Photo by Jean-Luc
Gary Valentine (Gary Lachman) was Blondie’s early bassist and songwriter, present at the moment Blondie shifted from local CBGB act toward international new wave contenders. Encyclopedia Britannica+1
Entry into Blondie
- Recruited by Clem Burke after original bassist Fred Smith left to join Television; joins the band in 1975. Wikipedia+1
Lineage:
NYC proto-punk & CBGB scene → Blondie (early era)
Contributions
- Plays bass on much of the first two albums, Blondie and Plastic Letters. Wikipedia+1
- Wrote “(I’m Always Touched by Your) Presence, Dear,” one of the key early Blondie songs that hints at their pop instincts. Wikipedia+1
Post-Blondie
- Left the band in 1977; later played with other groups and developed a parallel career as a writer and cultural commentator.
Gary Valentine was the early-era bassist/songwriter connecting CBGB punk, Blondie’s first wave of material, and the broader late-’70s New York underground.