River Washed Hair

Album: Streets of London (2025)
Charted: 53
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "River Washed Hair" is what happens when a songwriter reaches into the glovebox of memory and pulls out a dusty photo, still warm with emotion. Zach Bryan remembers fireside singalongs, long-lost friends, and that one girl (there's always that one girl) whose scent, heartbreakingly, still lingers in his mind.

    The girls in summer clothes and Lord knows the soft scent
    Of her long, dark, river-washed hair


    Zach Bryan has made a career out of this sort of thing - turning cracked hearts and half-remembered evenings into songs that feel like late-night confessions. "I Remember Everything" and "Sarah's Place" are two other Bryan songs about the nostalgia of youth, the bonds of friendship, and the ache of young love.
  • The song is not all romance and reminiscence. Bryan's lyrics also touch on personal growth, regret, and the burdens of fame. He references the departure of a bandmate.

    Remember when Steve quit the band?

    It's a reference to drummer Steven Clark, who played with Bryan through 2023 before parting ways. The mention is a reminder that time moves on, friendships fade and even the tightest rhythms eventually fall out of sync.
  • The track was released on July 2, 2025, alongside two others: "A Song For You" and "Streets Of London." As Bryan explained: "They are kind of just tunes that didn't belong on the record, and they didn't fit on an EP either, so I'm just releasing them to get them out into the world 'cause I love them."
  • The music video uses AI-enhanced imagery to make past and present blur together, intercurtting Bryan's present-day solitude with cinematic flashbacks to give it a sense of longing.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Mike Scott of The Waterboys - "Fisherman's Blues"

Mike Scott of The Waterboys - "Fisherman's Blues"They're Playing My Song

Armed with a childhood spent devouring books, Mike Scott's heart was stolen by the punk rock scene of 1977. Not surprisingly, he would go on to become the most literate of rockers.

Emmylou Harris

Emmylou HarrisSongwriter Interviews

She thinks of herself as a "song interpreter," but back in the '80s another country star convinced Emmylou to take a crack at songwriting.

Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull

Ian Anderson of Jethro TullSongwriter Interviews

The flautist frontman talks about touring with Led Zeppelin, his contribution to "Hotel California", and how he may have done the first MTV Unplugged.

Don Felder

Don FelderSongwriter Interviews

Don breaks down "Hotel California" and other songs he wrote as a member of the Eagles. Now we know where the "warm smell of colitas" came from.

Jon Anderson

Jon AndersonSongwriter Interviews

Jon Anderson breaks down the Yes classic "Seen All Good People" and talks about his 1000 Hands album, which features Chick Corea, Rick Derringer, Ian Anderson, and many other luminaries.

Susanna Hoffs - "Eternal Flame"

Susanna Hoffs - "Eternal Flame"They're Playing My Song

The Prince-penned "Manic Monday" was the first song The Bangles heard coming from a car radio, but "Eternal Flame" is closest to Susanna's heart, perhaps because she sang it in "various states of undress."