It all starts with a groove. Drummer Steve Johnson locks in and never leaves. Just as Al Jackson Jr. never played a drum fill in “Green Onions” by Booker T. & the M.G.s, Johnson refrains from fills in the same way. Bassist Zac Cockrell and guitarist Heath Fogg fall right in to create the hypnotic foundation of the tune as songwriter Brittany Howard leans into the vocals. It’s a perfect example of a band holding back and building tension. It pays off in the song’s second half as Johnson adds some fills, the rest of the band releases, and it all comes out. Let’s look at the meaning of “Hold On” by Alabama Shakes.
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Bless my heart, bless my soul
Didn’t think I’d make it to 22 years old
There must be someone up above
Saying, ‘Come on, Brittany, you got to come on up’
[AS OF THIS WRITING: Brittany Howard Tickets Are Available! – Get ‘Em Right Here]
The Beginning
Howard met Cockrell at East Limestone High School and began jamming together. She told Uncut magazine in July 2012, “Zac knows a lot about ‘6os RnB, loads about bass players from then. He’s taught me a lot of stuff I’d never heard of. But honestly, if I could name one kind of music that I love, fully and completely, I would say Chuck Berry’s guitar playing. It’s like the same song over and over again, but it’s always different, tells different stories.”
You got to hold on
Yeah, you got to hold on
The Influences
Howard was soaking up all kinds of music. She reminisced on UK-based independent online music magazine The Line of Best Fit with Jack Lloyd in 2019, “I’d be in the back of this Buick and be like, ‘What’s this? This is really cool, and my friends told me it was Pink Floyd, and I was like, ‘Whoa,’ it blew my mind. I started getting into all the classic rock stuff, like Yes, Cream, all that stuff.”
So, bless my heart and bless yours, too
I don’t know where I’m gonna go, don’t know what I’m gonna do
Well, must be somebody up above
Saying, ‘Come on, Brittany, you got to come on up’
[RELATED: Brittany Howard Has Something to Say]
A Song Is Born
Howard and Cockrell joined forces with Johnson and Fogg and began playing shows around the area. The Brick Deli and Tavern in Decatur, Alabama, was the spot of their first gig under the name The Shakes. Later, they found they weren’t the first to come up with that name and added their home state to differentiate. Their repertoire mainly consisted of cover songs, but Howard always wrote original songs. Cockrell and Fogg came up with a riff, but Howard had not written any lyrics.
Howard told American Songwriter in 2012, “We talked about playing it that night, and I told them, ‘Just start playing it, and I’ll make up words on the spot.’ That’s where the song came from. It was a good night for dancing. They started playing it, and I just came up with some words—whatever was on my mind—and that came out.”
You got to hold on
Yeah, you got to hold on
The Crowd Sang Along
The song was made up on the spot, yet the crowd was in the moment as well, singing along with the chorus. Howard told CBS News in 2015, “It’s funny because I think they thought it was a cover song we were playing. They were like, ‘Yeah, I know this one.’ I just remember having a conversation with the guys like, ‘Hey, I think that went pretty good. We should play it like that.’ and thinking, like ‘Can you remember what you did?’ ‘Yeah, it was so easy.”
Yeah, you got to wait
Hey, you got to wait
But I don’t wanna wait
I don’t wanna wait
Out of the Blue
Howard was working for the United States Post Office delivering mail. Suddenly, she saw results from the music she had been making as a hobby. The band recorded their debut album, Boys & Girls, in Nashville at The Bomb Shelter. One of the songs, “You Ain’t Alone,” was picked up by music blogger Justin Gage, who posted it on his website, Aquarium Drunkard. Things were rolling for the band as their live gigs started to take on a new swagger. They still played covers, but the attention shifted to more original songs. The stability of the USPS was not enough to keep Howard. The Alabama Shakes took on the world.
So, bless my heart, bless my mind
I got so much to do, I ain’t got much time
So, must be someone up above
Saying, ‘Come on, girl, yeah, you got to get back up’
Success…
Howard told CBS News, “I hated my job, and I was just trying to inspire myself to keep working and stay positive and all this stuff.”
“Hold On” is exactly that: a rallying cry to encourage yourself to push through all the hardships we all deal with. The song resonated with more than just the small crowd at The Brick Deli. It sent the band on the road, selling out venues and playing festivals. The band was nominated for two Grammys in 2013.
You got to hold on
Yeah, you got to hold on
…And How to Deal With It
Howard told Francois Marchand of the Vancouver Sun in 2013, “We try our best to keep it real, try to be ourselves, and go out every night and win fans one by one. There are a lot of great bands out there, and I do scratch my head sometimes and wonder, ‘Why us?’ But, I don’t take it for granted.”
Yeah, you got to wait
I don’t wanna wait
Well, I don’t wanna wait
No, I don’t wanna wait
It’s All About the Groove
“Hold On” was a perfect storm where all the elements came together at the right time. Bless my heart and bless yours, too.
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Arroyo Seco Weekend
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