''Hold Fast'' is a song written and recorded

Christian rock Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. This music is typically performed by Christians, Christian individuals. The extent to whi ...

band

MercyMe MercyMe is an American contemporary Christian music band founded in Edmond, Oklahoma. The band consists of lead vocalist Bart Millard, percussionist Robby Shaffer, bassist Nathan Cochran, and guitarists Michael Scheuchzer and Barry Graul. The b ...

. It was released as the second single from their 2006 album '' Coming Up to Breathe''.

Composition

"Hold Fast" is a

song with a length of four minutes and thirty-eight seconds. The song was written and composed by Bart Millard, Barry Graul, Jim Bryson, Nathan Cochran, Mike Scheuchzer, and Robby Shaffer, and was produced by

Brown Bannister Elliott Brown Bannister III (born August 15, 1951) is a contemporary Christian music (CCM) producer and songwriter. Biography Bannister released one album of his own, ''Talk to One Another'', in 1981 on NewPax Records. It was reissued on the Reuni ...

. The song is set in the key of B and has a heavy

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

of 80 beats per minute, with a vocal range spanning from F₄-G₅. The song has a build-up in the bridge that has been described as 'powerhouse'. The sound of the song has evoked comparisons to

Coldplay Coldplay are a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer and percussionist Will Champion, and manager Phil Harvey (band m ...

Reception

Critical reception

"Hold Fast" received generally positive critical reception. Steve Losey of

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

commented that the song "is rock with polish" and that "Nathan Cochran's

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

groove not only sounds heavy but its very tone exudes sweat". He also opined that "The mid-song bridge shows the band at their pinnacle when the guitars build to Millard's intense vocals". Russ Breimier of ''

Christianity Today ''Christianity Today'' is an evangelical Christian media magazine founded in 1956 by Billy Graham. It is published by Christianity Today International based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ''The Washington Post'' calls ''Christianity Today'' "eva ...

'' commented that the song "initially sounds much like ercyMe'susual balladry, but then relies on heavier guitars and a powerhouse build during the bridge (a la

), as well as some clever lyrics to address the intended audience".

Chart performance

"Hold Fast" debuted at No. 23 on the

Hot Christian Songs Hot Christian Songs is a music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It ranks the popularity of Christian songs using the same methodology developed for the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the magazine's flagship songs c ...

chart for the chart week of October 28, 2006. In its sixth chart week the song advanced to No. 6, but dropped to No. 10 the next week. In its eighth chart week "Hold Fast" dropped out of the top ten entirely, falling to No. 12. The song dropped to No. 16 in its tenth chart week, and then to No. 24 in its eleventh, but jumped to No. 3 in its twelfth chart week. The song held the spot for a further three weeks before dropping to No. 4 in its sixteenth chart week. The song spent a total of twenty-five weeks on the chart before dropping out. Note: User must input the data manually to achieve the result. On the

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

chart, "Hold Fast" debuted at No. 28 for the chart week of April 4, 2007, It achieved its peak position of No. 27 in its fifth chart week, and spent a total of eight weeks on the chart.

Uses

"Hold Fast" is also features of the compilation album ''

WOW Hits 2008 ''WOW Hits 2008'' is a two-disc compilation album comprising some of the biggest hits on Christian radio from the previous year. Disc one features more of the adult contemporary hits, while disc two features the Contemporary hit radio, CHR/Pop a ...

'', and the 2009 compilation album 10.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

References

{{authority control 2006 songs 2006 singles MercyMe songs Songs written by Bart Millard pt:Hold Fast