Mad Season - River of Deceit
My pain is self-chosen
At least, so The Prophet says
I could either burn
Or cut off my pride and buy some time
A head full of lies is the weight, tied to my waist
The River of Deceit pulls down, oh oh
The only direction we flow is down
Down, oh down (x4)
My pain is self-chosen
At least I believe it to be
I could either drown
Or pull off my skin and swim to shore
Now I can grow a beautiful shell for all to see
The River of Deceit pulls down, yeah
The only direction we flow is down
Down, oh down (x4)
The pain is self-chosen, yeah
Our pain is self-chosen
"River of Deceit" is a song by the American rock band Mad Season, released in 1995 as the first single from the band's only studio album "Above". The song reached number two on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and is the band's most well known song. The music for "River of Deceit" came out of rehearsals that the group had before vocalist Layne Staley joined the band. The single for "River of Deceit" was released to radio across North America, Europe, and the world. "River of Deceit" became the most successful song from Above on the American rock charts. The song peaked at number two on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and number nine on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. It would go on to become the band's most well-known song as it received substantial radio play throughout the 1990s. Outside the United States, the single was released commercially in Australia and Austria. In Canada, the song reached the top 70 on the Canadian Singles Chart, and later it charted on the Canadian Alternative Top 30 chart where it reached number eight.