The Blondie song inspired by being a “sad little bastard”
The release of ‘Maria’ couldn’t have been better timed. The song made its way onto the airwaves just after Blondie had wrapped up a European tour, gently acquainting fans with new tracks from their upcoming album. As a comeback track, ‘Maria’ emerged after the band had disappeared for about a generation, which meant there were a lot of new fans who were discovering them for the first time, with the song providing the perfect gateway to their earlier hits for the first time.
‘Maria’ was written by the band’s keyboardist, Jimmy Destri, who penned earlier hits like ‘Atomic’. ‘Maria’, however, was very different to ‘Atomic’, becoming reminiscent of the bouncy flavour of the band’s earlier recordings like ‘Denis’ and ‘Sunday Girl’. Yet, the hidden element that truly made a difference was the inclusion of cathedral bells chiming in the chorus.
During the entire holiday season, the song received substantial airtime in the UK, seamlessly aligning with Christmas musical traditions. As anticipation continued to grow, the song’s release date experienced multiple delays, culminating in its debut at the top spot in February 1999. In terms of subject matter, however, ‘Maria’ wasn’t exactly as forth-coming about festivities as many of the other tracks that accompanied radio airtime during the period.
When asked about the inspiration behind the track, Destri explained: “[It’s about] desire. Teenage desire because I have a teenage daughter, and she’s pretty beautiful, and I watch all these boys gawk at her. I put myself in their shoes, thinking about what I used to do with girls back then.”
He added: “I wasn’t a very forward guy at all; I was like from afar, and I’d go home and write a poem about her – I was really a sad little bastard. It sounds cute, but you don’t get any attention that way. So ‘Maria’ is about desire, and the whole idea of using the Ave Maria thing is a way of saying she’s on a pedestal; she’s almost holy. It’s not a religious thing at all, I don’t believe in religion, really.”
Upon reaching the top spot on the UK charts, ‘Maria’ marked Blondie’s achievement of having number-one hits in three distinct decades: the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Queen accomplished a similar feat with their songs ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, ‘Under Pressure’, and ‘Innuendo’.
Although ‘Maria’ arrived after a significant hiatus, it also linked back to earlier material gracefully with the reprised line “walking on imported air” from ‘Walk Like Me’ off the band’s 1980 album Autoamerican. It instated the cool modern rock sound that would characterise the revival of Blondie. With a changing roster of chart-topping hits in their discography, ‘Maria’ has consistently held a spot in their live performances. Essentially, it resonates as a true resurgence and sounds exactly like what it is: a rebirth.
