This song is about quitting drinking, then giving in and going back to it ("Cold turkey's getting stale"). When you do it, you've had the urge for a while ("My tongue is swelling up"), and when you start again, the first day you do, you get drunk ("Hitching' a ride"). The song reflects the struggles Billie Joe Armstrong was going through with alcohol. He says the song is about "having balance in your life and falling off the wagon."
"Hitchin' A Ride" was the lead single from Green Day's fifth album, Nimrod. Their third album, Dookie, was released in 1994 and exceeded all expectations, selling over 10 million copies. The touring and promotional obligations wore out the band, whose batteries were running low when they issued Insomniac in 1995. With Nimrod, they had more time to craft the songs and got better results. The band didn't make singles available for sale in America, but promoted them to radio stations and MTV. "Hitchin' A Ride" was big in October 1997 as the band was starting their tour. The next single, "Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)," was an uncharacteristically reflective song that earned them many new fans. It garnered most of its airplay in February 1998.
Green Day premiered this song on July 19, 1997 at a secret show at The Viper Room in West Hollywood, California, where they were billed as "Nimrod."
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