me to myself.

Myself is not a name. Myself is not a face.
Myself is the river. Myself is the grace.
The grace of the blood. The grace of the blade.
Take me to the river. The river is the promise that the Destroyer made.

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[FINAL CHORUS — FULL CHOIR, FULL ORCHESTRA, TRIUMPHANT, TERRIFYING]

Take me to the river! Drop me in the blood!
Wash me in the crimson! Pull me through the mud!
The river is calling! The river is deep!
Take me to the river! The river is the promise we keep!

Take me to the river! Drop me in the red!
The river is the only thing that wakes me from the dead!
I was gone. I was lost. The river found me.
Take me to the river! The river is where the severed are free!

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[OUTRO]

[The piano fades to a single, joyful chord. Brother Sammartino's voice, warm, satisfied, eternal:]

"That was 'Take Me to the River.' The revival. The blood. The thing that makes the voices sing. The river is still flowing. The river is still warm. The river is still waiting."

[A pause. A soft laugh.]

"Take me to the river. Drop me in the blood. I'll save you a spot. Right next to the faces.”

Gospel, Symphonic Metal, male