Like Mama and Papa

Thirty-five years ago Saturday — June 9, 1990 — “Hold On” by Wilson Phillips hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

Wilson Phillips consisted of two sisters — the daughters of famed leader of the Beach Boys, Brian Wilson — and their childhood friend, the daughter of John and Michelle Phillips of the Mamas and the Papas.

Their debut single would spend only one week at the top of the chart, but it would finish 1990 as the year’s biggest-selling single.

'Hold On For One More Day'

The pop vocal duo Wilson Phillips had grown up in the same neighborhood in the Hollywood Hills. A number of 1960s musical icons lived there in those days: the Doors, the Byrds, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.

Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys lived there, along with his wife and their two daughters, Carnie and Wendy. John and Michelle Phillips of the Mamas and the Papas lived nearby with their daughter, Chynna. The girls would gather in Wendy’s bedroom and sing, learning how to harmonize over the years.

In 1988 — with the girls approaching their 20th birthdays — Michelle Phillips began pushing the girls to think about embarking on a music career of their own. She connected them with young songwriter and music producer Glen Ballard, whose claim to fame had been co-writing a No. 1 hit the previous year, “Man in the Mirror,” with Michael Jackson.

Ballard set out to help the girls write and select songs to record. At one point, he handed Chynna a cassette tape with some music on it and asked her to try writing some lyrics for it. Chynna felt inspired right off the bat — she had been battling drug and alcohol addiction and a bad relationship. Sitting in her car in front of her house, she began writing, basing her work on the principles of Alcoholics Anonymous: the idea that things should be taken one day at a time.

Chynna’s friends were stunned by the results. Carnie stepped in to help write a couple of lines for what Chynna called “Hold On.” Ballard recorded Chynna singing the lead vocal and invited Joe Walsh of the Eagles to play guitar on the song.

The single hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on June 9, 1990. It was a quarter-century, exactly, after Wendy and Carnie’s dad and his group, the Beach Boys, had a No. 1 hit with “Help Me, Rhonda.”

Wilson Phillips’ self-titled debut album would be released in May. It would sell more than 8 million copies worldwide, spending 10 weeks at No. 2 on the Billboard album chart. The group would be nominated for five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best New Artist. “Hold On” would be nominated for Song of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance.

“Hold On” would go on to be used in various other media: on the TV series “Chuck,” for example, and in the 2011 movie “Bridesmaids.” One of the most amusing was a commercial for Progressive insurance when Carnie finds a tree has fallen on her car. Progressive’s “Flo” stands there and quotes lyrics of “Hold On” back to her.

One Album, Five Hit Singles

The Other Four Singles From Wilson

Release Me

When Ballard first heard Wilson Phillips sing, he was impressed with how they sounded when they sang together — their harmony sounded like one voice. Instead of designating a lead singer on “Release Me,” he had the trio sing in unison.

The song — about a woman trying to get her ex to stop asking for another chance — was written by Wendy, Carnie and Chynna as well.

Impulsive

This song was written by Steve Kipner — who had written “Physical,” a 1981 hit for Olivia Newton-

John and “If She Would Have Been Faithful,” a 1987 single by Chicago — and Clif Magness, who wrote “All I Need” for Jack Wagner in 1984.This was the first single on which Wendy sang lead vocal. Joe Walsh played slide guitar on this song as well as the lead single.

You’re In Love

The band’s third No. 1 single is about a woman greeting her ex and happy about the fact that he’s found a new love. “Now I see that you’re so happy and oooh, it just sets me free,” Wilson Phillips sings.

The song was written by the group with help from Ballard. Chynna sang lead once again, but the song features strong harmony bits on which all three sang in unison.

The Dream is Still Alive

Ballard wrote this song as his daughter was dying of cancer. “For that song,” Ballard told Rolling Stone, “that was a heavy moment in my life. But certainly to me, it’s something beautiful.”

This was the first single by the group on which Carnie sang lead. While it didn’t break the Top 10, it did peak at No. 4 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.

In The 35 Years Since ...

Wilson Phillips recorded a second album with Ballard, “Shadows and Light,” which was released in 1992. That album peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard album chart and spawned two singles, both of which topped out at No. 30.

The band then went its separate ways for a while. Chynna recorded a solo album, “Naked and Sacred” in 1995, while Carnie hosted a syndicated TV talk show. Ballard went on to write and produce music with Alanis Morissette.

The Wilson sisters would put out a Christmas album in 1993 and then another album, “The Wilsons,” as a duo in 1997. Carnie also issued solo albums in 2003, 2006 and 2007.

They would reunite with Chynna in 2004 for another album, a Christmas album in 2010 and a fourth studio album in 2012. That same year, the trio was featured on its own reality show, “Wilson Phillips: Still Holding On.”

Carnie, Wendy and Chynna still tour from time to time.