Maria (Blondie song)

"Maria"
Single by Blondie
from the album No Exit
Released	February 1, 1999
Format	CD, Cassette, 12" vinyl
Recorded	1998
Genre	Rock, pop, alternative rock
Length	4:12
Label	Beyond Music
Writer(s)	Jimmy Destri
Certification	Silver (UK)
Blondie singles chronology
"War Child" (1982) "Maria" (1999) "Nothing Is Real but the Girl" (1999)
Alternative cover US edition of the "Maria" single with alternative cover art. Music sample "Maria"

"Maria" is a song by the American band Blondie, taken from their 1999 album No Exit. This song was Blondie's comeback single, their first since "War Child" in July 1982. In the UK, it was the band's sixth no.1 single, topping the charts exactly 20 years after their first UK no.1 "Heart of Glass" in 1979. The song was written by the band's keyboardist Jimmy Destri, who had also penned some of their earlier hits such as "Atomic". In the US, the single peaked at #82 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

In the UK the single was released as a 2 CD set, the first containing remixes of "Maria", and the second containing live versions of "Screaming Skin" (a track from their "No Exit" album) and their very first hit single "In the Flesh".

The line "...like a millionaire/walking on imported air" was used in a previous Blondie song, "Walk Like Me" (also written by Destri), from the album Autoamerican (1980).

Release history

All tracks written by Jimmy Destri unless otherwise noted.

UK CD 1

1. "Maria" (Radio Edit) – 4:09
2. "Maria" (Soul Solution Remix Radio Edit) – 4:08
3. "Maria" (Talvin Singh Remix Edit) – 4:39

UK CD 2

1. "Maria" (Radio Edit) – 4:09
2. "Screaming Skin" (Live) (Ashby, Foxx, Harry, Stein)
3. "In the Flesh" (Harry, Stein) (Live)

UK CD 3 (promo only)

1. "Maria" (Radio Edit) – 4:09
2. "Maria" (Talvin Singh Rhythmic Remix) – 7:26

UK Cassette

1. "Maria" (Radio Edit) – 4:09
2. "Maria" (Soul Solution Remix Radio Edit) – 4:08

US CD

1. "Maria" (Soul Solution Full Remix) – 9:27
2. "Maria" (Talvin Singh Remix) – 7:27
3. "Maria" (Talvin Singh Rhythmic Remix Edit) – 4:39
4. "Maria" (Album Version) – 4:51

US 12"

1. "Maria" (Soul Solution Full Remix) – 9:27
2. "Maria" (Soul Solution Bonus Beats)
3. "Maria (Talvin Singh Remix) – 7:27
4. "Maria" (Talvin Singh Rhythmic Remix Edit) – 4:39
5. "Maria" (Album Version) – 4:51

The music video for the song was directed by an 'Alan Smithee'

Cover versions and appearances in other media

• Blondie's recording was featured in the film "200 Cigarettes" (1999)
• Kim Ah Joong covered the song in the South Korean film 200 Pounds Beauty, with Korean lyrics.
• Loveholic, a Korean band, covered the song with the original lyrics.
• Colbie Caillat, an American pop singer-songwriter and guitarist, covered the song with the original lyrics for Levi's Pioneer Sessions.
• Eurodance versions of the song have appeared on the Dancemania series albums, including Dancemania Speed 5 released in 2000.

References

Preceded by "You Don't Know Me" by Armand Van Helden featuring Duane Harden

UK Singles Chart number-one single February 7, 1999 – February 13, 1999

Succeeded by "Fly Away" by Lenny Kravitz