THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

57-Roxy Music-Virginia Plain.

1972-Number 4 single.

Best Bit-At 2.37. Before becoming a Pop superstar, back in 1964 Bryan Ferry had been an art student in Newcastle, England. He took the title ‘Virginia Plain’ from one of his own paintings featuring an image of a cigarette packet in the same style as that of the artist Andy Warhol (1928-1987) (see also best songs 58.)

Bryan Ferry (see also best songs 721 and 316) was born on September 26th, 1945, in Washington, County Durham, England, as well as co-founding Roxy Music in 1970, he has also enjoyed a long and successful solo career, selling in excess of 30 million records worldwide. With Roxy Music he has released eight studio Albums between 1972-1982, and 26 singles between 1972-1996, of which 18 have made the UK top 40, with ‘Jealous Guy’ giving Roxy Music their only UK Number 1 single in 1981. In America on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, only ‘Love is the Drug’ from 1975 has charted, reaching Number 30. The solo discography of Bryan Ferry includes 16 studio Albums released between 1973-2018, and 45 singles issued between 1973-2014, of which 16 have made the UK top, with ‘Let’s Stick Together’ from 1976 charting the highest at Number 4. In America on Billboard his only charting solo single is ‘Kiss and Tell, which reached Number 31 in 1988.

‘Virginia Plain’ was the debut single from Roxy Music which was released two months after the bands self titled debut Album from June 1972. ‘Virginia Plain was written by Bryan Ferry, and produced by Peter Sinfield, who had been the co-founder of the English Rock band ‘King Crimson’ in 1968, who were leading lights in the development of ‘Progressive Rock’ music. Seeing the success of Roxy Music’s debut Album, the bands record label was keen to continue the momentum, and requested a single as they didn’t think that their was anything commercial enough for radio airplay on the Album.

‘Virginia Plain’ is based on Bryan Ferry’s 1964 painting of the same title, which features a large packet of ‘Virginia Slims’ cigarettes, with a picture of one of Andy Warhol’s ‘Superstar’ actresses ‘Baby Jane Holzer’ on the front. Speaking in 1972 Bryan Ferry said,’The painting was a sort of throwaway watercolour, and the song has lots of little images and throwaway lines. The painting was done in 1964, and although the song was written this year, it reflects the feeling of that time.I was up in Newcastle, living with a guy who’d helped Warhol to make the Marilyn Monroe silkscreens. It’s a whole American Dream thing, living up there yet constantly thinking about Warhol’s Factory and Baby Jane Holzer. It’s got some other things in it now. Vegas, Nevada, Route 66.’ Ferry went on to say,’I liked the phrase Virginia Plain, so it later became the title of the first single I put out with Roxy Music, with a slightly imponderable lyric.’

The songs first verse mentions ‘Robert E. Lee, (not the American Confederate general) who at that time was the lawyer for Roxy Music. Ferry is telling him not to mess things up as it has taken them many years to get to where they are now. The tracks guitar solo was played by Roxy Music band member Phil Manzanera, who claims that at the recording of ‘Virginia Plain’ he had nothing ready, so he improvised and played the first thing that came in to his head.

‘Far beyond the pale horizon, some place near the desert strand. Where my Studebaker takes me, that’s where I’ll make my stand, but wait. Can’t you see that Holzer mane? What’s her name, Virginia Plain?’