"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" is a song written by Harry Noble and originally performed by American singer Karen Chandler in 1952. It has been re-recorded several times since then, the most notable covers being by Mel Carter in 1965 and

Gloria Estefan Gloria María Milagrosa Estefan (; ; born September 1, 1957) is an American singer, actress, and businesswoman. Estefan is an eight-time Grammy Awards, Grammy Award winner, a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, and has been named one of t ...

in 1994.

Karen Chandler version

The original version was released by Karen Chandler in 1952, released by

Coral Records Coral Records was a subsidiary of Decca Records that was formed in 1949. Coral released music by Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, the McGuire Sisters and Teresa Brewer. Coral issued jazz and swing music in the 1940s, but after Bob Thiele became head ...

. It first appeared on the US ''Billboard'' charts on October 25, 1952 and last appeared on April 11, 1953, peaking at number five on ''Billboard'''s chart of "Most Played by Jockeys", number seven on ''Billboard'''s chart of "Best Selling Singles", and number nine on ''Billboard'''s chart of "Most Played in Juke Boxes".

Mel Carter version

The version most often associated with the song was recorded by American singer and actor Mel Carter, released in 1965 on Imperial. Carter's version spent 15 weeks on the US ''Billboard''

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

, peaking at number eight,Mel Carter - Chart History - The Hot 100
''Billboard.com''. Accessed October 21, 2015 while reaching number one on ''Billboard'''s

Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...

chart,Billboard Top 40 Easy Listening
, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'', August 28, 1965. p. 20. Accessed October 21, 2015 number two on

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

's "''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...

'' Play Sheet",R.P.M. Play Sheet
, '' RPM Weekly'', Volume 3, Ed. 24, August 9, 1965. Accessed October 21, 2015 and number four on Canada's CHUM Hit Parade. Chart No. 441. CHUM.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Gloria Estefan version

In 1994, Cuban-American singer and songwriter

released a cover of "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me", released in November 1994 by

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...

as the second single (only in Europe and Australia) from her fourth solo album, '' Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me'' (1995). It was produced by Estefan's husband Emilio Estefan, Jr. with Jorge Casas and Clay Ostwald, and also included a new song, "If We Were Lovers", which is the English version of her 1993 hit " Con Los Años Que Me Quedan". "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" peaked at number one in Spain and Panama. In the UK, the single peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart.

Critical reception

In a retrospective review, Maryann Scheufele from AXS wrote, "You can not help but move with this slow moving song. She uses every bit of her breath as she sings and she never hesitates to carry a note to completion. Music just dances around Gloria Estefan when she stays in one place to sing." Upon the release, a reviewer from ''

'' magazine noted the "thrilling sounds" of the song, complimenting it as "elegant". Chuck Campbell from '' Knoxville News Sentinel'' named it a standout of the album, "on which Estefan shines through with sincerity". ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later m ...

'' wrote, "Raise the curtains please. Gloria excels on a

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

which is so big that it gets above the clouds, just like radio waves." Phil Shanklin of ReviewsRevues said, "The song is cheesy but Gloria seems aware of this and goes for broke by upping the drama."

Formats and track listings

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Other versions

A version was released by American singer Muriel Smith in 1953, which reached No. 3 on the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

's ''

New Musical Express ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a " rock inkie", the ''NME'' would become a maga ...

'' chart. Sonny Til and The Orioles released an R&B version in 1953 (Jubilee 5108) American singer

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero ( ; born December 12, 1937), known as Connie Francis, is a retired American Pop music, pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. She is estimated to have sold more th ...

included a memorable version on her 1959 album '' The Exciting Connie Francis''. Greek singer

Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( ; born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer and politician. Over the span of her career, she has released an estimated 450 albums in at least thirteen languages, including Greek language, Greek, French language, French, ...

released a version of the song produced by

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

in 1962. Dick and Dee Dee released a version of the song on their 1966 album, ''Songs We've Sung on Shindig''.

Shirley Bassey Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey (; born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. Known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the James Bond music, theme songs to three James Bond films - the only artist to officially perform more than o ...

also covered the song on her 1969 album '' Does Anybody Miss Me''. In 1977, Bobby Vinton released a version of the song on the album '' The Name Is Love'' and as a single. Vinton's version reached No. 43 on ''Billboard'''s Easy Listening chart.Easy Listening
, ''

'', August 27, 1977. p. 57. Accessed October 21, 2015 Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me was performed by She and Him and is featured on their fourth album ''Volume 3'', in 2013. Nelson Riddle instrumental orchestral version from the 1961 album "Love Tide".

Influence

The song gave title for albums by Mel Carter (1965),

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer. Starting his 69-year career with singles of standard (music), standard music, Mathis is one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century and became highly popular as ...

(1977), and

(1994), and was later referenced by U2's 1995 song "

Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" is a song by Irish rock music, rock band U2. It was released as a single from the Batman Forever (soundtrack), soundtrack album for the film ''Batman Forever'' on 5 June 1995 by Atlantic Records, Atlantic an ...

", from the soundtrack of the film '' Batman Forever''. Mel Carter's version was featured in the film named after the song, '' Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me''. In the 1995 film, '' To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar'', a fragment of Johnny Mathis' recording backs an internal summit point.

References

External links

* {{authority control Songs about kissing 1952 songs 1952 singles 1965 singles 1994 singles Mel Carter songs Dick and Dee Dee songs Bobby Vinton songs Gloria Estefan songs Number-one singles in Spain Imperial Records singles Coral Records singles Epic Records singles

Karen Chandler version

Mel Carter version

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Gloria Estefan version

Critical reception

Formats and track listings

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Other versions

Influence

See also

References

External links