♫ Hold On ♫ (Redux)

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, History, music

I was in the kitchen this afternoon, scrubbing my indoor electric grill that I had used to grill chicken breasts ala Marguerite last night (NOT a fun chore, scrubbing the grill!!!) when I found myself humming, then quietly singing this song.  I couldn’t remember the title of the song nor the name of the group (have I mentioned that my memory is not what it once was?), but I remembered that the daughter of one (two) of The Mamas and the Papas was part of the group, so from there it was easy to find the song. And then, I remembered that this is a favourite of my dear friend, David’s … and so the conclusion was fairly simple … redux!!!  This one’s for you, David!

In this case, the group has a more interesting history than the actual song itself.  The group, Wilson Phillips, is a trio of three female singers:  Chynna Phillips, Carnie Wilson & Wendy Wilson. Chyna Phillips is the daughter of John & Michelle Phillips of The Mamas and The Papas, and the two Wilson girls are the daughters of Brian Wilson of Beach Boy  fame, and Marilyn Rovell of The Honeys.  They all grew up together in Southern California and the girls started the group when they were only teens.

The song, Hold On, released in 1990, hit the #1 spot in the U.S. and Canada, and #6 in the UK and New Zealand.  The song won the Billboard Music Award for Hot 100 Single of the Year for 1990. At the Grammy Awards of 1991, the song received a nomination for Song of the Year, losing to From a Distance by Julie Gold and performed by Bette Midler.

Hold On
Wilson Phillips

I know there’s pain
Why do you lock yourself up in these chains?
No one can change your life except for you
Don’t ever let anyone step all over you
Just open your heart and your mind
Is it really fair to feel this way inside?

Some day somebody’s gonna make you want to
Turn around and say goodbye
Until then baby are you going to let them
Hold you down and make you cry
Don’t you know?
Don’t you know things can change
Things’ll go your way
If you hold on for one more day
Can you hold on for one more day
Things’ll go your way
Hold on for one more day

You could sustain
Or are you comfortable with the pain?
You’ve got no one to blame for your unhappiness
You got yourself into your own mess
Lettin’ your worries pass you by
Don’t you think it’s worth your time
To change your mind?

Some day somebody’s gonna make you want to
Turn around and say goodbye
Until then baby are you going to let them
Hold you down and make you cry
Don’t you know?
Don’t you know things can change
Things’ll go your way
If you hold on for one more day
Can you hold on for one more day
Things’ll go your way
Hold on for one more day

I know that there is pain
But you hold on for one more day and
Break free the chains
Yeah I know that there is pain
But you hold on for one more day and you
Break free, break from the chains

Some day somebody’s gonna make you want to
Turn around and say goodbye
Until then baby are you going to let them
Hold you down and make you cry
Don’t you know?
Don’t you know things can change
Things’ll go your way
If you hold on for one more day yeah
If you hold on

Don’t you know things can change
Things’ll go your way
If you hold on for one more day
If you hold on
Can you hold on
Hold on baby
Won’t you tell me now
Hold on for one more day ’cause
It’s gonna go your way

Don’t you know things can change
Things’ll go your way
If you hold on for one more day
Can’t you change it this time

Make up your mind
Hold on
Hold on
Baby hold on

Songwriters: Carnie Wilson / Chynna Phillips / Glen Ballard
Hold On lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

25 thoughts on “♫ Hold On ♫ (Redux)”

  3. Sorry, but I’m going to be a dissenting voice. Nice harmonies, but I’ve always found this song a bit boring and always felt it sold so well for the novelty of who their fathers were.

    Liked by 2 people

            • Ah well … That’s funny, because I always thought she rose above the glitzy showbiz stuff and was more … como se dice … genuine. I won’t blame you if you skip over the one I’ll be playing, probably tomorrow morn, ’cause David asked for it and … I usually try to make him smile if I can.

              Liked by 2 people

              • I’ve seen her on talk shows here and to me she was very showbiz, to a nauseating level! Keep to the plan – you shouldn’t decline to play something because I might not like it! Making David smile is a laudable objective, too.

                Liked by 2 people

                • Hmmmm … funny how different people view things/people/issues differently! It’s what keeps life interesting! If we all fit into the same narrow box, music and literature would be boring. Yeah, David needs to smile, so I shall give him a reason to do so!

                  Liked by 1 person

  6. Jill, this was a cool song. One of the saddest thing about what happened to Brian Wilson is he fell under the control of a psychiatrist who forbid him from seeing his daughters or anyone for about ten years. It wasn’t until he met his future second wife who worked with his brother Carl to get him out of this toxic relationship. He mended fences after that time. There is a great video of the three of them singing “God only knows” with Kelly Clarkson on her show. What could have been is a question to ask if he could have been an advisor to Wilson-Phillips. Keith

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    • I had no idea about Brian Wilson and the psychiatrist! That’s awful! I cannot imagine allowing anyone, not a doctor, friend, spouse or psychiatrist, to keep me away from my daughter or granddaughter! I’m glad he finally got back together with them, but … all those wasted years! I hope they sued the psychiatrist for malpractice?

      Liked by 1 person

    • Ahhhh … I don’t think I’ve even heard of that movie, but then … I likely know of only about 10 movies that came out after 1965! I’m a cultural reject! I’m glad you enjoyed the song, though!

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