"Holding Back the Years" is a song by the English soul and pop band Simply Red, released as the third single from their debut studio album, Picture Book (1985).

The song's "I'll keep holding on" chorus was not added until many years later, after the band had split and Hucknall had formed Simply Red.

He said that the line "strangled by the wishes of pater" was inspired by arguments he had with his father: according to Hucknall, the two clashed often during his teenage years "because there was no woman to act as referee".

[6][8] The accompanying music video for "Holding Back the Years" focuses on Mick Hucknall, who, while singing the song, walks through the English countryside and Whitby Abbey carrying luggage and thinking about his childhood memories and the difficult relationship he had with his father.

In 1999, English R&B boy band Another Level released their version as a double A-side with a remix of their earlier hit, "Be Alone No More".