"Hold On" by Wilson Phillips Released 30 Years Ago Today: 27 Feb 1990

Damn, 30 years ago! Anyone feeling old? Loved Wilson Phillips. They're great.

It’s their only hit, right?

And what kind of name is Carnie?

At the Grammys

The short lived Fox sketch show The Edge did a really cutting parody of Wilson Phillips with DL fave Julie Brown and Jennifer Aniston (who was actually very good on this show).

There's no way this would run on network TV today because of them mocking Carnie's fatness at the time.

Scary. Yeah I’m old.

R4 is like a DL skit on Chrissy Metz - lol.

Kelly would be a trailer park frau if she didn't go on that talent show. She's so clueless.

Is Carnie wearing a wig?

Wilson Phillips Performs 'Hold On' With Kelly Clarkson

The blonde one (I have blocked her name) has a very disturbing hairline.

We're also marking the 17th anniversary of Carnie's badly photoshopped Playboy spread this year:

Wilson Phillips had a few other big hits from their first album - Release Me, Impulsive, You're in Love and The Dream is Still Alive.

I love Release Me.

R2. Actually, Wilson Phillips had several hits, three of which reached Number One in 1990-91.

Number One hits: Hold On, Release Me, and You're in Love.

Impulsive went to Number 4.

R4 Haha, Jennifer Aniston gets to be the hot one

Carnie makes desserts so she can lick the bowls.

Chynna must be pisses that he daughter was just that big too young to get that Bieber money.

R8. The blonde is Chynna Phillips, daughter of John and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas & Papas and half-sister of DL fave, Mackenzie Phillips, and Bijou Phillips.

Chynna has been married to Billy Baldwin since 1995. Only one marriage for both of them three kids.

Carnie and Wendy Wilson are daughters of Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys.

R15 Thanks. I was being snide, but that was sweet of you.

Frau anthem, along with "You're in Love." Ugh! The singing style is sappy, pathetic.

Their debut album is terrific.

I swear there was another Julie Brown Wilson Phillips parody video with them up on the mountain top recreating one of the video shots. Then there is a cut away to Julie/Carnie who says she was so afraid that they would be trapped up there and she’d have to eat one of them. But I’ve never found it.

[quote] The blonde is Chynna Phillips, daughter of John and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas & Papas and half-sister of DL fave, Mackenzie Phillips, and Bijou Phillips.

Up until a couple of weeks ago, I thought Busy Phillips was also a sister.

Didn't Carnie have gastric bypass?

R20, yes, but it didn't "take."

Their album cover is funny...”[italic]Carnie, you're blocking the sun. The entire sun.[/italic]"

I wish they were big now, so we could go after Carnie "Carnivore" Wilson.

Carnie doesn't even seem that fat back then.

IIRC, Carnie had the best voice and probably had the prettiest face (yes, overweight). However, for the videos, they treated her like Ann Wilson (had her hiding out in the background, featured the blond one instead of Carnie, even though Carnie was actually singing).

Carnie took a lot a crap back then. But of course she was the most talented one, the funniest one in interviews, probably took the most drugs and probably got laid the most.

I like to think that “Carnie” is Spanish for “meat”.

They even made fun of them in Down Under. Such a smash shit at the time.

R27 Is the blond one the actress from Kath and Kim?

And of course... with Willam Belli serving Chynna realness.

The thing I remember most about ‘Hold On’ by Wilson Phillips was that it was at the top of the charts at the same time as En Vogues’ ‘Hold On’. I think that the Wilson Phillips version kept En Vogue from the number one spot.

I preferred the En Vogue version. That acapella opening... then the the beat drops? My 14 year-old self loved it.

Didn't some of the characters on Blossom dress up as Wilson Phillips??

And then Mariah came along and their career was over.

R28 yes - that’s Jane Turner. Pretty much everybody on Kath & Kim got their start on “Fast Forward“ and another show called “Big Girls Blouse”. K&K started as a sketch on one of those shows.

Actually r32, it was Nirvana........

Glenn Ballard who cowrote and produced Jagged Little Pill, produced WP.

Personally I love both "Hold On" songs. That was the nice thing about 1990 was you had two girl groups with completely different sounds hitting the top of the charts with completely different songs except with the same song title. And the only other thing they had in common was that they HARMONIZED. I miss that in music.

In fact, I miss girl groups.

How has she had gastric bypass AND lap band surgery, yet still is so fat?!😦 This is a pic from October.

Wow carnie gained all the weight back

Here was the only time this song didn’t totally suck.

Those of you shaming Carnie for her weight - I hope you choke on your caftans. We all have our own battles. That woman is immensely talented - more than any of you trolls. She was responsible for the sound that created Wilson Phillips and should be celebrated for her talents. Now, go back to your couch and keep eating those hohos that you wished were fat black cocks. They’re not, and never will be as you’re hideous people inside.

R40 Your mother sucks Ho Hos in hell. Have a lovely night!

That was a really weird year for music. A lot of absolute shit. Then hip-hop and indie rock took over and the 90s really started.

R4 The Edge was a terrific show and deserved a better run. Some really good stuff and Aniston was great in it. <<(I don't so much care for her now.)

R40 She is doing great harm to herself and expediting her death by carrying all that weight. If you like her you should be hoping she'd get healthier.

And a drag version:

R44 see R29

Hold on to your bed curtains for one more day.

I know there's stomach pain

Why do you lock the fridge with these chains?

No one has the key except 4 U

But you never let me have anymore cak, do U?

I think it’s a great pop song that holds up. Release Me isn’t quite as catchy but it was also a hit for them and it’s not bad.

I liked give it up from their 2 nd all I’m.

I remember a VH1 interview of Carnie and Wendy and Carnie was lamenting how she just keeps dreaming about a Wilson Phillips reunion (which was being prevented by Chynna) and Wendy bluntly telling Wendy to give it up, that it would never happen, which I just found hilarious because Wendy always seemed like such a non-entity.

Cut to years later when Chynna was desperately trying to push for their reunion, because her own career possibilities had dried up.

They all went on to do some sort of reality show which really highlighted what a self-absorbed bitch Chynna is.

No one (probably because you’re not fraus) has mentioned Wilson Phillips performing “Hold On” at the end of “Bridesmaids”!

I like Carnie and it’s okay that she’s fat. She was meant to be a big girl.

Carnie and Wendy’s “Hey Santa!” Is my fave xmas song

How did they decide that Chynna would be lead vocalist? Was i t just based on her looks?

Watching some of their videos makes me laugh because Chynna routinely moves / thrashes around with such earnestness... as though she's riding a dick.

Maybe I just answered my first question above.

"She was meant to be a big girl."

But can we crowdfund for her a necklift?

I saw Carnie on the celebrity version of "Chopped" (cooking show). She was chubby, but so what. Anyway, I could see that she was really passionate (and skilled) about food and cooking. It was nice to see. Michael Imperioli (Sopranos) and Laila Ali also competed. Laila was hilarious, at times. She inherited quick comebacks from her dad.

I saw Carnie on the celebrity version of Wife Swap, and she was awful. I think she swapped with Tracy Gold and Carnie was just the worst. Like a really lazy parent.

Surprisingly, I really like their cover of, "Go Your Own Way."

I've always been in decent shape (luck, exercise, and diet at times), yet I've never felt inclined to anonymously point out someone being overweight. I just don't get it. There are other things to point out. Like her singing, personality, etc.

I'm loathed to admit it, but I was in the closet about how much I liked to sing along with WP's Hold On and Release Me (I liked that one more).

I did prefer En Vogue over Wilson Phillips though. They had the mesmerising "Hold On" and then followed it up with "My Lovin" (that one didn't take to me immediately, but it grew on me), "Giving Him Something He Can Feel" (remember that video? so hot) and, of course, the iconic "Free Your Mind" (probably a lot of racist DLer's will hate that one).

They were only popular for a year.

I'm curious how the Wilson girls live. Does Brian give them an allowance? He has another family now. Bio says Carnie is married to "a guitarist". Sad.

Chynna was luckier by marrying an actor who works steadily.

I wonder how the John Phillips estate plays out; certainly their are music royalties, but he had five or six kids and a widow.

This was their leading single from second album.

Not as memorable as their first hits, but the harmonising sounds gorgeous.

The video is so early white 1990s.

R39, it didn't suck in Bridesmaids either. It was even better!

"Here with us tonight is Lilian's' favourite band, playing Lilian's favourite song ... "

Genius moment in genius movie.

#SuckItFrauHaters

Both Carnie and Chynna must make a killing in royalties from Hold On (poor Wendy). I'm sure having it in Bridesmaids was a big bonus for them.

They tour regularly so they probably make decent money from that.

Carnie laughs like Liza.

R62 I don’t remember that at all, maybe I didn’t really see the movie, but why would they consent to be in a film where they were made the butt of a joke?

They weren't made a joke in that movie, R65.

R65 But it’s the embarrassment of liking a cheesy song and that weird dance they did as if they choreographed it in middle school, it wasn’t like her real favorite song, they were mocking it?

I loved ‘Release Me’. It sounded best at full blast and since my Walkman had dropped in the bath, I couldn’t hear it the way I liked because I didn’t want people to know I was listening to Wilson Phillips.

They weren't mocking it in Bridesmaids. It was just something ridiculous they did for laughs, but it wasn't made a joke in the film.

One. Hit. Wonders.

R70 - You. Dumb. Bitch.

R71 Well if you noticed, there was no “I” with that “Q.”

Hold On is the only song of theirs I remember. It sucked, and they were over in a year.

[quote]One. Hit. Wonders.

Except they had three #1s so...

Three #1s plus Impulsive which hit the top 5, The Dream is Still Alive and You Won't See Me Cry which hit top 20 and Give it Up which hit Top 40.

Nobody really remembers their other hits. They had a very short run.

Just because YOU don't doesn't mean you speak for everyone else.

Any sane, normal, person remembers, "Eyes Like Twins!"

1990 was such a weird, shitty year for music. Wilson Phillips, Vanilla Ice, MC Hammer, Color Me Badd, Warrant, Nelson, Steve B, Go West, C&C Music Factory, etc. Just absolute fucking garbage. And they were all blown away once hip hop and Nirvana became popular shortly afterwards.

Some of us still enjoy the music from 1990. On an episode of Pose, Damon and Ricky danced on a Solid Gold revival and they dance to the top 10 of that week - from 1990. So much fun.

Lots of good songs that year - Groove is in the Heart, Vogue, both versions of Hold On, It Must Have Been Love, Gonna Make You Sweat, Poison, Nothing Compares 2 U, Vision of Love, Freedom '90....

Carnie got surgery and lost all that weight so she could pose nude and get her father's attention (which is like that of a 13-yr. old boy, apparently). I wonder if he called her or anything? Because she obviously started sipping Hershey's syrup soon after.

Did Carnie’s parents named her that because she looks like a circus freak?

Carnie seems like a lot of fun. Isn't Wendy the one who had a lot of kids that she couldn't handle and they had to call in the tv nanny?

Cass Elliot's daughter Owen was an original member of the group but was kicked out before the band got signed because she didn't have "the right look".

Wilson Phillips and the original fourth member of the group, Owen Elliott, Mama Cass Elliott’s daughter singing “Dedicated to the One I Love.”

Wilson Phillips and Owen Elliott singing “Monday, Monday.”

r84 she sounds exactly like Cass. Damn.

Yes, the kids of The Beach Boys and The Mamas & The Papas including actress Mackenzie Phillips are all talented. Granted, their stars have faded, but they were talented.

I wish Owen Elliott had stayed with Wilson Phillips or had her own solo career. She sounded good, and of course, Mama Cass had a beautiful voice.

On their own, they sound average, but together, wow, they really do sound terrific. Which is why Chynna's solo career failed.

I did like Hey Santa. But Wendy and Carnie still had a bit of the WP sound in the song which is why it's a popular Christmas staple.

Owen was never part of the band! It was never going to be Wilson Cass Phillips!

r89 it was going to be The Beach Mamas

I thought Carnie Wilson was so fat back then. Now I think she looks normal.

R91 someone said the same thing to me about Roseanne and John Goodman. That in the 90s they were considered so enormous and fat and yet compare them to people today... they're average.

True, you see people who are bigger than they were all the time now.

The Beach Mamas is a horrendous name.

Wilson Phillips & Elliott

(Kind of like Emerson Lake & Palmer)

R88 is right. Individually they're all average... the magic has always been in their harmonies.

They still sound pretty good today.

Chynna was of course delusional enough to think that she could go solo. Her looks alone couldn't sustain a career. She may have needed the Wilson sisters more than they needed her.

I'll never forget the interview Chynna did about her Christian album, which was released the day after Mackenzie's autobiography which revealed the incestuous relationship she was having with their father.

When the interviewer asked Chynna how she dealt with it, she bizarrely (and awkwardly) started singing lines from one of her Christian songs. You could feel the interviewer cringing.

R97: I actually remembered that

Their look for the "You Won't See Me Cry," was atrocious even for the times.

It looked like a bad skit from MADtv.

r97 you mean this interview? lmao

Ha, I still don't even know what Chynna was trying to say by answering like that. Was she calling her sister a liar?

Hated Hold On with a seething passion - sappy, sentimental drek for mug-cradlers.

At least Chynna didn't marry a Drumpf supporter!

This was the frau music of its time.

Any links to Owen supposedly originally being a part of the band? I can't find a reference to that anywhere.

I always liked Carnie but after seeing her on talk and reality shows, she really seems pretty needy.

I ❤️ “Next To You” from the first album. Carnie sings lead...

All I know from that album is that what someone said above is true...

Solo... none of their voices are great. It's only when they harmonize that they have a great sound.

Chynna had a pretty steady career as an actress before WP. She was always playing the bitch (“Caddyshack II”, “Some Kind of Wonderful”). She was good as Roxanne Pulitzer in the TV movie Roxanne: The Prize Pulitzer, which also started hot dilf Perry King and a pre-friends Courtney Cox.

Did Chynna even have any lines in Some Kind of Wonderful?

That was a very solid, well-crafted, tuneful album. Holds up.

[quote]Did Chynna even have any lines in Some Kind of Wonderful?

No, but she was the chick that Craig Sheffer was cheating on Lea Thompson with.

Their debut album, from what I remember, only had two crap songs on it... Eyes Like Twins and Over and Over. I think I also hated Ooh You're Gold, so maybe 3 crap songs.

R112 So that's why I was always wary of her, love SKoW!

r105 Chynna mentioned it when they were interviewed on Howard Stern.. I can't find the interview online anymore though

R84 R86 Sorry she does not sound exactly like Cass.. And she’s making no effort to sell the song.

[quote][R112] So that's why I was always wary of her, love SKoW!

Me too!

[quote]Their debut album, from what I remember, only had two crap songs on it... Eyes Like Twins and Over and Over.

Over and Over is a good track.

I love both Over and Over and Eyes Like Twins.

The whole album is good.

[quote]always liked Carnie but after seeing her on talk and reality shows, she really seems pretty needy.

Fat girls are like that.

I heard a good podcast recently with Carnie - she spoke at some length about how it was Chynna who broke up the group. Chynna wanted it all for herself and fancied herself a hot, talented solo act. Carnie said the record company was livid and considered continuing with just the Wilson girls. Carnie also shaded Chynna by saying "she can't sing harmonies, only the main melody. That's why she got most of the lead vocals."

r121 except Chynna sang harmony, not just the main melody on some of their songs. Weird Carnie would say that.

What podcast was it?

My only issue with the song is that it is titled "Hold On" and all it talks about is getting out of a bad relationship. It should have been called "Break Free."

[italic]"Can you breeeeak free for one more day...'[/italic]

Hmm...I don't know...

Terrible fucking song!

I liked Chyna’s flop solo album from 1995 - Naked and Sacred. Which I remember wrongly reading the album title - Naked and Scared. lol

I hated this fucking song so much . I worked at a place that had muzak and it played 3 times an hour !

R126 In my first glance I read it as a Naked and Screwed, but then again I’ve been watching a lot of porn today, a lot.

R123 the song isn't about a relationship.

R128 by all means share your favorites.

Naked & Scared! 😆

Rita and Tom should do a version for their recovery under the name Wilson Hanks.

I liked Chynna’s song “I Live For You” from the Striptease soundtrack.

I was too busy listening to the Smiths, the Cure and Depeche Mode back then to care about these basic snatches.

I listened to those downers too. I liked Wilson Phillips too.

R9 oh my, those are some massively sized mammories