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TL;DR:

  • Blondie’s “Call Me” sounds like a Kiss song that was supposed to combine multiple genres.
  • Gene Simmons hated the song in question from the first time he heard it.
  • He may have made peace with it because it became such a huge success on the charts.

Blondie’s “Call Me” is one of the most enduring classic rock songs from the early 1980s. It sounds a touch like one of Kiss’ most famous songs. Despite this similarity, one of the tracks performed a lot better in the United States than the other.

Blondie’s ‘Call Me’ has a melody that sounds like a Kiss song from the year before

Part of what makes Blondie’s “Call Me” so great is its melody. In the lead-up to the song’s chorus, Debbie Harry sings “Cover me with kisses, baby / Cover me with love / Roll me in designer sheets / I’ll never get enough.” The melody of the line is similar to Kiss singing “I was made for lovin’ you baby / you were made for lovin’ me.”

The tunes both combine elements of hard-rock with elements of dance music. They also have similar tight grooves that helped them remain popular. Notably, Kiss’ “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” came out in 1979, while Blondie released “Call Me” in 1980.

What 1 songwriter of Kiss’ ‘I Was Made for Lovin’ You’ was trying to accomplish

Kiss’ Paul Stanley co-wrote “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” with noted songwriters Desmond Child and Vini Poncia. During a 2019 interview with The Tennessean, Child discussed why he combined genres while writing the song.

“I was trying to combine dance music, R&B with rock and kind of singer-songwriter storytelling to create something different,” he recalled. “I knew that dance clubs were really making it really big all over, all these huge gay dance clubs, and I said, ‘Come on, let’s try to do something with a dance beat, but let’s put heavy rock guitars on it.’

“So that was the innovation that I hoodwinked Paul into,” Child added. “Gene always hated it from beginning to end. Hated, hated, hated.” Child hypothesized Simmons stopped hating “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” once it become one of his band’s biggest hits.

Related

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How Blondie’s ‘Call Me’ and Kiss’ ‘I Was Made for Lovin’ You’ performed on the charts

“I Was Made for Lovin’ You” became a hit. It reached No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for 16 weeks. Considering Kiss rarely reached the top 10, Desmond was correct that “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” was one of the biggest Billboard hits of Kiss’ career.

On the other hand, “Call Me” became far more successful. That track topped the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks. It was the longest-running No. 1 single of Blondie’s career. “Call Me” remained on the chart for a total of 25 weeks.

“Call Me” is one of the most beloved songs from the 1980s new wave scene. It might not be the same without “I Was Made for Lovin’ You.”

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