The Alley Cat – It Only Hurts The First Time
Description
The Alley Cats — “It Only Hurts the First Time”
“It Only Hurts the First Time” is a song by the Los Angeles punk rock trio The Alley Cats. It appeared on the band’s second studio album, Escape from the Planet Earth, released by MCA Records in 1982. The recording features the group’s original lineup of Randy Stodola on guitar and vocals, Dianne Chai on bass and vocals, and John McCarthy on drums.
Unlike the harsher, more confrontational sound associated with some of the band’s earliest Dangerhouse Records material, “It Only Hurts the First Time” reveals a more melodic side of The Alley Cats. The song combines punk-rock urgency with atmospheric guitar, restrained verses, and an emotionally direct chorus. Its lyrics describe intimacy, vulnerability, and the lingering pain of a relationship, giving the track a darker and more reflective character than a conventional love song.
The Alley Cats and the Los Angeles punk scene
The Alley Cats formed in Los Angeles in 1977 and became an important part of the city’s first-wave punk movement. The original trio regularly performed at influential venues including The Masque, the Hong Kong Café, Club 88, and the Whisky a Go Go. They were signed to Dangerhouse Records alongside artists such as X, the Bags, and Black Randy and the Metro Squad.
Their debut single, “Nothing Means Nothing Anymore,” backed with “Give Me a Little Pain,” was released in 1978. The band was also included on the influential 1979 compilation Yes L.A. and appeared in the concert film Urgh! A Music War, which documented underground and alternative performers from the late 1970s and early 1980s.
By the time Escape from the Planet Earth was released in 1982, The Alley Cats had expanded their sound beyond the stripped-down attack of their early singles. “It Only Hurts the First Time” demonstrates that evolution, balancing the band’s raw punk foundation with moodier songwriting and a broader rock arrangement.
Rare rehearsal footage
The performance featured in the BVMTV Vault was filmed in the band’s rehearsal studio by director Dennis Dragon. The surviving footage offers a rare view of The Alley Cats performing outside the conventional concert setting and preserves the intensity and chemistry of the original trio.
The recording was later included in the 2007 CD-and-DVD anthology 1979–1982, a collection bringing together material from the band’s original period. The anthology includes “It Only Hurts the First Time” alongside songs such as “Nightmare City,” “Today,” “Night of the Living Dead,” “Bitter Fruit,” and “Just an Alley Cat.”
“It Only Hurts the First Time” remains a strong example of the emotional range found within early Los Angeles punk—a scene remembered not only for speed and aggression, but also for experimentation, melody, alienation, and deeply personal songwriting.
Artist: The Alley Cats
Song: “It Only Hurts the First Time”
Album: Escape from the Planet Earth
Released: 1982
Label: MCA Records
Genre: Punk rock • Alternative rock • Post-punk
Original lineup: Randy Stodola • Dianne Chai • John McCarthy
Video director: Dennis Dragon
Featured in: The BVMTV Vault
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The Alley Cats – It Only Hurts the First Time | BVMTV Vault
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Watch rare rehearsal footage of Los Angeles punk pioneers The Alley Cats performing “It Only Hurts the First Time,” from their 1982 album Escape from the Planet Earth.
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The Alley Cats
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| Origin | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genres | Punk |
| Years active | 1977–1982, 2015–present |
| Labels | Dangerhouse, Time Coast |
| Members | Randy Stodola, Apryl Cady, Matt Laskey |
| Past members | Dianne Chai, John McCarthy later members as The Zarkons: Terry Cooley, Freda Rente reformations after 2010: Paula O’Rourke, Pam Jag, Malti Kennedy, Joe Barile |
The Alley Cats are a Los Angeles, California-based punk rock trio formed in 1977. The original line-up, featuring Randy Stodola (guitar and vocals), Dianne Chai (bass and vocals) and John McCarthy (drums),[1] was a fixture of the early L.A. punk rock scene. Signed to Dangerhouse Records alongside other seminal California-based punk bands including the Bags, Black Randy and the Metro Squad, and X,[2] they released their first single “Nothing Means Nothing Anymore” backed with “Give Me a Little Pain” on March 30, 1978.[3] They are among the six bands featured on the 1979 compilation album Yes L.A. and appear in the 1982 film Urgh! A Music War.[4]
The Alley Cats were regular performers at such Los Angeles venues as Club 88, Hong Kong Café, The Masque, and the Whisky a Go Go.[5] Music writer Chris Morris remarked that the band “made some of the toughest, most nihilistic music on the scene.”[6]
Reformed as “The Zarkons”, they released two albums, Riders In The Long Black Parade (1985) and Between the Idea & the Reality…Falls the Shadow (1988),[7] before disbanding in 1988.[8]
After a 20-year hiatus, Stodola reformed the trio and currently performs as The Alley Cats along with fellow North Dakota-native Apryl Cady (bass and vocals)[9] and Matt Laskey (drums).[10][11] The line-up appears on the 2020 compilation album SPIKE: A San Pedro Compilation as well as the 2025 album We All Walk Among Shadows Until We Become One. Live performances include songs from the band’s early albums as well as covers and new material. [12]
Discography
L-R Apryl Cady, Matt Laskey, Randy Stodola
Albums
Singles and EPs
Soundtracks and compilations
- 1979 – Yes L.A. (compilation)
- 1981 – Urgh! A Music War (soundtrack)
- 1991 – Dangerhouse, Vol. 1 (compilation)
- 1993 – Dangerhouse, Vol. 2: Give Me A Little Pain! (compilation)
- 1993 – We’re Desperate: The L.A. Scene 1976-79 (compilation) – “Nothing Means Nothing Anymore”
- 1996 – Live From the Masque, Vol. 2: We We Can Can Do Do What What (compilation)
- 2020 – SPIKE: A San Pedro Compilation (compilation)
Filmography
- 1981 – Urgh! A Music War
- 2011 – The Alley Cats Live at the Whisky A Go Go
