''Hold On!'' by

Herman's Hermits Herman's Hermits are an English beat, rock and pop group formed in 1964 in Manchester, originally called Herman and His Hermits and featuring lead singer Peter Noone. Produced by Mickie Most, the Hermits charted with number ones in the UK ...

is the band's fourth album in the U.S. It was not released in the United Kingdom but an EP was released by EMI/Columbia (catalogue number SEG 8503.) featuring 6 tracks. It is the soundtrack album to a 1966 film featuring Herman's Hermits and

Shelley Fabares Michele Ann Marie "Shelley" Fabares (; born January 19, 1944) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her television roles as Mary Stone on the sitcom '' The Donna Reed Show'' (1958–1963) and as Christine Armstrong on the sitco ...

, '' Hold On!''

Background

The film's producers had recruited Fred Karger, a Hollywood composer who had served as music director of the group's previous movie, '' When the Boys Meet the Girls'', to write the songs for the movie. In an interview on a television documentary on The British Invasion, Peter Noone recalled that the original title of the film was ''There's No Place Like Space'', for which Karger had written the theme song. However, the group and their manager

Mickie Most Michael Peter Hayes (20 June 1938 – 30 May 2003), known as Mickie Most, was an English record producer behind scores of hit singles for acts such as the Animals, Herman's Hermits, the Nashville Teens, Donovan, Lulu, Suzi Quatro, Hot Ch ...

agreed that the song wasn't right for them and, instead, asked co-star

' then-husband, record producer

Lou Adler Lester Louis Adler (born December 13, 1933) is an American record and film producer and the co-owner of the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, California. Adler has produced and developed a number of iconic musical artists, including The Grass R ...

, for help. Adler recommended songwriter

P.F. Sloan Philip Gary "Flip" Sloan (born Philip Gary Schlein; September 18, 1945 – November 15, 2015), known professionally as P. F. Sloan, was an American singer and songwriter. During the mid-1960s, he wrote, performed, and produced many ''Billboar ...

to compose the title track for the film. Sloan's recollection was that the film was to be renamed ''A Must to Avoid'', and he wrote a song for that title, with some contributions from his writing partner

Steve Barri Steve Barri (born Steven Barry Lipkin in Brooklyn, New York on February 23, 1942) is an American songwriter and record producer. Career Early in his career, Barri was a staff writer with Dunhill Records. He produced such huge hits as " Dizzy" ...

. When the studio vetoed that title, the film was then retitled ''Hold On!'' after another one of Sloan's songs. Ultimately, the ten-song US soundtrack album included five songs written by Karger, including the lone song sung by Fabares, four songs written by Sloan/Barri, and one Hermits cover of a 1937 British music hall song. The six-song UK EP used all four Sloan/Barri songs and just two of the Karger songs. "

A Must to Avoid "A Must to Avoid" is a song written by P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri and performed by Herman's Hermits. It was featured on their 1966 album, '' Hold On!'' and on their 1966 EP, '' A Must to Avoid''. The song was produced by Mickie Most. Backgrou ...

" and a re-recorded version of "Leaning on a Lamp Post" both reached the Billboard Top 10 as singles in the US; a re-recorded "Hold On!" was the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

of the latter. "

" was also a top 10 hit in the UK.

Track listing

US LP version

;Side 1 # "Hold On!" (

) – 2:06 # "The George and Dragon" (Fred Karger, Sid Wayne,

Ben Weisman Benjamin Weisman (November 16, 1921 – May 20, 2007) was an American composer. He wrote 57 songs recorded by Elvis Presley, more than any other songwriter. Biography Weisman was born in Providence, Rhode Island, and grew up in Brooklyn, New Yor ...

) – 2:09 # "Got a Feeling" (Karger, Wayne, Weisman) – 2:08 # "Wild Love" (Karger, Wayne, Weisman) – 2:24 # " Leaning on a Lamp Post" ( Noel Gay) – 2:34 ;Side 2 # "Where Were You When I Needed You?" (Barri, Sloan) – 2:48 # "All the Things I Do for You Baby" (Barri, Sloan) – 2:18 # "Gotta Get Away" (Karger, Wayne, Weisman) – 1:55 # "Make Me Happy" (Karger, Wayne, Weisman) (Sung by

) – 2:14 # "

" (Barri, Sloan) – 2:18

UK EP version

;Side 1 # "Where Were You When I Needed You?" # "Hold On!" # "The George and Dragon" ;Side 2 # "All the Things I Do for You Baby" # "Wild Love" # "

References

{{Authority control Musical film soundtracks Herman's Hermits albums Albums produced by Mickie Most 1966 soundtrack albums MGM Records soundtracks EMI Records soundtracks Columbia Records soundtracks 1966 EPs Columbia Records EPs EMI Records EPs MGM Records EPs