The Hold Steady Album

[No lyrics]

There are nights when I think Sal Paradise was right.
Boys and Girls in America have such a sad time together.
Sucking off each other at the demonstrations
Making sure their makeup’s straight
Crushing one another with colossal expectations.
Dependent, undisciplined, and sleeping late.

She was a really cool kisser and she wasn’t all that strict of a Christian.
She was a damn good dancer but she wasn’t all that great of a girlfriend.
She likes the warm feeling but she’s tired of all the dehydration.
Most nights are crystal clear
But tonight it’s like it’s stuck between stations
On the radio.

The devil and John Berryman
Took a walk together.
They ended up on Washington
Talking to the river.
He said “I’ve surrounded myself with doctors
And deep thinkers.
But big heads with soft bodies
There was that night that we thought John Berryman could fly.
But he didn’t
So he died.
She said “You’re pretty good with words
But words won’t save your life.”
And they didn’t.
So he died.

He was drunk and exhausted but he was critically acclaimed and respected.
He loved the Golden Gophers but he hated all the drawn out winters.
He likes the warm feeling but he’s tired of all the dehydration
Most nights were kind of fuzzy
But that last night he had total retention.

These Twin Cities kisses
Sound like clicks and hisses.
We all tumbled down and
Drowned in the Mississippi River.

We drink
We dry up
Then we crumble to dust

pills and powders baby. powders and pills. we spent the night last night in beverly hills. there was this chick that looked like beverly sills. we got killed. tights and skirts baby. skirts and tights. we used to shake it up in shaker heights. there was this chick she looked like patty smythe. she seemed seemed shaky but nice.

she said my name is rick danko but people call me one-hour photo. i've got some hazardous chemicals. drive around to the window. she said my name is robbie robertson but people call me robo. i blew red white and blue right into a tissue. i came right over the counter just to kiss you.

ginger and jack and four or five feminax. psycho eyes and a stovepipe hat. a ray of light in white rayon slacks. we got cracked. shoes and socks baby. socks and shoes. we spent the night last night in newport news. this chick she looked just like elizabeth shue. we got bruised.

she said my name is steve perry but people call me circuit city. i'm so well connected. my upc is dialed into the system. she said my name's neil schon but some people call me nina simone. some people call me andre cymone. i've survived the 80s one time already. and i don't recall them all that fondly.

it was a blockbuster summer. moving pictures helped us get through to september. they made a movie about me and you. it was half nude and half true. it was a bloodsucking summer. i spent half the time trying to get paid from our savior. swishing though the city center. i did a couple favors for some guys who looked like tuscan raiders.

She put $900 on the fifth horse in the sixth race
i think its name is "chips ahoy!"
it came in six lengths ahead, we spent the whole next week getting high
at first i thought that she hit off some tip that she got from some other boy
we were overjoyed

wo-ah-oh-ee-ah-oh-ee-oh
wo-ah-oh-a-ee-oh-oh
wo-ah-oh-ee-ah-oh-ee-oh
wo-ah-oh-a-ee-oh-oh

i got a girl and she don't have to work
she can tell which horse is gonna finish in first
some nights the painkillers make the pain even worse

came in six lengths ahead
we spent the whole next week getting high
i love this girl but i can't tell when she's having a good time

how am i supposed to know that you're high if you won't let me touch you? (wo-ah-oh-ee-ah-oh-ee-oh)
how am i supposed to know that you're high if you won't even dance? (wo-ah-oh-a-ee-oh-oh)
how am i supposed to know that you're high if you won't even dance? (wo-ah-oh-a-ee-oh-oh)

she's hard on the heart and she's soft to the touch
she gets migraine headaches when she does it too much
she always does it too much

how am i supposed to know that you're high if you won't let me touch you? (wo-ah-oh-ee-ah-oh-ee-oh)
how am i supposed to know that you're high if you won't even dance? (wo-ah-oh-a-ee-oh-oh)
how am i supposed to know that you're high if you won't let me touch you? (wo-ah-oh-ee-ah-oh-ee-oh)
how am i supposed to know that you're high if you won't even dance? (wo-ah-oh-a-ee-oh-oh)
and you won't even dance

The guys are feeling good about their liquor run
the girls are kinda flirting with the setting sun
we all kind of fumbled through the jitter bug
we were all powered up on some new upper drug
and everything was partying
everyone was pretty
and everyone was coming towards the center of the city
the dancefloor was crowded, the bathrooms were worse
we kissed in your car and we drank from your purse
i had my mouth on her nose when the chaperon said we were dancing too close

we had some massive nights
we got the songs just right
and all i want is time
yea your friends are pretty cool and my friends were acting cool

there weren't any fights
there's usually one or two
some guys they get a little bit uptight
some girls they got something to prove
we had some massive highs
we had some lusty little crushes
we had those all-ages hardcore matinée shows
and i was down on my knees when the chaperon said that it was time for me to leave

we had some massive nights
every song was right
and all i wanted was time
yea your friends are pretty cool and my friends were acting cool
there weren't any fights
there's usually one or two
some guys they get a little bit uptight
some girls they got something to prove

we had some massive nights
there were some massive nights
we had some massive nights
every song was right
and all i wanted was time
yea your friends are pretty cool and my friends were acting cool

she had a gun in her mouth
and she was shootin' up at her dreams
when the chaperon said that we'd been crowned
the king and the queen

If she asks, don't tell her that I'm living hand-to-mouth
Don't tell her I've been sleeping on your couch
If she asks just tell her that we opened for the Stones
It's her favorite band except for The Ramones

If she happens to suggest a love based on trust and respect
Tell her I've been wasted since last week
If she wants to stop on by, tell her that I almost died
Tell her I ain't seeing people yet
But see if she'll send cigarettes

If she asks, don't tell her about the bloodshed in the streets
The less she knows, the less she can repeat
If she happens to bring up the pinpricks and the throwing up
Tell her it's just part of growing up

If she wants to get involved
Tell her to stay in St. Paul
Tell her I'm not up to taking calls
But ask her for some Adderall

Now Holly won't say hi to me
'Cause I'm in love with my anxiety

If she asks just tell her that we're too far gone to deal
She should know exactly how that feels
If she wants a scene report, don't tell her about the kitchen doors
Tell her we ain't even keeping score no more

If she wants to help the cause
Tell her we need sterile gauze
Tell her she should look through all her medecine
And she if she's got clonapenze

Now Charlemagne don't seem the same
He's skinny, scared and off his game
He's been hiding from those gentlemen
With the same tattoos as Gideon

kids with broken hearts, kids with broken bones. kids with kidney stones giving birth to bloody stereos. systems are all dripping wet with gristle piss and swizzlesticks. mary's got a bloody nose from sniffing margarita mix. she licked her lower lip and then she kissed that halleluiah chick. she came off kind of spicy but she tasted like those pickle chips. we thought she was a dancer but her steps they made the records skip. she came off kind of crunchy but she went down like a chicken strip. dripping wet with the special sauce. she had a confidence smile and a nervous cough. we got off.

she said it's good to see you back in a bar band, baby. i said it's great to see you're still in the bars.

went down on the tallboy cans and he woke up in a cargo van. went down with the girls gone wild and he woke up with the middle man. went down with like fourteen bucks and woke up with like sixteen grand. went down with some crust punk junk and woke up with a straight edge band. that's not how he planned it.

holly can't speak. she don't feel all that sweet. about the places that she sometimes has to go to get some sleep. she said i'm sorry people think i'm pretty. these clever kids are killing me. for one they ain't that clever. number two, it really sucks when you get stuck here with these trevors. this was supposed to be a party. half the crowd is calling out for born to run and the other half is calling out for born to lose. baby we were born to choose. we got the last call bar band really big decision blues. we were born to bruise.

They found me in a florist
i was fried and out of focus.
i was kicking it with chemists.

the scratches on my back
they formed into a choir
and belted out a chorus.

there were clicks and hisses.
and complicated kisses.
gideon's got a pipe made from a pringles can.

hey hey providence
you gotta fall in love with whoever you can.

the sheets stain but the sins wash away.
naked bodies in the naraganset bay.

same kooks don't shoot but they sure do sniff.
same kooks can't fly because their wings are clipped.
same kooks can't come but they sure do kiss

the lord takes away and the lord delivers.
washed it all off in the mississippi river.

we slept it off in the matinees
we rip it up like the razor blades.
now we just need something to celebrate.
i wanna open some bottles up.
(I wanna open my body up).
I'm getting tired of all these styrofoam coffee cups.

she said its hard to feel holy when you can't get clean
now she's bumping up against the washing machines
she said its hard to slow down when you're picking up speed.

it was those two same kooks from that one stupid photo shoot.
it was those two same kooks from that one stupid photo shoot

say a prayer for the cityscape skins. half are getting sprung and half are going back in.
there ain't no getting thru to gideon. he lost his mind when they jumped him in.

say a prayer for sweet charlemange. he had the pigs at the door. he put the drugs down the drain.
he's gonna have to come up with seven grand some other way.

the gangster disciples knocked me off of my bicycle. it was midnite down by selby & griggs.
i shouldn't have gone down there but it was too late to switch. you gotta dance with who you came with.

you gotta go with what got you there. i came with chipped teeth and some bleached blonde hair.
you gotta make due with what they gave to you. they took ten bux and my tennis shoes.

so say a prayer for the boys in the band. i was out of my head so it was out of my hands.
white wine and some tallboy cans. they powered up and they proceeded to jam man.

hit it again on the south side of the gym and my one friend got two girls in a twist. i got stuck with some priss that went and sliced up her wrists. but you know you gotta dance with who you came to the dance with.

lord, i'm discouraged
the circles have sucked in her eyes
lord, i'm discouraged
her new friends have shadowed her life
lord, i'm discouraged
she ain't come out dancing for some time
and i'm trying to light candles
but they burn down to nothing
and she keeps coming up with
excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
there's a house on the south side
where she stays in for days at a time

and now i know i'm no angel
but i ain't been bad that way
can't you hear her?
she's that sweet missing songbird
when the choir sings on sundays
and i'm almost busted
but i bought back the jewelry she sold
and i've clung to your altar
and then there's just nothing
she keeps insisting
the sutures and bruises are none of my business
she said that she's sick
but she won't get specific
the sutures and bruises are none of my business
there's a guy from the north side
who comes down and visits
and his visits, they only take five or six minutes

lord, i'm sorry to question your wisdom
but my faith has been wavering
won't you show me a sign
and let me know that you're listening?

excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
i don't know for sure if she's even alive
so i mostly just pray she don't die

You don't have to deal with the dealers
let your boyfriend deal with the dealers
it only gets inconvenient
when you wanna get high alone
you don't have to know how to get home
let your boyfriend tell the driver the best way to go,
it only gets kinda weird when you wanna go home alone,
you don't have to know the inspiring people
let your boyfriend know the inspiring people
you can hang in the kitchen
talk about the stars in the upcoming sequel

if you get tired of your boyfriend's things
there's always other boys,
there's always other boyfriends
if you get tired of your boyfriend's scene
there's always other scenes
there's always other boyfriends

you don't have to deal with the dealers
let your boyfriend deal with the dealers
when you wanna get high alone
you don't have to go to the right kind of schools,
let your boyfriend come from the right kind of school
you can wear his old sweatshirt
you can cover yourself like a bruise

but if you get tired of your boyfriend's things
there's always other boys
there's always other boyfriends
if you get tired of your football pranks
there's always other boys
there's always other boyfriends
if you get tired of the car he drives,
there's always other boys
and you can make him like you
if you get tired of the music he likes
there's always other boys
and you can make him like you

they say you don't have a problem
untill you start to do it alone
they say you don't have a problem
untill you start bringing it home
they say you don't have a problem
untill you start sleeping alone

there's always other boys
there's always other boyfriends
there's always other boys
and you can make him like you
there's always other boys
there's always other boyfriends
there's always other boys
and you can make him like you
there's always other boys
there's always other boyfriends
there's always other boys
and you can make him like you
there's always other boys
there's always other boyfriends
there's always other boys
and you can make him like you

Your little hoodrat friend makes me sick but after i get sick i just get sad. because it burns being broke and it hurts to be heartbroken but always being both must be a drag. she's been calling me again. she's been calling me again.
yr little hoodrat friend's been calling me again. and i can't stand all the things that she sticks into her skin. like sharpened ballpoint pens. and steel guitar strings. she says it hurts. but it's worth it. tiny little text etched into her neck it said "jesus lived and died for all your sins." she's got blue black ink and it's scratched into her lower back. it said: "damn right i'll rise again." yeah, damn right you'll rise again.

i've been dusted in the dark up in penetration park. i've been plastered. i've been shaking hard and searching in a dirty storefront church. i've been plowed. but i ain't ever been with your little hoodrat friend. what makes you think i'm getting with your little hoodrat friend?

yr little hoodrat friend got me high though. we were 17 and stuck up in osseo. she said it's funny even true love gets troubled by stillwater and washed up in the mississippi river.
her claddagh ring was pointed at the people. she said "st. theresa comes to me in dreams." she said "i ain't gonna do anything sexual with you. i'm kinda saving myself for the scene."

i've been dusted in the dark up in penetration park. i've been plastered. i've been shaking hard and searching in a dirty storefront church. i've been plowed. but i ain't ever been with your little hoodrat friend. what makes you think i'm getting with your little hoodrat friend?
she said: city center used to be the center of the scene. now city center's over. no one really goes there. then we used to drink beneath this railroad bridge. some nites the bus wouldn't even stop. there were just way too many kids.
i was waiting for my ride and i got jumped from behind. i got punctured. i got stopped by the cops. they found it in my sox. and i got probed. but i ain't ever been with your little hoodrat friend. what makes you think i'm getting with your little hoodrat friend?

Southtown girls won't blow you away
but you know that they'll stay (x4)

Take lyndale to the horizon.
take nicollet out to the ocean.
take penn ave out to the 494.
meet me right in front of the fabric store.
don't look me in the eye.
look over at the theater.
I'm a little bit surprised.
you didn't tell me there'd be three of you.
hey bloomington, what'd you let them do to you?
I think they're almost through with you.

southtown girls wont blow you away
but you know that they'll stay.

take lyndale back to the southside.
take nicollet up to the vietnamese.
take penn ave back up to the northside.
take lowery east to the quarry.
meet me right in front of the rainbow foods.
I got a brown paper bag and black buckle shoes.
if anything seems wierd then just cruise.

meet me right in front of the party city.
that two sided tape it gets way too sticky.
I got a bad case of noisemaker blues.

southtown girls wont blow you away
but you know that they'll stay

Hey citrus, hey liquor
i love it when you touch each other
hey whiskey, hey ginger
i come to you with rigid fingers
i see Judas in the hard eyes
of the boys who worked in the corners
i feel Jesus in the clumsiness of young and awkward lovers

hey bar roommate tavern
i find hope in all the souls you gather
hey citrus, hey liquor
i love it when we come together
i feel Jesus in the clumsiness of young and awkward lovers
I feel Judas in the long odds of the rackets on the corners
I feel jesus in the tenements of honest, nervous lovers
I feel Judas in the pistols and the pagers that come with all the powders

lost in fog and love and faith was fear
and I've had kisses that make Judas seem sincere
lost in fog and love and faith was fear
I've had kisses that make Judas seem sincere

Charlemagne shakes in the streets
Gideon makes love to the suites
and Holly's not invincible
in fact she's in the hospital
not far from that bar where we met
on that first night

Charlemagne pulls street corner scams
and Gideon's got a popcap from a Pringles can
Holly's insatiable, she still looks incredible
But she don't look like that same girl we met
on that first night
when she was golden with floorlight and beer
on that first night
she slept like she'd never been scared

And then last night
She said "Words so long never could save us."
And then last night
She cried and she told us about Jesus

Unhinged and uncontrollable
'Cause we can't get as high as we got
on that first night

Boys and girls in America
Boys and girls in America
Boys and girls in America
Boys and girls in America
Boys and girls in America

Don't bother talking to the guys
with their hot soft eyes
you know they're already taken
Don't even speak to all those sequin-surfed beach boys
when they kiss they spit white noise
when they kiss they spit white noise
when they kiss they spit white noise
when they kiss they spit white noise
yeah, when they kiss they spit white noise
now when they kiss they spit white noise
when they kiss they spit white noise

He was drawn-up in the dark up in Penetration Park
He says he's got your medication
She was sitting on the edges of his vision trying to start a revolution
But he's done with all the parties, he's covered in contusions
Your life leaves life lines, your rug leaves bright bruises
She said she was cruising but she came back all proud and out of focus with a cool car crankin' Krokus

Guys go for looks, girls go for status
There are so many nights where this is just how it happens
Guys go for looks, girls go for status

He was dreadlocked in the dorms in the Colorado corn
He says he's got your vegetation
She was sitting on the edge of the bed smoking trying to reach emancipation
And he's done with DVDs, he's fully entertained
He's bleaching out the blood stains, he's got diamonds in the drain
She said that she was coming but she wasn't, just make hard fast noises
It kind of sounded like a locust

Guys go for looks, girls go for status
There are so many nights where this is just how it happens
Guys go for looks, girls go for status

It was song number three on John's last CD,
"Gonna make it through this year if it kills me"
And it almost killed me
And song number four on that first D-4, you want the scars but you don't want the war
That's just hardcore
These kids are clever to the core

if they ask about charlemagne. be polite and say something vague. like another lover lost to the restaurant raids. if they ask why we left in the first place. say we were young and we were so in love. i guess we just needed space. we heard about this place they called the united states. we found out virginia really is for the lovers. philly is full of friendly friends that will love you like a brother. pensacola parties hard with poppers pills and pepsi. ybor city is tres speedy but they throw such killer parties. killer parties almost killed me.

if she says we partied then i'm pretty sure we partied. i really don't remember. i remember we departed from our bodies. we woke up in ybor city.

If she asks, don't tell her that I'm living hand-to-mouth
Don't tell her I've been sleeping on your couch
If she asks just tell her that we opened for the Stones
It's her favorite band except for The Ramones

If she happens to suggest a love based on trust and respect
Tell her I've been wasted since last week
If she wants to stop on by, tell her that I almost died
Tell her I ain't seeing people yet
But see if she'll send cigarettes

If she asks, don't tell her about the bloodshed in the streets
The less she knows, the less she can repeat
If she happens to bring up the pinpricks and the throwing up
Tell her it's just part of growing up

If she wants to get involved
Tell her to stay in St. Paul
Tell her I'm not up to taking calls
But ask her for some Adderall

Now Holly won't say hi to me
'Cause I'm in love with my anxiety

If she asks just tell her that we're too far gone to deal
She should know exactly how that feels
If she wants a scene report, don't tell her about the kitchen doors
Tell her we ain't even keeping score no more

If she wants to help the cause
Tell her we need sterile gauze
Tell her she should look through all her medecine
And she if she's got clonapenze

Now Charlemagne don't seem the same
He's skinny, scared and off his game
He's been hiding from those gentlemen
With the same tattoos as Gideon

When I left I wasn't thinking
That I wasn't coming home
But first Al Green and then Barry White
Convinced me not to go

And I didn't come home for vitamins
I came to bandage up my hand
And if you're gonna talk to me like that
Then I'll just go back out again

Wipe that chip right off your shoulder
We ain't getting any younger
And some things are getting bigger
Some things are falling off

Some things they seem much harder
Some other things stay soft

We're tipping over in the taprooms
We're shooting through the ceiling
We're dying in the bathrooms
And we're living for that one sweet fleeting feeling

I know my cough sounds awful
Some nights it hurts a bit to breathe
But I'm glad it's just my body
I do my business on the street

We ain't getting any younger
Tomorrow night we'll be that much older
Some kids are growing awkward
Some kids are going off

We're fingering the punchbowl
We're feeding from the trough

There's nothing quite like a Cheyenne sunrise
To make us has-beens feel too old

Onward Christian soldiers
We're gonna bash right through your borders
I bet your next party gets sketchy
I saw the new kids nodding off

Some things are getting bigger
Some things are falling off
Some things seem that much harder
Some other things stay soft

His two handed handshake says he's so glad to meet you
His one silver earring says he parties on weekends
He turns through the channels when he's watching the TV
He recites lines from movies when he's trying to be funny

Guys, it's like we're not even trying

She danced with that one guy, she must know we're watching
It seems like less people than were here just last weekend
She's still pretty pissed about her ex's new trick
There were stares and glares and names

Girls, you know you're not really helping

I don't think that you'll find love
In some bathroom at some club
I know some kids who didn't come back

We had First Ave on Fridays, we're pirates at port
We go in and we get high two at a time, we get drunk on the sports
We're falling into bed with our television sets
We're watching movies that we've already seen

Guys, it's like we're not even trying

You dress like contestants at some desperate pageant
You fall asleep in your makeup, you wake up with a blemish
You're making up your mind about the drinks after work
It's such a gossipy office

Girls, you're gonna find someone

You don't have to rush it
You're too young to force your crushes
You don't have to rush it
You're too young to fake your crushes

Guys, I'm pretty sure that we can put it back together
And girls, you gotta try to be nice to one another
Guys, I'm pretty sure that we can put it back together
And girls, you gotta try to be nice to one another

I don't think we'll get the truth
From kids with stickers on their boots
I know some kids who didn't come back
From the plywood painted black

We gotta try a little harder
We gotta be a little better
We gotta pull it back together

40 bucks and her favorite band,
She stayed out too late again.
The band’s back in Birmingham.
She didn’t go to work again.

She’s always been a pretty big fan.
Certain songs get scratched right in.
When morning comes round again,
The sadness crashes down and she said,

When he first came on to me it sounded kinda like a symphony.
It was hearts and horns and winds and warm and wet.
This morning when the band left town it bummed me out like a birthday clown,
A whole lotta drinks and a little bit of slight of hand.
40 bucks and her favorite band.

Her mother loves the seventies,
The leather vests and the Dungarees.
Her bio-dad played bass guitar
In a five-piece out of Wichita.

They had a little local hit.
You can find it on the internet.
They made her on the night they met
In a motel made of cigarettes.

She’s never even met the dude but she heard the song and it was pretty cool.
A sad, slow waltz about a pure and simple love.
There are days when she gets fatigued, she’s pretty old for this music scene.
And our dreams sing-a-long to the music of our youth.
40 bucks and her favorite groups.

She doesn’t really do it much
But she could probably get some party stuff.
She doesn’t really do it much
But she could probably get some party stuff.

She says she doesn’t know the guy but she’s pretty sure he’d stop by.
She barely even knows the dude but he’s come around for some other group.
And when he finally calls her back she says, “Guys let me cover this.
I know you don’t make much money yet, I know it mostly goes to cigarettes."
Last night’s conquest wasn’t all that famous yet, Two twenties from her dresser while she slept.
And then he left.

projectionists and publicists, athletes and comedians
photographers and columnists, subscribers and enthusiasts
participants and spectators, the ragers and the clever kids
we're all actors and actresses

i want to thank you all for having me
a special thanks to the academy
for birthing me and blessing me
with this fantastic opportunity
to let the light shine down on me
now let us grieve for dead celebrities
we know them all from all the magazines

we photograph the carcasses, we hang them up on canvasses
we're all actors and actresses

maybe our anxiety
lives in the spaces in between
who we really are
and what we want to be
and the things that we let other people see
when all we really want
is to be in magazines

found dead on dirty mattresses, bleeding through the bandages
cops are surveying the damages and sending out for sandwiches
they photographed the carcasses and hang them up on canvasses
we're all actors and actresses

i guess we all got pretty close
i guess we all got pretty close
i guess we all got pretty close to the roles we chose to play
i guess we all got pretty close, i swear i saw him right by 7a

we see our friends six pages and right behind the president
(we're actors and we're actresses)
the office girls are awful with their take on what went wrong with him
(we're actors and we're actresses)
they're covering the carcass, they're bleeding and remembering
(we're actors and we're actresses)
we're all actors and actresses, we're all actors and actresses
(we're actors and we're actresses)