All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Hold on to love: 35th anniversary of Patty Brard's solo debut

1981 saw the debut of Patty Brard's solo career. The beautiful Indo-Dutch entertainer was the first ex-Luv' singer to go solo. Musically speaking, she chose an adult contemporary repertoire which was different from her Luv' recordings.

History

One of her first TV appearances as a former member of the girl group dated back to December 28, 1980. She was guest on "Jaaroverzicht Journaal 1980", a restrospective program broadcast by NOS that focused on the greatest media moments of 1980 (see article posted on December 31st, 2015). Her sudden departure from Luv' was then big news in Holland. Dressed in a strict trouser suit, she looked different from her usual sexy image. She expressed her feelings in a short interview. At the time, she had been replaced by Ria Thielsch and Luv's "My Number One" was doing well on the Benelux charts. Patty told that she left the group without anger though a lawsuit was filled between InterLUV' (the trio's limited company) and her. She wished Marga Scheide all the best. The beautiful blonde singer was indeed suffering from a nervous breakdown which brought Luv' to a standstill.

In February 1981, Patty released "Hold on to love" as a single. The R&B/soft pop-rock track was taken from her "All the way" LP. The album was recorded in the best studios in Los Angeles, CA and produced by Carlo Nasi who became her second husband in 1983. Carlo was a wealthy Italian music publisher, guitarist, songwriter and producer....as well as one of the heirs to the FIAT empire. He could afford the "crème de la crème" of session musicians for his lover. Legendary keyboard player Billy Preston, Brazilian percussionist Paulinho Da Costa and composer Richard Gibbs were hired on Patty's record. Their talent improved the diva's vocal range. "Hold on to love" was promoted on Holland's main TV shows (including TopPop, Telebingo, Nederland Muziekland). It became a hit single.

YouTube videos

Patty on AVRO's TopPop

Release

Miss Brard's first solo single "Hold on to love" and debut album "All This Way" came out in various editions - all depending on which countries the release took place (Philips Records in the Netherlands and Belgium, Metronome in Germany, F1 Team in Italy, RCA Victor in Argentina, CBS/Sony in Japan...).

The Japanese edition of Patty's debut album included two bonus tracks: "Forever" and "When I'm Gone".

Track listing

Hold on to love (single) released in February 1981.

A side: Hold On To Love (Barry Richards, Bobby Hart) - 3:40

B side: Love Keeps Knockin' (Richard Gibbs) - 3:15

All This Way (album)

Original Dutch front cover

A side

Hold On To Love 3:40
Radio (Don't Take The Music Away) 3:05
The Survivor 3:43
All This Way 3:56
Brazilian Love Song / Sambaman 5:20

B side

Love Keeps Knockin' 3:51
The Loneliest Night 3:26
Was I Good 3:40
Only Back For The Night 3:49
Down On Your Knees 3:15

Credits:

Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Doug Norwine

Arranged By, Keyboards – Richard Gibbs

Art Direction, Illustration – Linda Harris

Backing Vocals – Freida Woody, Mark Stevens, Richard Page, Steve George, Tom Kelly

Baritone Saxophone – Kurt McGettrick

Bass – Kerry Hatch, Reginald McBride

Design – Lauren Garza

Drums – Rick Schlosser, Vincent Colaiuta

Electric Guitar – Jamie Glaser, Paul Jackson Jr.

Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Lee Ritenour

Electric Guitar, Backing Vocals – Michael Levin

Engineer [Assistant] – Jeff Borgeson, Phil Moores

Engineer [Assistant], Mixed By [Assistant] – Joe Benechi

Engineer, Mixed By – Brian Levi

Mastered By – Brian Ingoldsby

Organ – Billy Preston

Percussion – Paulinho Da Costa

Photography By – Dennis Finn

Photography By [Cover] – Gianni Bozzacchi

Producer, Mixed By, Backing Vocals – Patty Brard

Producer, Mixed By, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Backing Vocals – Carlo Nasi

Tenor Saxophone – David Woodford, Lawrence Williams

Trombone – Bruce Paulson

Trombone, Horn [Baritone] – William Reichenbach

Trumpet – John Liotine, Steven Madaio

Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Charles Findley

Mastered at Cybersonics Lathes

Recorded at:
Excalibur Studios, North Hollywood
Davlen Sound Studios, Universal City
Conway Recording Studios, Hollywood
Sound Master Recording Studios, North Hollywood

Mixed at Sound Recording Studios

Japanese edition

Argentinian edition

Chart performance

"Hold on to love" peaked at #19 on the Dutch Top 40 and #14 on the Nationale Hitparade (currently Single Top 100) in the Netherlands. It reached the 4th position on the BRT Top 30 in Belgium and the 12th position on the South African charts.

The "All This Way" album reached Nr. 35 on the "Nationale Hitparade LP Top 50" in Holland.

Press clippings