GENERALLY A BAND DETERMINED TO LOOK FORWARD, EVEN BLONDIE CAN’T HELP REVISITING THEIR PAST WHEN FACED WITH A LONG-PLANNED, GIGANTIC BOXSET MARKING THEIR IMPERIAL FIRST PHASE. WITH DEBBIE HARRY, CHRIS STEIN AND CLEM BURKE IN UNUSUALLY REFLECTIVE MOOD, THEY REVEAL THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN POP AND PUNK, HOW THEY COULD HAVE KEPT GOING LONGER – AND RUBBING SHOULDERS WITH ORSON WELLES…
JOHN EARLS
Initially scheduled for release four years ago, Blondie’s first major boxset, Against The Odds, is literally one of the biggest collections Classic Pop has ever encountered. Our postman hasn’t stopped scowling since having to lug it from the van. The set comprises 10 vinyl albums, two singles and two hardback books, with even the cardboard mailing parcel unique: it’s got a monochrome vintage photo of Debbie Harry stamped on the inside.
No wonder even Blondie’s usually deadpan guitarist Chris Stein is animated discussing the venture. “It looks amazing,” he enthuses. “I didn’t realise just how grand that boxset was going to be as a physical reality.” A pause, as Chris tries to think how to summarise the compendium of his band’s golden first phase. “It weighs 18 pounds,” the guitarist breathes, in the awed tones of a fisherman on his greatest catch. “It’s very impressive.”
However, Chris isn’t totally delirious when discussing the boxset compiling Blondie’s first eight years, when they went from trashy upstarts viewed as also-rans in New York’s thriving underground 70s scene to the most glamorous, sophisticated band of theirs and pretty much anyone else’s era, making a succession of stunning singles every bit as cool as their image. The press release for Against The Odds states that the boxset’s 50+ extra tracks were mostly sourced from demo tapes Chris had kept in his barn in upstate New York. It’s that info which Stein disputes. “I don’t know how the word ‘barn’ has got out there, I don’t have a barn: the tapes were in a garage next to my studio. In my eyes, a ‘barn’ is a much draughtier affair.”
It’s at this point that Debbie Harry joins proceedings. She’s missed the first two minutes of our conference call, because, well, she’s Debbie Harry. She’s warm, inquisitive about people and laughs a lot, a delighted and uncontrolled burst as infectious as her vocals. But also: you’re talking to Actual Debbie Harry. Don’t mess this up, now.
Debbie doesn’t introduce herself, instead immediately out
