Burn On, Big River, Burn On

Cuyahoga River, June 1969

One of the catalysts for the environmental movement and Clean Water Act forty years ago was the Cuyahoga River fire. The river, which flows through Cleveland, Ohio, was so polluted that it literally caught fire and burned, billowing black smoke into the air.

Randy Newman wrote the satirical "Burn On" about the Cuyahoga River, including it on the classic 1972 album, Sail Away.

 

There's a red moon rising
On the Cuyahoga River
Rolling into Cleveland to the lake

There's a red moon rising
On the Cuyahoga River
Rolling into Cleveland to the lake

There's an oil barge winding
Down the Cuyahoga River
Rolling into Cleveland to the lake

There's an oil barge winding
Down the Cuyahoga River
Rolling into Cleveland to the lake

Cleveland, city of light, city of magic
Cleveland, city of light, you're calling me
Cleveland, even now I can remember
'Cause the Cuyahoga River
Goes smokin' through my dreams

Burn on, big river, burn on
Burn on, big river, burn on
Now the Lord can make you tumble
And the Lord can make you turn
And the Lord can make you overflow
But the Lord can't make you burn

Burn on, big river, burn on
Burn on, big river, burn on