Don't Drink the Water (Dave Matthews Band song)

"Don't Drink the Water" is a song by the Dave Matthews Band, released as the first single from their album Before These Crowded Streets. The song was also the first of three music videos made for this album. The song was based on a simpler tune played by Dave Matthews, first dubbed "Weight of the World" when played on his acoustic tour with Tim Reynolds in 1996, and later "Leave Me Praying", as the song became more structured during tours in 1997. The subject of the song is the apartheid in South Africa and the persecution of the Native Americans.

Contents

• In concert
• US single
• Australia single
• Live releases
• References

According to a photo of the song list released on the band's website during promotion of Before These Crowded Streets, "Don't Drink the Water" was originally referred to as "Drop-D" during recording as that is the guitar tuning used by Matthews for the song. The song features Alanis Morissette on background vocals and Béla Fleck on the banjo. A 24-second studio jam is heard at the end of the track. As a single, it reached No. 4 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. Like all of the singles from the album, it had to be edited for radio airplay, due to its length.

A music video was produced to promote the single.