"Hold Me" is a single by British-American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

group Fleetwood Mac. The song was the first track to be released from the album '' Mirage'' (1982), the thirteenth album by the band.

Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Adams Buckingham (born October 3, 1949) is an American musician and record producer, best known as the lead guitarist and male lead vocalist of the band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with Fl ...

was main producer with Richard Dashut and

Ken Caillat Kenneth Douglas Caillat ( ) is an American record producer. He is best known for engineering the Fleetwood Mac albums '' Rumours'', ''Tusk'', ''Mirage'', ''Live'', and '' The Chain Box Set''. Life and career Caillat was the president of 5.1 Ent ...

Christine McVie Christine Anne McVie (; née Perfect; 12 July 1943 – 30 November 2022) was an English musician and songwriter. She was best known as keyboardist and one of the vocalists of the band Fleetwood Mac. McVie was a member of several bands, nota ...

and Buckingham were the lead vocalists.

Background

"Hold Me" was written by Christine McVie and

Robbie Patton Robbie Patton is an English singer-songwriter. His first major exposure came in 1979 when he was selected as the opening act for a Fleetwood Mac tour. Mac member Christine McVie went on to produce Patton's second and third albums, and played keybo ...

. During one of the recording sessions, guitarist Lindsey Buckingham suggested that he and McVie perform "Hold Me" as a duet similar to " Don't Stop". The two vocalists sang their parts with the studio windows open over the

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

countryside. '' Cash Box'' said that "the catchy hook, the solid rhythm and, of course, the female harmonies all come together in a package that can’t beat." Released in June 1982 in advance of the album itself, the song became one of Fleetwood Mac's biggest hits in the United States, peaking at 4 for a then-record seven consecutive weeks, from July 24, 1982 to September 4, 1982. (Potential higher chart placement was prevented by songs including "

Eye of the Tiger "Eye of the Tiger" is a song by American rock band Survivor. It was released as a single from their third album of the same name and was also the theme song for the 1982 film ''Rocky III'', which was released a day before the single. The son ...

" by Survivor and "

Abracadabra ''Abracadabra'' is a magic word, historically used as an incantation on amulets and common today in stage magic. Etymology ''Abracadabra'' is of unknown origin, but according to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', its first known occurrence ...

" by the

Steve Miller Band The Steve Miller Band is an American rock band formed in 1966 in San Francisco, California. The band is led by Steve Miller on guitar and lead vocals. The group had a string of mid- to late-1970s hit singles that are staples of classic rock, as ...

, as well as the No. 2 peaking of "

Hurts So Good "Hurts So Good" is a song by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, then performing under the stage name "John Cougar". The song was a number two hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for the singer/songwriter. It was the first of three major hi ...

" by

John Cougar John J. Mellencamp (born October 7, 1951), previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his catchy brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrument ...

.) "Hold Me" ranked at No. 31 on the ''Billboard'' Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1982. In the United Kingdom, "Hold Me" was released in July 1982, but failed to chart despite respectable publicity. The song was eventually re-issued in February 1989 to promote the group's ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' (1988) package with "No Questions Asked" as the B-side. It reached No. 94. The song is also included on the 2002 US version, and 2009 UK re-issue of the greatest hits album '' The Very Best of Fleetwood Mac''.

Music video

The music video for "Hold Me" features the band in a surreal scenario set in a desert, based on several

René Magritte René François Ghislain Magritte (; 21 November 1898 – 15 August 1967) was a Belgian surrealist artist known for his depictions of familiar objects in unfamiliar, unexpected contexts, which often provoked questions about the nature and bound ...

paintings. In the video, Christine McVie is in a room surrounded by paintings, using a telescope to search for Lindsey Buckingham in the desert. Buckingham discovers Stevie Nicks lying on a

chaise longue A chaise longue (; , "long chair") is an upholstered sofa in the shape of a chair that is long enough to support the legs of the sitter. In modern French the term ''chaise longue'' can refer to any long reclining chair such as a deckchair. ...

and paints a portrait of her. In other scenes,

John McVie John Graham McVie (born 26 November 1945) is a British bass guitarist. He is best known as a member of the rock bands John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers from 1964 to 1967 and Fleetwood Mac since 1967. His surname, combined with that of Mick Fle ...

and

Mick Fleetwood Michael John Kells Fleetwood (born 24 June 1947) is a British musician, songwriter and occasional actor. He is best known as the drummer, co-founder, and leader of the rock band Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood, whose surname was merged with that of t ...

are archaeologists, dressed in

khaki The color khaki (, ) is a light shade of tan with a slight yellowish tinge. Khaki has been used by many armies around the world for uniforms and equipment, particularly in arid or desert regions, where it provides camouflage relative to sandy ...

shorts and

pith helmet The pith helmet, also known as the safari helmet, salacot, sola topee, sun helmet, topee, and topi) is a lightweight cloth-covered helmet made of sholapith. The pith helmet originates from the Spanish military adaptation of the native '' salako ...

s. They find the desert littered with broken mirrors, which serve as a motif in the video, along with partially buried pianos, electric guitars, bass guitars, and other instruments. Due to the band members' strained relationships at the time, the video shoot in the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

was a "nightmare," according to producer

Simon Fields Simon Fields is a native of London and received his education at Stowe School. After graduation, he worked his way through the television commercial production ranks in London to become production manager for the Moving Picture Company. In 1978, ...

. "

hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...

were, um, not easy to work with," agrees Steve Barron, who directed the clip. Most scenes feature only one or two band members at a time and the entire band is never seen together. "It was so hot, and we weren't getting along," recalls Nicks. Buckingham was still not over their breakup six years earlier, nor her subsequent affair with Fleetwood. Further, she elaborates, the rest of the band was angry with Fleetwood because he had then begun an affair with Nicks' best friend, who left her husband as a result, causing serious issues for Nicks. "Four of them, I can't recall which four, couldn't be together in the same room for very long. They didn't want to be there," says Barron. "Christine McVie was about ten hours out of the makeup trailer. By which time it was getting dark." According to Fields, "John McVie was drunk and tried to punch me. Stevie Nicks didn't want to walk on the sand with her platforms. Christine McVie was fed up with all of them. Mick thought she was being a bitch, he wouldn't talk to her."

Track listing

7-inch single (US) (Warner Bros / 7-29966) :A. "Hold Me" — 3:42 :B. "Eyes of the World" — 3:41 12-inch promotional single (US) (Warner Bros / PRO-A-1040) # "Hold Me" — 3:42 (both sides)

Personnel

– twelve-string acoustic guitar,

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...

, lead (in unison with C. McVie) and backing vocals *

–

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

, Yamaha CP30 electric piano, lead (in unison with Buckingham) and backing vocals *

–

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

– drums,

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though ...

, congas

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

Bibliography

*''The Great Rock Discography'', Martin C. Strong, p. 378. (2000),

External links

Official Charts Company.com – UK chart information

Official site
{{Authority control 1982 singles Fleetwood Mac songs Songs written by Christine McVie Songs written by Robbie Patton Song recordings produced by Ken Caillat Song recordings produced by Richard Dashut Music videos directed by Steve Barron Warner Records singles 1981 songs Male–female vocal duets