Thursday, October 15, 2015

Song of the Day: 'The First One' by Gary Valentine (and Blondie)


I read (and loved) former Blondie bassist Gary Valentine's "New York Rocker" memoir years ago, but I don't remember much about it. One thing I do recall is that he was originally included in the late '90s Blondie reformation (that's how much THEY MUST HATE Nigel Harrison), and was really hurt when Debbie and Chris reneged on a promise to record a song he'd written for the project. Yesterday I discovered it was called "Amor Fati" (listen HERE), but it was his first solo single after leaving Blondie just before "Plastic Letters" that really captured me. (Fans might recall he had a bit of a Jane Wiedlin complex before there was such a thing.) "The First One," which Blondie performed live back in the day, is classic Valentine. The single can be tracked down (with considerable effort and/or money) on a compilation album of his ("Tomorrow Belongs to You") that also includes his singing lead on two of his Blondie songs, as well as material he recorded with his follow-up band, The Know. Although he never made it as a solo artist, these recordings -- as well as his songwriting bonafides -- make it clear why he was frustrated not being a front man, and why he and Blondie parted ways.



1 comment:

Blobby said...

huh. I didn't know Valentine had a solo disk. I also didn't know he (briefly?) reformed with Blondie.