RockLists.com
Cover of The King Is Dead by The Decemberists
Cover: The King Is Dead

Song · The Decemberists

“Down By The Water” by The Decemberists

From the album The King Is Dead (2011)

“Down By The Water” by The Decemberists appears on 36 radio countdowns from 23 stations between 2010 and 2026. It was first released in 2011 on the album The King Is Dead. Its best result is #8 on the WFUV Top 90 Songs of 2011. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #117 alternative song of 2011.

36countdowns
23stations
#8best position
0#1 finishes
2top 10 finishes
2010–2026years charted

Watch

The Decemberists - Down By The Water (Official Video)

Video from YouTube (TheDecemberists). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Down by the Water" was an early taste of The King Is Dead, the Decemberists' sixth album, offered as a free download on the band's website in November 2010 before the record arrived early in 2011. Colin Meloy wrote it, and he admitted it began as more of a tribute to R.E.M. than anyone in the band had quite intended, which makes it fitting that Peter Buck himself turns up on guitar.

Gillian Welch adds harmonies, Jenny Conlee's accordion rolls through the riff, John Moen and Nate Query keep it moving at a brisk clip, and Meloy blows harmonica straight out of the Neil Young songbook, with a whiff of Springsteen in the booming chorus. Tucker Martine co-produced, recorded and mixed it. The tune is sprightly and folksy; the words underneath carry a quiet, mournful chill.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2010 68 WTMD Baltimore, MD WTMD Top 89 Songs of 2010 89
2010 66 103.1 The River Kalispell-Flathead Valley, MT 103.1 The River Top 103 of 2010 102
2010 41 The Current Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN The Current Top 89 Songs of 2010 88
2010 54 KSLG Eureka (Humboldt County), CA KSLG Top 94 Slugtunez of 2010 94
2010 11 107.1 The Peak Westchester County, NY WXPK Top 107 Songs of 2010 107
2010 95 WXPN Philadelphia, PA WXPN Year in Review: Top 100 Songs of 2010 100
2010 97 WFIV 105.3 Knoxville, TN WFIV Top 105 of 2010 105
2010 37 WRNR 103.1 Annapolis, MD WRNR Top 103.1 Songs of 2010 104
2010 29 WRSI 93.9 The River Northampton / Pioneer Valley, MA WRSI Top 94 Songs of 2010 93
2011 15 WBER Rochester, NY WBER Listener Countdown 2011 111
2011 12 93XRT Chicago, IL WXRT Listener Poll: Top 25 Songs of 2011 25
2011 26 WRSI 93.9 The River Northampton / Pioneer Valley, MA WRSI Top 93 Songs of 2011 93
2011 66 88.3 The Sting Cleveland, OH 88.3 The Sting WBWC Top 88 Songs of 2011 88
2011 8 KFOG San Francisco Bay Area, CA KFOG Foghead Favorites of 2011 50
2011 21 WTMD Baltimore, MD WTMD Top 89 Songs of 2011 89
2011 19 106.1 The Corner Charlottesville, VA 106.1 The Corner Top 107 of 2011 105
2011 21 103.1 The River Kalispell-Flathead Valley, MT 103.1 The River Top 103 of 2011 103
2011 17 92.3 WTTS Indianapolis-Bloomington, IN WTTS Top 50 Songs of 2011 50
2011 55 90.5 WERG Erie, PA WERG Top 90 of 2011 90
2011 8 WFUV New York, NY WFUV Top 90 Songs of 2011 90
2011 47 Exit 97.7 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY WEXT Top 97 of 2011 97
2011 42 KSLG Eureka (Humboldt County), CA KSLG Top 94 Slugtracks of 2011 94
2011 13 Lightning 100 Nashville, TN Lightning 100 Best of 2011 50
2011 25 WXPN Philadelphia, PA WXPN Year in Review: Top 100 Songs of 2011 100

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2013 139 WXPN WXPN 885 Greatest Songs of the New Millennium (2013) 885
2019 616 WYEP WYEP Big Spring Countdown 2019 1017
2019 616 WYEP WYEP Labor Day Weekend Countdown 2019 1099
2022 1085 WYEP WYEP Countdown to Fall 2022 603
2023 933 WYEP WYEP Countdown to Fall 2023 1229
2023 402 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 800 Songs About Places 800
2024 938 WYEP WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years 1049
2024 267 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 1055 Songs of the 21st Century 1055
2024 279 WXPN WXPN The 885 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century (2024) 885
2025 250 The Current 893 Essential Songs of The Current: 2005 to Now 893
2025 526 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 21st Century 909
2026 801 KXT KXT 917 Song Countdown 917

Also listed as: Down by the Water; Down By the Water.

Charting alongside it in 2011

Best songs of 2011 →
  1. 1Pumped up KicksFoster The People
  2. 2RopeFoo Fighters
  3. 3The Adventures of Rain Dance MaggieRed Hot Chili Peppers
  4. 4WalkFoo Fighters
  5. 5You are a TouristDeath Cab for Cutie
  6. 6Rolling in the DeepAdele

Comments

Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Down By The Water" by The Decemberists.

Be kind and stay on topic. Guidelines

No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.