Unable to garner much attention in Los Angeles, the band flew to London shortly after forming in hopes of securing a record deal and possibly gaining an audience in the New Wave and post-punk scene that was quite popular in Britain at the time. After playing on the pub circuit extensivley, they came to prominence as the opening act for fellow Americans Blondie, and were signed to disc jockey Charlie Gillett's record label, Opal.
The 1979 release of the single "Tell That Girl To Shut Up" garnered the band a recording contract with Virgin Records. While the single wasn't a very big hit for Holly and the Italians, it would be in 1988 when covered by Transvision Vamp. The band recorded their only album, The Right To Be Italian, produced by Richard Gottehrer. Their next two singles, "Youth Coup" and "Miles Away," (the latter written by bassist Mark Henry), failed to chart and the group disbanded at the end of 1981.
In 1982 Holly Beth Vincent issued a solo album entitled Holly and the Italians even though the band was now defunct and the album was solely credited to Vincent. The album featured a minor hit with the completely overhauled cover of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth," and the subsequent video gained some airtime on MTV. Later that year Vincent recorded a cover of Sonny and Cher's "I Got You Babe" with Ramones frontman Joey Ramone.
After a brief period replacing Patty Donahue in The Waitresses, she appeared in a combo called the Wild Things with Anthony Thistlethwaite of The Waterboys, and in 1995 teamed up with Concrete Blonde singer Johnette Napolitano for a musical side project entitled Vowel Movement.
Weekend
Holly and the Italians Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh those lonely weekends
Since you left me I'm as lonely as I can be oh those lonely weekends
Said you'd be (said you'd be) so good to Jerry Lee (good to me)
You said our love (said our love) would never die (never die)
You said you'd be (said you'd be) so good to me (good to me)
But baby you didn't even try
Well I'm makin' alright (well I'm makin' alright) from Monday morning to Friday night
[ piano ]
You said you'd be (said you should be)...
I said oh those lonely weekends I said oh those lonely weekends
The lyrics to Holly and the Italians' song Weekend describe the feelings of loneliness and heartbreak following a breakup. The singer explains that while they are able to carry on with their life from Monday to Friday, the weekends are especially difficult to bear because it reminds them of the time they used to spend with their partner. The verses also address the broken promises made by the partner, who claimed that their love would never die and they would be good to the singer, but did not follow through with their words.
The emotional weight of the lyrics is underlined by the vintage sound of the song, which features a classic piano accompaniment and Holly Beth Vincent's powerful vocals. The way she delivers the lines suggests a sense of resignation and acceptance of the situation, but also a lingering sadness that is hard to shake off. The repetitive refrain of "oh those lonely weekends" serves as a cathartic release of the pain and longing that the singer experiences.
Overall, Weekend is a poignant depiction of the aftermath of a failed love story, presented in a timeless musical style that resonates with listeners to this day.
Line by Line Meaning
Well I'm makin' alright from Monday morning to Friday night
I'm doing okay during the workweek, from Monday to Friday.
Oh those lonely weekends
But on the weekends, I feel really lonely.
Since you left me I'm as lonely as I can be oh those lonely weekends
I feel even more lonely on weekends because you left me.
Said you'd be (said you'd be) so good to Jerry Lee (good to me)
You promised to be good to me, Jerry Lee.
You said our love (said our love) would never die (never die)
You said our love would be eternal.
You said you'd be (said you'd be) so good to me (good to me)
You promised to treat me well.
But baby you didn't even try
But you didn't even make an effort.
Well I'm makin' alright (well I'm makin' alright) from Monday morning to Friday night
But despite that, I'm still doing okay during the week.
But oh those lonely weekends yeah
But the weekends are still really hard for me.
[ piano ]
Instrumental break.
You said you'd be (said you should be)...
You promised to be there for me...
I said oh those lonely weekends I said oh those lonely weekends
But it turns out, weekends are really lonely without you.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., GIANT BAUM KAYE MUSIC, LLC
Written by: BERNIE BAUM, BILL GIANT, FLORENCE KAYE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Zookzookzook13
First saw Holly & The Italians in Central Park, NYC in 1980 - they opened for The Ramones. Holly Beth Vincent is a hidden gem - fantastic songwriter. Really hope she's still writing and recording!
@michaeltnewyorknights8413
Fantastic record. My brother bought the single when it came out.
@maykolcastillo6965
I Love This Song ❤️
@petMonster28
Wow, this is fantastic.
@slick222
She was Mark Knopfler's muse for most of his career, seemingly the love of his life. They hooked up in 1973 or 74 then again in 79-80. He helped her get signed and she dumped him when he started acting clingy, never looked back, and if his music is any measure he never really got over her. He's one of the best ever.
@GreasyBelcher
The line, "Now you just say, oh Romeo, yeah, you know I used to have a scene with him," came from an interview where Holly Vincent was quoted as saying: "What happened was that I had a scene with Mark Knopfler and it got to the point where he couldn't handle it and we split up."
@slick222
@Greasy Belcher I think he felt like she acted serious when she needed his help to get her record deal but when she didn't need him anymore it suddenly changed into a looser thing. Also, she was quite young the first time they were together - maybe younger than either have admitted, maybe too young - and he may have still been married. That gave her a get out of jail free card where she could change her opinion later about him. It may have been hard for her too, who knows? He clearly wanted to spend his life with her though and she just wasn't that in to him, which is noteworthy since he is a guitar hero, gigantic star, hall of famer. It suggests she is true to herself, I think. The number of songs about her in his catalogue is high. "Where you think you're goin'," "Romeo", "On Every Street (the most heartbreaking one, I think)", "Private Investigation", "Fade to Black", all the way down to a recent solo song "Whoopdeedoo". Not a comprehensive list. He had it extremely bad for her, probably does today. She missed a big, rich boat and then hid from him the rest of her life. maybe she was proud and her beauty faded a lot. Maybe she just thought he got to her too early and resented him. Maybe she just didn't like Adult Rock guys and wanted a Punk Rocker. Who knows? Fascinating to me.
@AA-kb8vy
@@GreasyBelcher and how is this interview named?... can't find it((((
@AA-kb8vy
@@slick222 but why do you think that all the songs except “Romeo and Juliet” are dedicated only to her?.. he had a second wife just a couple of years after breaking up with Holly and he looks happy in the photo with her...
in addition, in some interview he said that he is rarely (or never) “that guy” from his songs)))
@slick222
@@AA-kb8vy He sang "Where do you think you're going" at a Berlin concert the night she dumped him and almost cried. The lyrics of "On Every Street" are about someone who vanished and who he can't quit looking for even though he admits he should. That does not describe a wife and it does describe Holly. As for "It's not me in my songs..." we need some common sense here. If you were trying to give some oxygen to old school attitudes (Money for Nothing - smash hit with the words "that little faggott" in them) and got called on the carpet for being bigoted you'd say the same thing. Plus, your explanation would basically be true, but let's not get carried away. You don't give voice to things that aren't in you. What you do do is zig-zag when you're being pursued by something dangerous like the proto-cancel mob. And why Holly? Again, use common sense. As Sheryl Crow said, the first cut is the deepest. How many people cut YOU that deep? More than one? Really? It's always one that goes all of the way down. Knopfler may have had a few paper cuts before Holly but she stabbed his heart and that doesn't happen twice to anybody.