John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band begins darkly, with tolling bells that Lennon had slowed down in the studio to mimic a horror film he’d recently watched. The bells open “Mother”, a despairing song revealing Lennon’s feelings of abandonment.
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But the anguish in “Mother” quickly gives way to “Hold On”, a comforting hymn aimed inward. He was reeling from the chaos of The Beatles’ break-up, global events, and fame. And he needed to be sure he’d survive.
Midway through the album, Lennon sings “Love”, a song one might view as both a declaration and a plea. With The Beatles, he once sang how love is all you need. But the Summer of Love had come and gone. The 1970s arrived, war continued, and so he soothed himself with “Hold On”.
About “Hold On”
Lennon directs the comforting message of “Hold On” mostly at himself, but also at Yoko Ono and the rest of the world. Written against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, Lennon’s optimistic lyric reads like a lonesome and desperate appeal.
When you’re by yourself,
And there’s no one else,
You just have yourself,
And you tell yourself,
Just to hold on.
The track was co-produced by Lennon, Ono, and Phil Spector. It features Ringo Starr on drums and Klaus Voormann on bass. And the sparse mix stands apart from the dense and highly orchestrated mixes Spector was famous for creating. Subconsciously, Lennon may have preferred a spacious arrangement to combat his fears at the time. The last thing he needed was Spector’s overwhelming Wall of Sound.
Oh, and when you’re one,
Really one,
Well, you get things done,
Like they’ve never been done,
So, hold on.
Lennon’s Pep Talk and Cookie Monster
“Even now I’m saying, ‘Hold on, John, it’s gonna be all right,’” Lennon told Jann S. Wenner at Rolling Stone, “Otherwise, I won’t hold on.” He sounds serious in the song, but quickly turns to a joke and growls, “Cookie!” It’s a reference to Sesame Street and Cookie Monster, the blue Muppet with an unhinged appetite.
Cookie Monster might represent a childlike escape from an uncertain future. But the certainty of “Hold On” ends abruptly, like a dream cut short just as things are getting good. The track is less than two minutes in length, and though Lennon’s tremolo guitar feels easy, Starr’s percussion never quite settles into a groove to match Lennon’s laidback vibe.
The skittish drumming gives a sense of the anxiety Lennon must have felt at the time. Though the words are reassuring, the hard cut-off leaves you asking: Are we going to be all right?
Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
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