Despite riding in on the back of the whole New York/CGBG’s scene, Blondie went far beyond punk. A generation older, they had gathered enough experience to know that no cool scene could ever match the timelessness of perfect pop and right from the start, Blondie were always more about perfect pop than anything else.
In 1976 Debbie Harry was 31. As a fully grown woman she knew exactly how to blend 60’s girl group boy adoration with erotica to entice boys and girls alike into a world of distant and beautiful lust. Nonetheless, her schizoid take on lost love; one minute gloomy sorrow, the next vicious disdain, made her much more of an icon for girls, even with her platinum blonde bunny girl sexuality. To them she was a woman power Goddess while the shallow boys just wanted to fuck her, conveniently ignoring the fact that she was just about old enough to be their mother.
There’s no doubt that Debbie Harry was Blondie’s greatest attraction but because they operated in an inherently sexist world, she is also the reason why they are now dismissed as an insignificant pop novelty. From the moment they disbanded first time round they were consigned to the over flowing bargain bin of pop history, and they’ve remained there ever since.
Sure the hits are played occasionally on old timer’s radio, repackaged and even remodelled on numerous cash in compilations but the really good stuff; obscure album tracks like ‘Fan Mail’, ‘Pretty Baby’ and ‘Shayla’ remain unknown and unheard. And they just happen to be the most perfect pop songs of them all.
01. X Offender / Single A Side December 1976
02. In The Sun / Single B Side December 1976
03. In The Flesh / Blondie LP December 1976
04. Man Overboard / Blondie LP December 1976
05. Rip Her To Shreds / Blondie LP December 1976
06. Fan Mail / Plastic Letters LP February 1978
07. I Didn’t Have The Nerve To Say No / Plastic Letters LP February 1978
08. Kidnapper / Plastic Letters LP February 1978
09. Detroit 442 / Plastic Letters LP February 1978
10. One Way Or Another / Parallel Lines LP September 1978
11. Fade Away And Radiate / Parallel Lines LP September 1978
12. Pretty Baby / Parallel Lines LP September 1978
13. I Know But I Don’t Care / Parallel Lines LP September 1978
14. 11:59 / Parallel Lines LP September 1978
15. Just Go Away / Parallel Lines LP September 1978
16. The Hardest Part / Eat To The Beat LP October 1979
17. Shayla / Eat To The Beat LP October 1979
18. Eat To The Beat / Eat To The Beat LP October 1979
19. Die Young Stay Pretty / Eat To The Beat LP October 1979
20. Slow Motion / Eat To The Beat LP October 1979
21. Living In The Real World / Eat To The Beat LP October 1979
22. Suzy & Jeffrey / Single B Side October 1980
23. Angels On The Balcony / Autoamerican LP November 1980
24. English Boys / The Hunter LP May 1982
