Album: Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Nathaniel Rateliff is a singer-songwriter from Hermann, Missouri. After recording two Americana-styled solo albums, he formed the throwback R&B group Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats in 2013. This is the lead single from their self-titled debut album.
  • This southern-gospel influenced song depicts the struggles of alcoholism as Rateliff croons of a man who is literally drinking his life away. It first gained exposure after the band performed it on Jimmy Fallon's The Tonight Show on August 5, 2015. The host tweeted enthusiastically before the band's performance: "If you believe in soul... if you believe in rock n roll... if you believe in performing your guts out… Enjoy the band on our show tonight."
  • Alcohol plays a large part in many of Rateliff's songs (check out the Falling Faster Than You Can Run track "Three Fingers In").

    "Well…..I might be a drunk," Rateliff told The Line Of Best Fit. "I've been working on it and singing about it for a while. I quit for a while too, though, but I was just so miserable. I was six months sober, but I guess it's funny to be part of a drinking culture, in my circle of friends and even when you're touring and performing you're in a bar every night... so it's kinda tricky to not lose your ass every night!"
  • The song featured on a Lipton's "Be More Tea" iced tea commercial, which was aired during the summer of 2016.
  • Surprisingly, this isn't one of its writer's favorites. "It's a funny thing," Rateliff mused to The Sun. "That was the one song I didn't really want to put on the first (Night Sweats) record. It just wasn't something I connected with but I knew that when we played it live, people loved it. There were other things from that first session I liked more as a writer and other things that I liked more for personal reasons. But it was a good choice to put it out there."

Comments: 1

  • Dirtballking from OverhereWhat is meant by the lyrics I'm going to cover myself with the ashes of you and nobody is going to give a damn?
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Pam Tillis

Pam TillisSongwriter Interviews

The country sweetheart opines about the demands of touring and talks about writing songs with her famous father.

Rob Halford of Judas Priest

Rob Halford of Judas PriestSongwriter Interviews

Rob Halford dives into some of his Judas Priest lyrics, talking about his most personal songs and the message behind "You've Got Another Thing Comin'."

Classic Metal

Classic MetalFact or Fiction

Ozzy, Guns N' Roses, Judas Priest and even Michael Bolton show up in this Classic Metal quiz.

Artis the Spoonman

Artis the SpoonmanSong Writing

Even before Soundgarden wrote a song about him, Artis was the most famous spoon player of all time. So why has he always been broke?

Emilio Castillo from Tower of Power

Emilio Castillo from Tower of PowerSongwriter Interviews

Emilio talks about what it's like to write and perform with the Tower of Power horns, and why every struggling band should have a friend like Huey Lewis.

Rufus Wainwright

Rufus WainwrightSongwriter Interviews

Rufus Wainwright on "Hallelujah," his album Unfollow The Rules, and getting into his "lyric trance" on 12-hour walks.