Song · Sarah McLachlan
“Hold On” by Sarah McLachlan
From the album Fumbling Towards Ecstasy (1993)
“Hold On” by Sarah McLachlan appears on 10 radio countdowns from 3 stations between 1999 and 2009. It was first released in 1993 on the album Fumbling Towards Ecstasy. Its best result is #263 on the WYEP 913 Essential Songs. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #3,397 alternative song of all time.
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"Hold On" was the second single from Sarah McLachlan's Fumbling Towards Ecstasy, released early in 1994, and it grew out of a 1992 Canadian documentary called A Promise Kept. The film followed Blair and Karin Donnan: after Blair was diagnosed with AIDS, Karin cared for him until his death, then kept her promise to tell their story, travelling to schools across Ontario to fight the stigma around the disease. McLachlan was moved by the couple's love and by Karin's strength, and she poured it into the song.
Pierre Marchand produced it and supplies keyboards and a drum machine, Bill Dillon plays bass and guitar, David Kershaw adds Hammond organ and Ashwin Sood drums, while McLachlan's acoustic guitar and aching, climbing voice sit at the center. It later landed on her 2008 hits collection, Closer.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 1527 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) | 2000 |
| 2000 | 1528 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) | 2001 |
| 2001 | 1530 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) | 2002 |
| 2002 | 1527 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) | 2003 |
| 2003 | 1531 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) | 2004 |
| 2004 | 1531 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) | 2005 |
| 2004 | 741 | WXPN | WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2004) | 885 |
| 2005 | 1529 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) | 1994 |
| 2009 | 263 | WYEP | WYEP 913 Essential Songs | 913 |
| 2009 | 287 | WXPN | WXPN 885 Desert Island Songs (2009) | 885 |
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