Blondie (band)
Blondie is an American rock band formed in 1974 in New York City by singer Debbie Harry and guitarist Chris Stein.[1] The band was a pioneer in the American new wave scene of the mid-1970s in New York City.
Blondie
New York City, U.S.
- 1974–1982
- 1997–present
The band's first two albums contained strong elements of punk and new wave, and although highly successful in the UK and Australia, Blondie was regarded as an underground band in the U.S. until the release of Parallel Lines in 1978. Over the next four years, the band released several hit singles[2] including "Dreaming", "One Way or Another", "Heart of Glass", "Call Me", "Atomic", "The Tide Is High", and "Rapture".[3] The band became noted for its eclectic mix of musical styles, also incorporating elements of disco, pop, reggae, funk and early rap music.
Blondie disbanded after the release of their sixth studio album, The Hunter, in 1982. Harry continued to pursue a solo career with varied results after taking a few years off to care for partner Stein, who was diagnosed with pemphigus, a rare autoimmune disease of the skin.[4] The band re-formed in 1997,[5] achieving renewed success and their sixth number one single in the UK with "Maria" in 1999, exactly 20 years after their first UK No. 1 single ("Heart of Glass").
The group toured and performed throughout the world[6] during the following years, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006.[7] Blondie has sold around 40 million records worldwide[8][9] and is still active. The band's eleventh studio album, Pollinator, was released on May 5, 2017.
History[edit]
1974–1978: Early career[edit]
Inspired by the burgeoning new music scene at the Mercer Arts Center in Manhattan, Stein sought to join a similar band. He joined the Stilettoes in 1973 as their guitarist and formed a romantic relationship with Harry, who was one of the band's vocalists, a former waitress and Playboy Bunny.[10] Harry had been a member of a folk-rock band, the Wind in the Willows, in the late 1960s.[3] In July 1974, Stein and Harry parted ways with the Stilettoes and Elda Gentile, the band's originator, forming a new band with ex-Stilettoes bandmates Billy O'Connor (drums; born 1953, died 2015)[11] and Fred Smith (bass).[3] Originally billed as Angel and the Snake for two shows in August 1974, they had renamed themselves Blondie by October 1974, while Ivan Kral joined the band on guitar.[3] The new name derived from comments made by truck drivers who catcalled "Hey, Blondie" to Harry as they drove past.[12][13][14]
By the spring of 1975, O'Connor had left the music business and Smith replaced Richard Hell in Television,[15] while Kral eventually joined the Patti Smith Group.[3] Stein and Harry continued the band, and proceeded with auditions to recruit drummer Clem Burke and bass player Gary Valentine (Gary J. Lachman).[3]
Blondie became regular performers at Max's Kansas City and CBGB.[16] In June 1975, the band's first recording came in the way of a demo produced by Alan Betrock. To fill out their sound, they recruited keyboard player Jimmy Destri in November 1975.[3] The band signed with Private Stock Records and released their first single "X-Offender" in June 1976, while their debut album, Blondie, was issued in December 1976.[3] Neither was initially a commercial success, and the band spent the rest of the year touring with Television and visiting the UK.[3] Blondie opened for David Bowie and Iggy Pop on the latter's US tour in early 1977 supporting The Idiot. Blondie was invited by Bowie and Pop after the pair had heard their debut.[17][18] In July 1977, Valentine decided to leave the band and form his own group, the Know; he was replaced by Frank Infante.[3]
In September 1977, the band bought back its contract with Private Stock and signed with British label Chrysalis Records.[19] The first album was re-released on the new label in October 1977. Rolling Stone's review of the debut album observed the eclectic nature of the group's music, comparing it both to Phil Spector and to the Who, and commented that the album's two strengths were Richard Gottehrer's production and the persona of Debbie Harry.[20]
Style and legacy[edit]
By 1982, the year the band initially broke up, Blondie had released six studio albums, each exhibiting a stylistic progression from the last. The band is known not only for the striking stage persona and vocal performances of Harry but also for incorporating elements in their work from numerous subgenres of music, reaching from their punk roots to embrace new wave, disco,[30][31] pop,[30][31][80] rap,[31][81] and reggae.[31][82]
In March 2006, Blondie, following an introductory speech by Shirley Manson of Garbage,[83][84] was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Seven members (Harry, Stein, Burke, Destri, Infante, Nigel Harrison, and Valentine) were invited to the ceremony, which led to an on-stage spat between the extant group and their former bandmate Infante, who asked during the live broadcast of the ceremony that he and Nigel Harrison be allowed to perform with the group, a request refused by Harry who stated that the band had already rehearsed their performance.[85] On May 22, 2006, Blondie was inducted into the Rock Walk of Fame at Guitar Center on Hollywood's Sunset Boulevard. New inductees are voted on by previous Rock Walk inductees.[86]
