Sam & Dave, Hold On, I’m Comin’ | Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶

In the 183rd edition of Throwback Vibez (2024), we recollect and reflect on “Hold On, I’m Comin’” by Sam & Dave. 

The vibes, the vibes, those Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶! Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 is a column that celebrates awesome songs from the past.  The records that grace this column are older, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re ancient – no fossils 🦴! All genres of music are welcome. In the 183^rd edition of Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 (2024), we recollect and reflect on “Hold On, I’m Comin’” performed by Sam & Dave.

“Don’t you ever be sad / Lean on me when times are bad.” Amen! Many soul musicians came out of the church. Gospel, a spirited, soulful style of music, is filled with authenticity, grit, and nuance – you’re singing about God and salvation, after all.  Soul singers bring that same intensity sans singing about the goodness of the Lord (not in an atheistic way, of course 😉). Sam & Dave – Sam Moore (1935 – ) and Dave Prater (1937 – 1988) – were responsible for recording “Hold On, I’m Comin’”, among the most iconic, instantly recognizable songs from the soul catalog.  Bluesy to the nth degree, it was a heavy hitter from the 1960s. “Hold On, I’m Comin’” is the opening track from Hold On, I’m Comin’, released in 1966. David Porter and Isaac Hayes penned it.  A success on the pop charts, it peaked at no. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100.

“Hold On, I’m Comin’” thrives thanks to its musicianship. Beginning with the instrumental, the rhythm section is tight.  The drum groove is irresistible.  The bass line is fat.  The piano playing is bluesy.  Beyond the rhythm section, the articulated, biting horns are electrifying and hard-hitting.  Of course, the stars of the show are Sam & Dave who serve up dynamic, gritty vocals.  The chemistry between the duo is marvelous. Moore continues singing in the first verse, “When the day comes and you are down / In a river of trouble and about to drown…” Prater, in the second verse, asserts, “Don’t have to worry, ‘cause I’m here / No need to suffer, baby, ‘cause I’m near.” What should she do? In their best moment, the crème de la crème, the chorus, they sing, “Just hold on, I’m comin’ / Hold on, I’m comin’.” Word. “Hold On, I’m Comin’” is timeless.  Its excellence speaks for itself!

Sam & Dave // Hold On, I’m Comin’ // Atlantic // 1966

Sam & Dave, Hold On, I’m Comin’: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 No. 183 (2024) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Atlantic; OpenClipart-Vectors, Clker-Free-Vector-Images, Speedy McVroom from Pixabay]