Songfacts®:

• After the success of Loudon Wainwright III's "Dead Skunk," Columbia Records was eager for another "silly animal song" to appeal to the public. Much to their disappointment, the singer offered what he considered an even better, yet animal-free, song called "The Swimming Song" for his new album, Attempted Mustache.
  
  Although it didn't prove to be a bigger hit than "Dead Skunk," the nostalgic song still remains one of Wainwright's favorites. Fans agree, even if their interpretations can go a little off-base (is it about alcoholism, drug addiction, falling in love, sex? Is it about growing old or dying young?). According to Wainwright, it's just a simple song about - you guessed it - swimming.
  
  "I was just thinking about swimming, but you know I mentioned, 'I'm a self-destructive fool.' For me, it's just about the joy of swimming," he told the A.V. Club.
• "The Swimming Song" features two banjos strummed by Wainwright and his soon-to-be-wife, folk singer Kate McGarrigle.
• "The Swimming Song" is the opening track of Wainwright's fourth album, Attempted Mustache. He recorded it at Ray Stevens Sound Lab in Nashville, Tennessee, with renowned producer Bob Johnston, known for his work with the likes of Bob Dylan and Simon & Garfunkel. "He had done Blonde on Blonde and Nashville Skyline and John Wesley Harding," recalled Wainwright to The Independent. "So when Bob Johnston said, 'I'd like to make a record with you,' I got pretty excited."