Description

New wave-bubblegum’s secret weapon was ex-Playboy Club bunny Debbie Harry, a cool chanteuse who exuded tuff girl-group chic; casual listeners assumed her name was actually Blondie, solidifying the anonymity afforded the band itself. Blondie’s multi-genre approach served them well, paying big dividends…Heart Of Glass throbbing pulse made disco safe for rock fans, The Tide Is High coasted on breezy reggae vibes, and Rapture spotlighted Harry’s awkwardly enticing spoken word bridge amid its funky dance club grooves. Doubters of the group’s rock credentials need only to hone in on heatsinkers One Way Or Another or Hanging In The Telephone, while Sunday Girl and I’m Always Touched By Your Presence Dear sound like salacious, long lost sixties pop gems. Although Blondie made several first-rate albums, most of their best songs were released as singles, which makes The Best Of Blondie an essential collection. The album glosses over their punk roots — very little from the first album, apart from the vicious “Rip Her To Shreds” and the seductive “In The Flesh” — but the band’s pop hits are among the finest of their era and encapsulate all of the virtues of new wave. Although their finest album Parallel Lines is an undisputed stand alone masterpiece, The Best Of Blondie proves to be an excellent introduction to one of the best new wave bands.

Track list:
1. Heart Of Glass-remix
2. Dreaming
3. The Tide Is High
4. In The Flesh
5. Sunday Girl
6. Hanging On The Telephone
7. Rapture
8. Denis
9. (I’m Always Touched By Your) Presence, Dear
10. Call Me (Theme From American Gigolo)
11. Atomic
12. Rip Her To Shreds