“Hold Me”
K.T. Oslin
Written by K.T. Oslin
Billboard
#1 (1 week)
January 7, 1989
K.T. Oslin’s dominance at radio, at retail, and on the industry awards show circuit lasted for two years, but there was a big speedbump along the way.
After “80’s Ladies” broke her out and her next two singles went to No. 1, Oslin previewed her sophomore set with “Money,” which missed the top ten. But Oslin bounced back with a stunning composition that disregarded traditional song structures in favor of emotional immediacy as she captures two mid-life crises hitting the same married couple on one hurried weekday morning.
Oslin presents herself as a third person narrator for the first two verses, describing how a husband and a wife both planned on leaving their marriage, their kids, and their jobs on the same day. Their marriage is so strong that they each turn around as soon as they’re about to leave town and share their experiences as soon as they get home.
Then Oslin rips the rug out from under the listener and reveals herself to be the wife. The two verses that were spoken are followed by a beautifully sung chorus and the big reveal bridge. It’s like the storm clouds part and the sun comes out as soon as they lock eyes with each other again, realizing that their only way to battle all of their external struggles is to face them together. It ends with the most romantic line of all for a pair of middle aged spouses: “Honey, don’t kiss me like we’re married. Kiss me like we’re lovers.”
It’s a winning start to the best year of the decade.
“Hold Me” gets an A.
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Easily my favorite k.t song! As I hit 40 next week I can fully appreciate this song and it’s relatable adult lyrics! The spoken word portion is on point and a throwback to the classic country history of spoken word songs! Best line in the song for me is ” I was running from some wrinkles no cream will stop” I’m getting married in October, and this is the kind of honest relationship we strive for! Communication is the key as k.t. proves so well with these lyrics!
Kevin, Please put George Strait’s If You Ain’t Lovin’ (You Ain’t Livin)” back into the 1988 feature for the Every #1 Country Single of the Eighties feature at ( https://www.countryuniverse.net/history/every-1-country-single-of-the-eighties/ ) Thank You.
I’ve always been torn on this song, both because of my typically mixed feelings on spoken-word lyrical delivery but also because the narrative doesn’t fill me with confidence about the couple’s resolve to continue following through with their vows. I’m not sure if the point of the song’s second half is to keep the listener guessing about the ambiguity of their troubled marriage or to accept that as long as “he kisses her like they’re lovers instead of like they’re married”, it’ll fix a situation so volatile that they both planned to leave each other that morning. Having never been married, I can’t fully relate to the lyric, but it’s certainly enough to give me cold feet about jumping into that institution! I can still appreciate the story for what it’s worth and the nostalgic 80s vibe that anything by K.T. Oslin gives me.
Grade: B
This is such an interesting take. I have my own connection with this song – my parents were going through hard times and heard it on the radio, which kicked off efforts to figure out the song and artist. This was around 1993, and I think it was on the radio because RCA had re-released it and my mom happened to hear it. We ended up getting the Oslin hits collection and the 45 of “Hold Me” for our jukebox.
Perhaps because of that experience, I’ve always heard this as a song about how hard life is when you get to middle age and how you want to run away from all of your responsibilities, even though you can’t stop the wrinkles from forming or get your inner child to grow up. But as soon as the fantasy becomes reality – “Got as far as the edge of town, then I turned my car around and headed back to you” – they run back to each other, because life’s challenges would be unbearable without the unconditional love and support that they give each other. I’ve never doubted that this couple was in it for the long haul.
“Hold Me” was an early lesson for me about the impact of country music when your life gets older and more complicated. So many of my favorite songs – from the nineties especially – I fell in love with long before feeling some of the feelings in those songs. They were like letters from the future.
I like the analogy of “letters from the future”. On balance, I’d say half of the 80s and 90s songs that hit me hard as an adult did back then as well. Others require the maturity (relatively speaking in my case) of adulthood to appreciate. Hopefully your parents’ marriage persevered just as we hope the narrator of “Hold Me”‘s marriage did.
Lasted almost 32 years! My dad died in 2007. The aftermath was the first time I understood why Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” is so beloved, to keep the theme going. I try to avoid that song now because of the impact it had on my mom during the early stages of grief.
It happens even now. “The Tree” was our top single of 2023, and I have a brand new appreciation – and application – for it in 2024. It’s like hearing it for the first time all over again.
…more of a theatrical play than just a song almost. terrific.
Kevin, Please fix the 1988 feature for the Every #1 Country Single of the Eighties feature at ( https://countryuniverse.net/history/every-1-country-single-of-the-eighties/ ) Thank You.
I really liked KT but I’m not sure that this is the best song she ever wrote. If I had to pick one of her compositions, it would probably be “Round The Clock Lovin’ ” given a superb rendition by the vastly underappreciated Gail Davies.
That said, I agree that “Hold Me” is an excellent song. I regret that her shelf life at radio didn’t last longer
This song floored me when I first heard it. This was obviously mature music, and I felt privileged as a teenager to be able to hear it what it had to say about adults in a marriage.
From the conversational spoken-word verses to the raw emotional intensity of what the two people share about their own situations and perspective from within the same relationship, the story felt uncomfortably close and intimate. Listening to it felt like eavesdropping on an adult phone conversation, the kind parents have when they forget their kids are within earshot of what they are saying.
It’s all bout anger, disappointment, anger, courage, faith, hope, and love.
I love how the song hits like a hard conversation, it just gets right into the heaviness of what it has to say.
The line that still resonates most strongly with me is, “This morning it was over, tomorrow we’ll start it all over again.” It blew my mind that being in love was something you had to work at, and apparently work at really hard all the time. It wasn’t just fall in love and you are done. Being in love meant not being in love. You fall in and you fall out, seemingly daily.
I cannot say enough about how much I adore Oslin’s performance and the lessons this song has to teach.
A brilliant and evocative classic that is in the running for my favorite song of all time.