Kids with broken hearts, kids with broken bones
Kids with kidney stones giving birth to bloody stereos
Systems are all dripping wet with the gristle piss and the swizzlesticks
Mary got a bloody nose from sniffing margarita mix

She licked her lower lip and then she kissed that Hallelujah chick
She came off kind of spicy but she tasted like those pickle chips
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 confident smile and a nervous cough
And 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"
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 with a tallboy can and he woke up in a cargo van
Went down with the Girls Gone Wild and he woke up with a 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 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"
The other half is calling out for "Born To Lose"

Baby, we were born to choose
We got the last call bar band really, really, really big decision blues
We were born to bruise
We were born to bruise


Lyrics submitted by stellaluna1125

Barfruit Blues Lyrics as written by Tad Jason Kubler Craig Finn

Lyrics © Reservoir Media Management, Inc.

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Barfruit Blues song meanings
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4 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment

    this song drastically shifts its focus at the line "that's not how he planned it." The first half is about how much fun partying can be. He talks about "kids with broken hearts, kids with broken bones," but somehow manages to put a positive image on seemingly awful things and caps it off with "she had a confidence smile and a nervous cough. and we got off," hinting at how all these crazy activities bring out the best in people. A lot of The Hold Steady songs focus on the ups and downs of such a wild life, and the second half focuses on that. The last 7 or 8 lines are pretty obvious and just show that there are highs and then there are lows to going out and getting trashed every night.

    rossismadon April 08, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    The verse

    "Half the crowd is calling out for Born To Run The other half is calling out for Born To Lose Baby, we were born to choose We got those last call bar band Really really big decision blues We were born to bruise"

    might just be my favourite from any Hold Steady song.

    shrodeson June 30, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    " 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. "

    Great rhyme scheme. Relentless. Cole Porter-esque. Very clever. Very wordy.

    I love it.

    hottoddyon December 14, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    The first appearance of Holly/Hallelujah? Craig Finn is either a genius or a genius...

    hottoddyon April 21, 2010   Link

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