'Girlfriend' fuels Holy's resurgence

11/9/2006

In July, 2003, Steve Holy sat on his tour bus after a performance at Country Concert in Fort Loramie, Ohio, lamenting the fact that he hadn't been able to capitalize on the success of his hit "Good Morning Beautiful."

"I really need another hit," he said then.

The good news for his fans is that after years of searching, he has found that hit song, and his career is enjoying a resurgence. Last month, Holy hit the top of the charts with "Brand New Girlfriend," his second No. 1 single.

The success is spurring big demand for the Dallas-born singer, who has a full slate of performances scheduled for this month. He'll be in Bootleggers in Toledo Wednesday night, along with an up-and-coming artist from Raleigh, Jason Michael Carroll.

In October, 2000, Holy released his debut album, "Blue Moon." His first single, "Don't Make Me Beg," climbed to No. 29 on the charts, and he followed that up with two Top-25 hits, "Blue Moon" and "The Hunger." He established himself as a force in country music with the single "Good Morning Beautiful," which spent five weeks at No. 1, was one of the top videos of the year, and was featured in the 2001 film Angel Eyes, which starred Jennifer Lopez.

Holy's momentum was fleeting, though, as five subsequent singles failed to connect with radio programmers. His label, Curb Records, stuck with him, and that patience was rewarded with "Brand New Girlfriend."

Before being released, the song was one of the most popular choices of Holy's fans at his shows. Holy describes himself as a fan of the music from the '50s and '60s, and the single definitely has a feel of a song from that era.

"When you get a reaction on an unfamiliar song that's as strong as the reaction for your five-week No. 1, that's a pretty good indication you may have something," Holy told Reuters news service last month.

After 36 weeks, the single finally hit No. 1, which is not only psychologically important for an artist trying to re-establish himself, but also important in pushing album sales. The single is the title track of his current album, which is closing in on sales of 150,000.

It's taken him a while, but Holy is once again enjoying the view from the top.

Steve Holy, along with special guest Jason Michael Carroll, will perform in an 8 p.m. concert Wednesday in Bootleggers, 135 South Byrne Rd. Doors open at 7. Advance tickets, $20, are available from Ticketmaster, the SeaGate Convention Centre box office, or by phone at 419-321-5007. Tickets Wednesday night are $24.

Contact Brian Dugger at: bdugger@theblade.com

or 419-724-6110.