When the River Runs Dry

"When the River Runs Dry" is the first single from the Australian pub rock band Hunters & Collectors' sixth album, Ghost Nation. The single was released on 25 September 1989. The song peaked at number 23 in Australia and number 41 in New Zealand. The band performed the song on Late Night With David Letterman in 1990.

Background

Lead singer Mark Seymour stated the song was about middle class excess, the end of the world, rampant greed and the decline of western civilisation. The music video loosely investigated the encroaching effect of surveillance on daily life, but was accompanied with images of very attractive women engaged in a range of activities, from drinking champagne to hanging out clothes on a Hills hoist.