Hold the Line

"Hold the Line" is a song by American rock band Toto from their 1978 eponymous debut studio album. Written by the band's keyboardist David Paich, the lead vocals on the song were performed by Bobby Kimball.

This article is about Toto song. For other uses, see Hold the Line (disambiguation).
"Hold the Line"
Single by Toto
from the album Toto
B-side"Takin' It Back"
ReleasedOctober 2, 1978 (1978-10-02) (US)
Recorded1978
StudioStudio 55
(Los Angeles, California)
Genre
Length3:29(Single Version)
3:56(Album Version)
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)David Paich
Producer(s)Toto
Toto singles chronology
"Hold the Line"
(1978)		 "I'll Supply the Love"
(1979)
Alternative cover
German version

"Hold the Line" was released as the band's debut single and lead single from the Toto album on October 2, 1978, by Columbia Records. It became an international hit for the band, reaching number five on the Billboard Hot 100[2] and number 14 on the UK Singles Chart.

Content

Jeff Porcaro, the band's drummer, gave a definition for the song:

"'Hold the Line' was a perfect example of what people will describe as your heavy metal chord guitar licks, your great triplet A-notes on the piano, your 'Sly'-hot-fun-in-the-summertime groove, all mishmashed together with a boy from New Orleans singing... and it really crossed over a lot of lines."[3]

Background and writing

Keyboardist David Paich noted that the song was relatively easy to develop. He began with the piano riff, which would become the song's intro and chorus. After toying with the piano riff one night, he started singing "Hold the line, love isn't always on time", and found the lyric to be a suitable fit. The verses were subsequently finished two hours later.

Jeff Porcaro on "Hold the Line", in a 1988 interview with Modern Drummer:

"That was me trying to play like Sly Stone's original drummer, Greg Errico, who played drums on "Hot Fun In The Summertime." The hi-hat is doing triplets, the snare drum is playing 2 and 4 backbeats, and the bass drum is on 1 and the & of 2. That 8th note on the second beat is an 8th-note triplet feel, pushed. When we did the tune, I said, "Gee, this is going to be a heavy four-on-the-floor rocker, but we want a Sly groove." The triplet groove of the tune was David's writing. It was taking the Sly groove and meshing it with a harder rock caveman approach."

The song is in the key of F# minor [4] and features a guitar solo after the second chorus which is played by guitarist Steve Lukather featuring several techniques like bendings, alternate picking, vibrato and harmonies.[5]

Several of the band members recall hearing "Hold the Line" for the first time on the radio:

"I flipped the first time I heard myself on the radio. My mom called me up and said, "Turn on KLOS." It was the song "Hold the Line," and I started running around the house in my underwear, screaming, "I'm on the radio!" My wife was cracking up. It was just a thrill." (Steve Lukather, Guitar Player magazine, April 1984)

Bobby Kimball had a similar experience when he heard Toto for the very first time on the radio: "I was asleep, I had my alarm clock set for noon because we were gonna do something in the studio, some promo and when the alarm came on there was the radio and "Hold The Line" was playing. And my room was totally black and I was looking for the telephone and I called Paich and I heard him scream, he was living over there with his girlfriend and he was screaming around and falling over trying to get to the radio."

Reception

Cash Box said it has a "simple emphatic piano part, heavy surging guitars, pleasant turns, fine singing and strong chorus."[6] Billboard said that "Kimball's exciting vocals and the scorching instrumentals highlight this tune that also boasts a scorching mix and a solid hook."[7]

Classic Rock History critic Brian Kachejian rated it as Toto's 2nd greatest song, saying that "The song’s mesmerizing opening lick became one of the most eagerly learned piano runs that all pianists had to learn instantly."[8]

Live performances

"Hold the Line" has been a live staple at Toto shows. Steve Lukather played the song live with Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band during tours from 2012 to the present. Bobby Kimball has performed the song on all of his solo tours since 2009.

Personnel

Toto

Charts and certifications

Cover versions

In 1979, Millie Jackson included a version of the song on her Live & Uncensored album, recorded live at the Roxy in Los Angeles.

In 1979, Frank Zappa's Joe's garage has an instrumental called "Toad-O Line". It's based on this song's chorus melody (there's a wordplay in the title "Hold the line / Toad-O Line").

In 1981, Bosnian-born Serbian singer Zdravko Čolić released a cover version of this song in the Serbian language, with lyrics "Oktobar je, počinje sezona kiša" ("This is October, the rain season begins"). Belgian blues band Blue Blot covered the song on their album Where Do We Go.[30]

In 2018, German metal band Bonfire covered the song on the album Legends.[31]

British heavy metal band Saxon covered the song on their 2021 covers album Inspirations.

References
  1. Lecaro, Lina (19 November 2016). "This Monthly Club Is a Non-Ironic Celebration of Rock's Softer Side". LA Weekly. Retrieved 2023-04-06.
  2. "Album Search for "toto"". AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  3. "Hold the Line". Archived from the original on 2009-10-04. Retrieved 2009-10-09.
  4. "Hold the Line by Toto Chords, Melody, and Music Theory Analysis". Hooktheory.com.
  5. "Steve Lukather recalls how he recorded the solo for Toto's "Hold the Line"". 9 March 2021.
  6. "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. September 23, 1978. p. 22. Retrieved 2022-01-01.
  7. "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. September 30, 1978. p. 90. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
  8. Kachejian, Brian (21 September 2018). "Top 10 Toto songs". Classic Rock History. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
  9. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992: 23 years of hit singles & albums from the top 100 charts. St Ives, N.S.W, Australia: Australian Chart Book. p. 311. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  10. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0098a." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  11. "Toto – Hold the Line" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  12. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Hold the Line". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  13. "Toto – Hold the Line". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  14. "Toto – Hold the Line". Singles Top 100. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  15. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  16. "Toto Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  17. "Top 100 1979-01-27". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  18. "Offiziellecharts.de – Toto – Hold the Line" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  19. "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
  20. "Kent Music Report No 288 – 31 December 1979 > National Top 100 Singles for 1979". Kent Music Report, via Imgur.com. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  21. "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2016-10-06. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  22. "Top 100 Hits of 1979/Top 100 Songs of 1979". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  23. "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1979". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2016-04-12.
  24. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2018 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
  25. "Canadian single certifications – Toto – Hold the Line". Music Canada.
  26. "Danish single certifications – Toto – Hold the Line". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  27. "Italian single certifications – Toto – Hold the Line" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Select "2017" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Hold the Line" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  28. "British single certifications – Toto – Hold the Line". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  29. "American single certifications – Toto – Hold the Line". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  30. "Hold the Line - Blue Blot". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  31. "Hold the Line - Bonfire". The Rockpit. 14 November 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
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