He noted that two of the verses begin with "People disagreeing", introducing conflict into the song, and concluded that "Watching the River Flow" is "tarred with a realism that qualifies and complicates the lure of the lazy".
He noted that two of the verses begin with the words "People disagreeing", introducing conflict into the song. Ricks concluded that "Watching the River Flow" is "tarred with a realism that qualifies and complicates the lure of the lazy".