Hold On Magnolia

this song is just exactly what i need, whenever i need it most

My interpretation is that the song is a dying man consoling his lover. I get really vivid imagery of her holding his hand as he tells her how much she means to him.

this song has so much personal meaning to me....i could never articulate it. i'm so glad it was made.

I agree with Carolus - this song - one of the greatest and saddest you will ever hear - is most certainly a deathbed conversation that a devastated man is professing to his lover. The fact that Jason Molina died so young makes this beautiful track even more heartbreaking and poignant. A few important things to note - and they are tragic - this man has a ton of sad regrets, and on his deathbed, in referencing his life, he does not describe happy, prosperous thoughts, he instead mentions "a highway moon", a "station bell", The "last light", "the darkness", a "lonesome whistle", "thunder, rain, darkness." His recollection of his life's existence is not a pleasant one, but conversely - it is interesting that he repeats the line "Hold On Magnolia" so many times. This is unlike Jason Molina -- this is specifically intentionally done to describe how -- he is less concerned with his own death than he is about his lover's sadness and despair concerning his death. In essence, he is more worried about her, even though he is the one dying. This is a brilliant, brilliant, underrated masterpiece by one of the greatest artists to have ever lived, and if only people were strong enough to understand and accept this dark, genuine genius, he may still be alive today.

This song makes me think of taking a train or a bus across the country, especially through the big middle of the country, through the deserts and Texas and the south.

magnolia is another word for a southern woman.