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About

Genius Annotation

According to lead singer Craig Finn, “Positive Jam” is something of a thesis statement for the Hold Steady.

It’s obviously our first album and I wanted to make something kind of like a declaration — a thesis statement if you will. It had that line, “I was bored when I didn’t have a band, so I started a band.“ It’s meant to bring everyone up to speed like, “Here we are, and this is an album. The Hold Steady is here.” It actually says "hold steady” in the lyrics. You know, “We’re gonna start it with a positive jam” is sort of self-aware, as it’s our first song on our first album.

– Craig Finn, in an interview with Vulture

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

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Release Date
March 16, 2004
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