Released April 1990 Length 4:18 Producer(s) Mark Howard | Genre Folk rock Label MCA | |
Writer(s) Rob Baker
Gordon Downie
Johnny Fay
Paul Langlois
Gord Sinclair | ||
"38 Years Old" is a song by Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. It was released in April 1990 as the fourth single from the band's first full-length studio album, Up to Here. The song peaked at No. 41 on the Canadian RPM singles chart. Though it is one of The Tragically Hip's most popular songs, the band seldom played the song live.
Contents
Background
The song was written in Memphis during their recording of the album.
Content
It is a fictional account of the real-life escape of 14 inmates from Millhaven Institution near the band's hometown of Kingston, Ontario on July 10, 1972. The date of the event and the number of escapees mentioned in the song are historically incorrect ("12 men broke loose in '73..."). This was done for the purpose of meter, and for rhyming with the next line of the song ("...from Millhaven maximum security.")