Stay Positive (album)

For the song by the Streets, see Original Pirate Material.

Stay Positive is the fourth studio album by the Hold Steady, released on July 15, 2008, through Vagrant Records. Vocalist/guitarist Craig Finn notes that the album is about "the idea of ageing gracefully [...] keeping going, perseverance [and] how to stay true to the ideals and ideas you had when you were younger."^[12] Keyboard player Franz Nicolay notes that the album is his favorite, stating that it features an "integrated, nuanced, less hectic distillation of [their earlier] sound."^[13] Stay Positive was the last studio album to feature Nicolay until 2019's Thrashing Thru the Passion, who departed from the band in early 2010 but returned in 2016.

Stay Positive
Studio album by the Hold Steady
Released	15 July 2008
Genre	Indie rock alternative rock heartland rock
Length	43:48
Label	Vagrant/Rough Trade
Producer	John Agnello
The Hold Steady chronology
Boys and Girls in America (2006) Stay Positive (2008) Heaven Is Whenever (2010)

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	85/100[1]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
The A.V. Club	B+[3]
Entertainment Weekly	A[4]
The Guardian	[5]
Los Angeles Times	[6]
MSN Music (Consumer Guide)	B+[7]
NME	9/10[8]
Pitchfork	8.4/10[9]
Rolling Stone	[10]
Spin	[11]

On May 20, the album's first single, "Sequestered in Memphis", was released on the band's MySpace page and on iTunes. On June 9, the entire album was made available to stream on MySpace, and on June 18 the full album became available on iTunes. It was later released for the videogame Rock Band (via the Rock Band Network) on March 4, 2010.

The record entered the UK Album Chart at #15 on July 20, 2008, the third-highest new entry. It ranked #1 on the UK Indie Chart. In the U.S. it entered at #30 on the Billboard 200. The album was Alex Zane's record of the week on the XFM breakfast show. The song "Constructive Summer" was number 56 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008.^[14]

Stay Positive has sold 88,000 copies as of April 2010 ^[15]

Lyrical content

In an interview with Uncut, Craig Finn notes that he thought the album "should maybe look at the characters I’d been writing about on the previous three albums as they got a bit older, more adult with more adult problems." The title track in particular references several Hold Steady songs and characters from the previous albums, such as "Hornets! Hornets!", "Positive Jam", "Massive Nights" and "Sweet Payne", while relating them to the common theme of believing in the ideals of youth as you get older.^[12] The title track references hardcore punk bands Youth of Today, 7 Seconds, and Dillinger Four.^[16]

Accolades

Publication	Country	Accolade	Year	Rank
The A.V. Club	USA	The Best Music of 2008	2008	#6[17]
Q	UK	50 Best Albums of the Year	2008	#35[18]
Mojo	UK	50 Best Albums of the Year	2008	#6[19]
Uncut	UK	50 Best Albums of the Year	2008	#12[20]
Rolling Stone	USA	50 Best Albums of the Year	2008	#36[21]
Entertainment Weekly	USA	Best Music of 2008: A Second Opinion by Chris Willman	2008	#1[22]

Track listing

All songs written by Craig Finn and Tad Kubler, except where noted.

1. "Constructive Summer" – 2:56
2. "Sequestered in Memphis" – 3:33
3. "One for the Cutters" – 4:41
4. "Navy Sheets" – 3:23
5. "Lord, I'm Discouraged" – 5:08
6. "Yeah Sapphire" (Finn, Franz Nicolay) – 3:37
7. "Both Crosses" – 4:35
8. "Stay Positive" – 2:59
9. "Magazines" (Finn, Nicolay) – 3:09
10. "Joke About Jamaica" (Finn, Kubler, Nicolay) – 4:36
11. "Slapped Actress" – 5:19

CD bonus tracks

A "limited edition digipak" version of the album was released with three bonus tracks (however, they are uncut from one another and run continuous as track 12):^[23]

12. "Ask Her for Adderall" – 2:52
13. "Cheyenne Sunrise" – 4:11
14. "Two Handed Handshake" – 4:15

Vinyl edition

A double LP vinyl edition is also available, which includes the limited edition CD's bonus track "Ask Her for Adderall," as well as a slightly different track order.

Disc 1 Side A:

1. "Constructive Summer"
2. "Sequestered in Memphis"
3. "One For The Cutters"

Disc 1 Side B:

4. "Navy Sheets"
5. "Yeah Sapphire"
6. "Lord, I'm Discouraged"

Disc 2 Side A:

7. "Both Crosses"
8. "Stay Positive"
9. "Joke About Jamaica"

Disc 2 Side B:

10. "Ask Her For Adderall"
11. "Magazines"
12. "Slapped Actress"

Deluxe Edition

A deluxe edition, released on October 15, 2018, includes demo recordings of many of the original release's tracks as well as previously unreleased tracks: "This Isn't Enough", "You Tremble", and "The Ballad of the Midnight Hauler". "Spectres" and "40 Bucks" were previously released as downloadable bonus content from the live album A Positive Rage.

1. "Constructive Summer" – 2:56
2. "Sequestered in Memphis" - 03:32
3. "One For the Cutters" - 04:41
4. "Navy Sheets" - 03:21
5. "Lord, I'm Discouraged" - 05:08
6. "Yeah Sapphire" - 03:36
7. "Both Crosses" - 04:35
8. "Stay Positive" - 02:58
9. "Magazines" - 03:08
10. "Joke About Jamaica" - 04:35
11. "Slapped Actress" - 05:17
12. "Ask Her For Adderall" - 02:48
13. "Two Handed Handshake" - 04:13
14. "Cheyenne Sunrise" - 04:12
15. "Spectres" - 03:42
16. "40 Bucks" - 03:54
17. "This Isn't Enough" - 03:31
18. "You Tremble" - 02:19
19. "The Ballad of the Midnight Hauler" - 03:10
20. "Sequestered in Memphis (Demo)" - 02:46
21. "Yeah Sapphire (Demo)" - 03:57
22. "Stay Positive (Demo)" - 02:45
23. "Lord, I'm Discouraged (Demo)" - 05:14
24. "Magazines (Demo)" - 02:41
25. "Ask Her For Adderall (Demo)" - 02:44
26. "Two Handed Handshake (Demo)" - 05:04
27. "Joke About Jamaica (Demo)" - 05:31
28. "Creepy Harpsichord Jam (One for the Cutters) (Demo)" - 04:40
29. "40 Bucks (Demo)" - 03:58
30. "Phil Spector (Spectres) (Demo)" - 03:52

References

1. "Reviews for Stay Positive by The Hold Steady". Metacritic. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
2. Jurek, Thom. "Stay Positive – The Hold Steady". AllMusic. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
3. Hyden, Steven (July 14, 2008). "The Hold Steady: Stay Positive". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
4. Willman, Chris (July 11, 2008). "Stay Positive". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
5. Rogers, Jude (July 11, 2008). "The Hold Steady, Stay Positive". The Guardian. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
6. Cromelin, Richard (July 15, 2008). "The Hold Steady 'Stay Positive' (Vagrant)". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
7. Christgau, Robert (September 2008). "Consumer Guide". MSN Music. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
8. McMahon, James (July 11, 2008). "The Hold Steady: Stay Positive". NME. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
9. Crock, Jason (July 13, 2008). "The Hold Steady: Stay Positive". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
10. Hermes, Will (July 10, 2008). "Stay Positive". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
11. Modell, Josh (August 2008). "Closing Time". Spin. 24 (8): 100. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
12. "Music Reviews". Uncut.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2011-05-19. Retrieved 2012-03-10.
13. Lindsay, Andrew (2009-02-16). "Interview: Franz Nicolay". Stereokill.net. Archived from the original on 2009-08-04. Retrieved 2009-04-06.
14. "The 100 Best Songs of 2008". Rolling Stone (December 25, 2008). Retrieved 2009-01-12
15. "Hold Steady Seeks To Break Out Of The Brooklyn Rock Box". Billboard.com. 2009-09-14. Retrieved 2012-03-10.
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18. Q Magazine Jan 09, pg.83
19. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2009-02-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
20. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-04-28. Retrieved 2009-02-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
21. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. Retrieved 2009-02-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
22. Entertainment Weekly, Dec 26/Jan 02, p. 100
23. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2021-12-25. Retrieved 2008-07-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)