Hello, and welcome to Hearing Double, where I compare and contrast two unrelated songs of the same title and decide which title does the most justice!
Today’s column is dedicated to my wonderful, beautiful, angelic dear friend and neighbor. Her name: Valerie. You guessed it; today’s matchup is a battle between Steve Winwood’s and Amy Winehouse’s “Valerie.”
Before we begin, I need to thank my friend Justine, the originator of this column, for helping me pick this week’s songs. I also need to thank her for introducing me to our first Valerie of the day. Steve Winwood’s song tells the story of a lost friend for whom he still longs.
Catch Steve on tour this month along the East Coast – tix at link in bio.” Image of Steve Winwood performing
CREDIT: Instagram – @stevewinwood
This song immediately brought a smile to my face with its upbeat tone and funky synth instrumentals. The lyrics often invoke the idea of a breezy, ethereal being in Valerie, with descriptions of her “standing there / With her hands in her hair” and how “she just blew away.”
The references to wind are almost constant in this song, with the pre-chorus referencing the “wind in her arms” and a hopeful line in the verse saying “someday, some good wind / may blow her back to me.” It matches the song’s light tone but also mirrors the fleeting nature of the relationship between the singer and Valerie.
Winwood wrote the song with lyricist Will Jennings. Jennings confirmed the lyrics are a tribute to a real person. Although he never confirmed it, it’s widely assumed he’s referencing singer Valerie Carter, a friend of Jennings’s. The song calls upon a friendship that certainly sounds real. Winwood declares in the chorus he’s the “same boy [he] used to be,” possibly referencing a friendship that started many years ago and certainly signifying a willingness to pick up where he and Valerie left off.
Meanwhile, Amy Winehouse also calls out to a friend in her “Valerie.” There are multiple versions of this song, with the most common being the version recorded live at the BBC for Winehouse’s album “Back to Black” and the version produced by regular Winehouse collaborator Mark Ronson.
This “Valerie” is actually a cover, reinterpreting the song originally by The Zutons. Lead guitarist and vocalist Dave McCabe confirmed in a Vice interview that he wrote the song about a makeup artist with whom he had a relationship. Although I certainly have respect for the original, Winehouse’s version is an iconic cover that takes on a life of its own, so that’s what we’ll focus on for now.
While the album version is more laid-back and Ronson’s is more energetic, both contain wistful undertones of missing someone dear to the singer. This song certainly has more tangible details about this Valerie, referencing her ginger hair, her fashion sense and a little trouble she got in with the law.
The song also feels more playful, asking Valerie to “stop making a fool out of me” with no real bitterness. It is, at its core, a song about viscerally missing someone and wondering what she’s up to. It sounds a bit like I do when I talk to my own Valerie on the phone.
It surprised me how similar these songs were when I took the time to sit down and listen to the lyrics. Even the choruses have the uncannily similar pleas to “come and see me” (Winwood) or “come on over” (Winehouse). It’s hard to pit them against each other with such aligning messages. Women named Valerie must be easy to miss when they’re away.
This matchup is essentially my personal request for my own friend Valerie to come and visit me. If two completely separate people wrote a song about how great it would be for Valerie to visit their old friend, they can’t possibly be wrong.
CREDIT: Instagram – @amywinehouse
Winehouse’s friend certainly has a more flighty, devil-may-care attitude. Moreover, I must imagine she’ll be returning to see her friend at some point, maybe after getting released from her stint in jail over that fine she keeps dodging.
Winwood’s friend feels more like she could truly be gone with the wind. Despite the optimistic synth-pop tone, the lyrics are almost hopeful beyond reason. When something or someone disappears on the wind, they don’t typically reappear.
I may surprise myself and make some enemies on this one. I’ve adored the Amy Winehouse version for a long time, and I’ll continue to adore it for the rest of the foreseeable future. The Steve Winwood song is relatively new to me. However, there’s something about Winwood’s cheerful music over the heartbroken lyrics for a lost friend and the prayer she returns that simply blows me away.
Winner: Steve Winwood