The Sad Story Behind The Final Song Of "The Colbert Report"

In April, Colbert talked about his relationship with the song "Holland, 1945" by Neutral Milk Hotel.

The final episode of The Colbert Report aired Thursday night. The last segment was a huge sing-along of “We’ll Meet Again.”

The Colbert Report

Right after that, however, there was one more song. As the credits rolled, Neutral Milk Hotel's song "Holland, 1945" played.

The Colbert Report

As Slate points out, when Stephen Colbert was 10, his father and two brothers closest to him in age died in a plane crash. Colbert told the New York Times how he loved Neutral Milk Hotel's song:

He said he loved the "strange, sad poetry" of a song called "Holland 1945" by an indie band from Athens, Ga., called Neutral Milk Hotel and sent me the lyrics, which included this heartbreaking bit:

"But now we must pick up every piece
Of the life we used to love
Just to keep ourselves
At least enough to carry on. . . .
And here is the room where your brothers were born
Indentions in the sheets
Where their bodies once moved but don't move anymore."

You can listen to the song here.

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