Besides these two songs, five more of Montgomery's singles have reached the top of the country charts: "I Love the Way You Love Me", "Be My Baby Tonight", "If You've Got Love", "I Can Love You Like That", and "The Little Girl", while thirteen more have reached Top Ten. Montgomery's recordings of "I Swear" and "I Can Love You Like That" were both released concurrently with R&B versions by the group All-4-One. Montgomery has also released eleven studio albums, counting a Christmas album.
John Michael joined the family band (which also included his brother, Eddie Montgomery, who would later join Troy Gentry in the duo Montgomery Gentry) as guitarist before taking the lead singing role when his parents divorced. Afterwards, he made a frugal living on the local honky-tonk scene as a solo artist playing what he referred to as "working man's country." Eventually, Atlantic Records signed him.
Holdin' On To Something
John Michael Montgomery Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Want to make her mine
What she wants I don't know
If red means stop
An' green means go
Her light is always yellow
I'm wrapped around her finger
Every time I think I got her
I gotta think again...I'm
Holdin' on to something
That keeps letting me go
Just a whole lotta heartache
At the end of my rope
I fall a little harder every time I drop
But I keep reaching 'cause I can't stop
Holdin' on to something that keeps letting me go
She calls me on the phone
Says she's all alone
Felling kinda lonely
Says she can't wait
So don't be late
I promise her I won't be
Ten minutes later I'm standing at her door
She's saying, "Never mind, I ain't lonely anymore"...I'm
Holdin' on to something
That keeps letting me go
Just a whole lot of heartache
At the end of my rope
I fall a little harder every time I drop
But I keep reaching 'cause I can't stop
Holdin' on to something that keeps letting me go
I fall a little harder every time I drop
But I keep reaching 'cause I can't stop
Holdin' on to something that keeps letting me go
Just a whole lot of heartache
At the end of my rope
Holdin' on to something
That keeps letting me go
In "Holdin' On To Something," John Michael Montgomery sings about his struggles to maintain his grip on a relationship that always seems to be slipping away. The lyrics describe a situation in which he is deeply enamored with a girl and always trying to figure out what she wants, but she seems to always signal mixed messages. She keeps his hopes up, but is continuously indecisive about whether to stay or leave him. He feels like he's always at the end of his rope, but he can't seem to let go of the relationship.
The use of traffic lights as metaphors in the lyrics conveys a sense of confusion in the relationship. Montgomery describes his girl's light as perpetually yellow, which means proceed with caution or hesitate, and sometimes even stopping. The green light indicates go or moving ahead, while the red light means stop or do not proceed. The constant presence of a yellow light creates a sense of uncertainty, and Montgomery feels like he's always getting mixed signals from the girl he's after.
The chorus of the song provides a clear reference to the title, as the singer tries desperately to maintain his grip on the relationship. Every time he feels like he's getting a little closer to her or getting a better hold on the situation, he falls a little harder each time he drops, but he can't seem to let go.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a little girl
There's a girl that catches my interest
Want to make her mine
I want to be in a relationship with her
What she wants I don't know
I am unsure of her needs and desires
If red means stop
I am using traffic lights as an analogy for understanding her signals
An' green means go
I am using traffic lights as an analogy for understanding her signals
Her light is always yellow
Her signals are confusing and mixed
I'm wrapped around her finger
I am under her control and influence
She's slipping through my hands
I am losing my grasp on her
Every time I think I got her
Every time I think I understand her
I gotta think again...I'm
I am reminded of her complexity and elusiveness
Holdin' on to something
I am trying to keep our relationship intact
That keeps letting me go
But it feels like she is always slipping away from me
Just a whole lotta heartache
It causes me a lot of pain and heartbreak
At the end of my rope
I feel like I am reaching the limit of my emotional capacity
I fall a little harder every time I drop
Every time I feel like I am losing her, it hurts me even more
But I keep reaching 'cause I can't stop
Despite the pain, I keep trying to hold onto her
She calls me on the phone
She contacts me when she is feeling down
Says she's all alone
She tells me she is lonely
Felling kinda lonely
She is feeling quite lonely
Says she can't wait
She wants me to come over immediately
So don't be late
She tells me to hurry up
I promise her I won't be
I assure her that I will come quickly
Ten minutes later I'm standing at her door
I arrive at her doorstep ten minutes after our conversation
She's saying, "Never mind, I ain't lonely anymore"...I'm
She changes her mind and doesn't need me anymore, leaving me confused and frustrated
Just a whole lot of heartache
I am left feeling hurt and disappointed
At the end of my rope
My emotional limit has been reached
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Reservoir Media Management, Inc., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: THOMAS EUGENE MC HUGH, THOMAS SHAPIRO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind