<P> "Down by the Water" was Harvey's mainstream breakthrough in the United States, where the song reached number 2 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart and received extensive rotation on MTV and college radio stations . The song received critical acclaim upon its release, charting in Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States . </P> <P> "Down by the Water" was written by Harvey and self - produced with Flood and John Parish . The song opens with vocals and a heavy organ played by Harvey . As the song progresses, it incorporates several elements including percussion instruments, drums, and an orchestral ensemble . Pete Thomas conducted the string arrangements for the song . The musicians in the ensemble include Sonia Slany on violin, Jocelyn Pook and Jules Singleton on viola, and Sian Bell on cello . The song derives elements from blues and electronica, the latter due to notable use of a synthesized organ . </P> <P> The song's lyrics tell the story of a woman committing filicide . The woman drowns her daughter "down by the water" and "won't see her again ." The final coda features Harvey whispering the lines: "little fish, big fish swimming in the water / come back here, man, gimme my daughter ." The refrain was based on Lead Belly's rendition of the traditional American folk song "Salty Dog Blues ." In 2005, Harvey used the song's lyrics in a Spin interview as an example to demonstrate that her songs were not autobiographical: "Some critics have taken my writing so literally to the point that they'll listen to' Down by the Water' and believe I have actually given birth to a child and drowned her ." </P> <Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> "Down By The Water" The song features extensive use of a synthesized organ and features an orchestral ensemble . </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> Problems playing this file? See media help . </Td> </Tr> </Table>

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