"I Can't Hold Back" by Survivor

Song#:  2049
Date:  09/15/1984
Debut:  85
Peak:  13
Weeks:  23
Genre:  Rock



Pop Bits:  Survivor was in a state of flux. Their fourth album, Caught in the Game, was a dud and their lead singer, Dave Bickler, needed vocal chord surgery, which required recovery time. Not willing to wait on Bickler, the band sent him packing and brought on board Jimi Jamison to take over. With Jamison, they quickly recorded a tune for the soundtrack to The Karate Kid, "The Moment of Truth" (#63). After that, the band settled down and plotted their next move. In a way, it was a make-or-break moment for them. Another poor performing LP could potentially kill their career. With that most likely weighing on their minds, band members Jim Peterik and Frankie Sullivan set out to write the songs that would become their next LP Vital Signs. True to the band's name and the title of the album, this first single showed that there was indeed life still left in the group. The song headed straight to #1 at Rock while at Pop it slowly climbed the chart and finally stopped just outside the Top 10. It was a welcome return for the band and it became their highest peaking single since their 1982 #1 smash "Eye of the Tiger." The news would continue to get better for them over the coming year.

ReduxReview:  There was just no way this song was gonna miss. It really had everything going for it. That wistful opening really set the tone and from there it moved into what was essentially a second chorus before exploding into a full-on, blissful pop/rock. This thing has so many hooks in it that nearly every part of it is memorable. Even the bridge stands out on its own. Peterik and Sullivan wrote a great song and Ron Nevison produced it perfectly. This really should have been a big Top 10 hit, but for some reason it stalled a bit early. Still, it's one of their best and most memorable songs. I loved it then and I still do.

ReduxRating:  9/10

Trivia:  Survivor wasn't Jimi Jamison's first attempt at making it big with a band. He had two significant chances prior to joining Survivor, but neither one paid off. In the mid-70s, Jamison joined a Memphis-based band called Target. They attracted the attention of A&M Records and the band proceeded to record two albums for the label. Both failed to capture an audience. Later on, he helped form the band Cobra, which got signed to Epic. In 1983, they issued a debut album titled First Strike. Once again, nothing came from it and the band broke up. That's when he got picked up by the Survivor crew and it was his vocals that led the band through a career resurgence.

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