Released March, 1994 Length 6:28 | Genre Pop Label GO! Discs | |
Composer(s) Paul Heaton, Dave Rotheray Producer(s) Jon Kelly, The Beautiful South | ||
Hold on to What? is a song by English pop group The Beautiful South, the opening track of their fourth album Miaow. It was written at a time of alcoholism in lead singer Paul Heaton's life, and is one of their darkest and most sarcastic protest songs.
The song is a look at the phrase "hold on" from the perspective of a working class person, who has nothing to hold on to. The song changes tempo and becomes fast paced and angry towards the end, with the verse "To achieve the American dream, you need a Trampoline, to achieve the counter-effect, get that whisky down your neck" and the proclamation "Chamberlain had his paper, Jesus had his cross, they held on, we held on to what?
The song made a live comeback on the band's 2006 DVD 'Live at Dalby Forest'.