Jesse Valenzuela

Jesse Valenzuela (born May 22, 1962) is an American rock musician and singer who is perhaps best known as a member of the alternative rock band Gin Blossoms. He was originally the vocalist in Gin Blossoms when the band first formed in 1987. In 1988, he switched roles with the band's new guitarist, Robin Wilson. He continued to be a member until the band's breakup in 1997, and reunited with the rest of the group in 2002. As a songwriter, Valenzuela has written or co-written Gin Blossoms songs including "Til I Hear It From You," "Follow You Down," "Mrs. Rita," "Until I Fall Away" and "As Long As It Matters." Valenzuela has talked about a lifelong fascination with music and the guitar. He began to play in public when he was 15. "I've always been a fan of music," Valenzuela noted in a 2018 interview with Icon Vs. Icon. "I've gotten older now, and my mother's started handing over lots of photographs from my childhood. It seems that I always had a guitar in my hand as a kid. I do remember just wanting a guitar really badly and it was all I thought about at that age. I was playing in bars by the time I was 15." Several years of honing his craft in the Arizona music world brought Valenzuela into contact with Gin Blossoms founder and Tempe neighbor Doug Hopkins – and in 1987, Valenzuela joined the band. By 1989, the Gin Blossoms were fully up and running and released their first album, Dusted, with Hopkins serving as the principal songwriter but with Valenzuela contributing four tracks. Although an independent, low-budget effort, Dusted planted a flag in the ground for the Arizona rockers. Some of its songs – "Lost Horizons," "Hey Jealousy" and "Found Out About You"...