| Frank Infante | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Born | November 15, 1951 (age 60) New York City, US |
| Genres | Rock, Punk Rock, Pop, New Wave, Blues |
| Occupations | Musician, Songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar, Bass, Vocals |
| Years active | 1970s-Present |
| Labels | EMI, Chrysalis Records, Warner Bros. Records |
| Associated acts | Blondie, New York Dolls, Iggy Pop, Divinyls, Joan Jett |
| Website | www.frankinfante.com |
| Notable instruments | |
| Gibson Les Paul | |
Frank Infante (born 15 November 1951) is an American guitarist and bassist best known as a former member of the punk/new wave band, Blondie.
Prior to Blondie, he established himself playing guitar in heavy, electric blues groups such as The Elegant End and World War III. In 1975, he joined Sniper, an early, American glam punk band. Infante joined Blondie in 1977,[1] bringing with him the heavy rock style integral to their "power-pop" sound. The group was formed in New York City by singer, Deborah Harry, formerly of Wind And The Willows,[2] and guitar player, Chris Stein out of the remnants of Harry's previous group, The Stilettos. Gary Valentine was assigned as the band's bassist that August but was replaced by Infante in July 1977 to complete the permanent lineup.
Chrysalis Records took over Blondie's contract from Private Stock Records, and in February 1978, the band released their second album, Plastic Letters. It was the first commercial success for Blondie, peaking at #2 in the UK charts. Infante played on the record but was not pictured on the album cover. He continued to play bass for Blondie until Nigel Harrison joined the group later that year, at which point Harrison took over the roll of bass player and Infante switched to guitar. Both Infante and Harrison stayed with the band until it broke up in 1982, but neither were included when Blondie reformed in the late 1990s.[3]
Throughout his time with the band, Infante contributed to writing a handful of Blondie's songs, including "Underground Girl", "Victor", and "I Know But I Don't Know" which was used on Parallel Lines (1978), the band's best selling album which gained Platinum status in both the US and the UK.[4] He played guitar hooks on various tracks, including the guitar solos on "Rapture" and "One Way Or Another."
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Following Blondie's break up in the early 1980s, Infante went on to record on albums by Stiv Bators, Sylvain Sylvain and, in January, 1981, Bad Reputation with Joan Jett. Shortly afterwards, he toured and recorded with groups including Iggy Pop and Divinyls. 1999 saw the release of Iggy Pop's album Nuggets and later, in 2008, Where The Faces Shine, on both of which he played guitar.
In March 2006, Blondie, following an introductory speech by Shirley Manson of Garbage,[5][6] were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Seven members were invited to the ceremony, which resulted in an on-stage spat between the extant group and their former bandmates, Nigel Harrison and Frank Infante, who asked during the live broadcast of the ceremony to be allowed to perform with the group, a request refused by Deborah Harry.[7]
In 2010, Infante toured and performed with The New York Dolls in shows at The Cluny, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK.[8] He also played guitar on their album Dancing Backward In High Heels, released in March 2011.[9]
Infante currently lives in Los Angeles, California and he continues to record and perform. Infante's Inferno with Infante on guitar, Clem Burke (drums) and Steve Fishman (bass) has been quite a successful band. The trio recently performed at the Rhino Records Pop Up Store, Los Angeles.
[10] The full Frank Infante discography is available at www.Discogs.com
| Year | Album Details | BPI/RIAA Certification |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Blondie - Parallel Lines
|
UK: Platinum
US: Platinum |
| 1978 | Blondie - Headlines
|
|
| 1978 | Blondie - Plastic Letters
|
UK: #2 |
| 1979 | Blondie - Eat To The Beat
|
UK: #1 |
| 1980 | Blondie - Autoamerican
|
UK: #3
US: #7 |
| 1981 | Joan Jett - Bad Reputation
|
|
| 1982 | Blondie - The Hunter
|
UK: #9 |
| 1988 | Blondie - Atomic
|
UK: #1 |
| 1994 | Blondie - The Platinum Collection
|
|
| 1999 | Iggy Pop - Nuggets
Released: 1999 Label: SPV Recordings |
|
| 2008 | Iggy Pop - Where The Faces Shine
|
|
| 2011 | New York Dolls - Dancing Backward In High Heels
|
| Year | Album Details | US |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Roadie
|
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Rock Concert (TV) | Self |
| 1979 | The Midnight Special (TV) | Self |
| 1970 | The Old Grey Whistle Test (TV) | Self |
| 1980 | Roadie | Self |
| 1990 | Tales From The Crypt | Guitar Player |
| 1998 | Behind The Music (Docu) | Self |
| 2005 | New York Doll (Docu) | Self |
| 2005 | Saturday Night Live (TV) | Self |
| 2006 | Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony | Self |
| 2008 | Return To Babylon | Dr. Feelgood |