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
Make for lousy lovers'
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.



Lyrics submitted by freddyknuckles

Track duration: 04:10

"Stuck Between Stations" as written by Craig Finn, Tad Kubler, Franz Nicolay

Lyrics © Chrysalis One Music

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


Stuck Between Stations song meanings
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26 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:Amazing song, holy god. To me it really sets the mood for the album. The album is about the early to mid teenage years of carefree partying but towards the end the feeling of inevitable responsibility starts to loom over the heads of all of the kids who want nothing more than to have fun and get off.
    Flag modestcoryon February 20, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment: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.


    man i know how that feels
    Flag kdanceon February 13, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:As some one who spent time my summers in SD, and MN, fell in love with a MN girl, worshipped Jack Kerouac, and loved John Berryman growing up, I feel like this band is everything I would write about. There songs are so personal to me,and I have this emotional connection to them. I don't think I'm the only one, Hold Steady fans are a bit over-the-top. For my money, this is the best band in America right now. Cannot wait to see them both nights in Seattle!
    Flag Propaganda78on November 03, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I like the first two lines. A nice reference to On the Road without being cheesy, and a perfect way to start a song as far as I'm concerned. I really do love that book.
    Flag muteoffon September 03, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i love this song. holy god.
    plus, anything referencing on the road is a win with me.
    Flag readingkerouacon August 23, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:The singer sounds like a weird combination of Elvis Costello and Randy Newman.

    In a good way.
    Flag pumkinhedon June 04, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:another great song about this incident is john allyn smith sails by okkervil river
    Flag jmoneylpon January 24, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:"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"

    Story of my life. Quality tune!
    Flag QueenOfLeonon September 22, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:My favorite part about this band is their cast of characters -- you never know who's perspective they're speaking from at any given time, but bits and pieces can come from seemingly random mentions in previous songs.

    For example, the "damn good dancer but she wasn't all that great of a girlfriend" references Hostile, Mass., off of Almost Killed Me:

    "They met as kids. He was angry and angsty. She was a damned good dancer. I'll be damned if they didn't disappear. Wandered out of mass one day and faded into the fog and love and faithless fear."
    Flag goodreverendon July 10, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:"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" - can anyone go back to listening to Fall Out Boy or All American Rejects after hearing those lines? Really?
    Flag cmckinleyon June 15, 2007   Link

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