You guys are right. It’s not easy picking only two albums. I decided to go with a band in contention for my fave of all-time and its legendary singer. Both of these discs will, hopefully, provide a cohesive listening experience, as the energy and style on each are similar in a lot of ways. If you’ve heard one or both of them already, maybe this thread will provoke you to revisit them again and reassess your opinion.
My links take you to Lala, but both albums are also available on iTunes, Rhapsody, and Amazon Mp3.
Blondie - Eat to the Beat (1979)
How do you follow up one of the greatest albums of the ‘70s and the New Wave era (Parallel Lines)? You keep what worked and dive into new territory at the same time. To accomplish that is no easy feat, but Blondie take the extraordinary pop songcraft paramount on Parallel Lines and juice it up to the core, all the while adding a plethora of sonic textures, aluminum-tight backbeats, and cascading arrangements. This album defies categorization. Sure, you’ve got the power-pop numbers (‘Dreaming’, ‘Union City Blue’, ‘Shayla’, ‘Sound-A-Sleep’), the disco-charged juggernaut ‘Atomic’, the dance-fueled Jamaican bomb-rush of ‘Die Young Stay Pretty’ and ‘Slow Motion’, and the pure punk ecstasy found in ‘Eat to the Beat’, ‘Victor’, and ‘Living in the Real World’. But when you begin to absorb the intricate elements on display, it baffles the mind just what the band has accomplished musically---so efficiently, effortlessly, with sass and rapturous attitude to spare. It’s an album that makes me wish I were old enough to witness the band at the height of their powers.
Deborah Harry’s vocals have never been better. Her angelic singing on ‘Shayla’ gives me the goosebumps each and every time. The notes she hits on ‘Union City Blue’ is one for the history books. I love the way she plays the pin-up doll on ‘Slow Motion’, sexily slinking away with a bouncy backbone, then screams her insides away on the pulverizing ‘Victor’. Harry could stand head-and-shoulders with any of her peers, male or female. That’s what I always loved about her. She wasn’t just trying to project some artificial image to keep her funds going. This was a gal who understood that to be a rock star you had to earn the status first and foremost. Harry also realized that to be in a great rock band you have to allow your bandmates to take equal spotlight. Drummer Clem Burke, guitarists Chris Stein and Frank Infante, and bassist Nigel Harrison all deliver their parts like a well-oiled machine. There’s no way I could write this and not mention the extremely underrated Jimmy Destri, who is the band’s keyboardist and co-wrote and arranged many of the band’s best songs, including ‘Slow Motion’, ‘Atomic’, and ‘Living in the Real World’ from this album, and great tunes like ‘Look Good in Blue’ (from their self-titled debut), ‘Detroit 442’ (from Plastic Letters), ‘11:59’ (from Parallel Lines), ‘Angels on the Balcony’ (from Autoamerican), ‘Danceway’ (by far the best tune on The Hunter), and ‘Maria’ (the only tune from No Exit that can stand up to their classic era).
One of my Desert Island albums? Oh hell yes.
Deborah (Debbie) Harry - Rockbird (1986)
Ah, the solo album. An association that doesn’t always reap up the most positive feelings. A lot of times, expectations play a role in deciding the success of such a project, especially one involving a lead singer from a band that literally changed the culture of music forever. While I chose a Deborah Harry solo album as my companion piece, I want the merits of the actual album to stand on their own when diving into the material.
I kept going back and forth about whether I should choose Harry’s first solo album, 1981’s Koo Koo, or this one. I love ‘em both for very different reasons, but I chose Rockbird for the juxtaposition with Eat to the Beat stylistically.
This is one of my fave album covers of all-time, not only because of the photo, but since it represents the music so amazingly well. In essence, what you see (hear) is what you get. You can judge this book by its cover. What’s so special about Rockbird is its simplicity---the direct hooks, bubblegum orchestration, candy-coated production, and most of all, Harry’s willingness to let it all loose and have some fun. It’s an album of its time, no doubt, but it hasn’t aged terribly, unlike the majority of Madonna’s early catalogue. Where there could be campiness, in its place is a keen awareness of how to produce songs with vitality and a retro mania.
If you dig ‘The Hardest Part’, ‘Accidents Never Happen’, ‘Die Young Stay Pretty’, ‘Slow Motion’, and the title track off of Eat to the Beat, I think you’ll find much to love on Rockbird. Like those tunes, the songs function around a robust coating, where the idea is to assault the need for immediate gratification. Opener ‘I Want You’ gets the ball rolling with a keyboard crunch-blast, thanks to producer Seth Justman’s proficient technique (he used to be the keyboardist for the J. Geils Band, and co-wrote many of their songs). And speaking of keyboards, the way they are used on ‘Secret Life’ will have you pogoing instantaneously. Justman’s involvement adds a muscular aggression to the majority of the album, especially on tunes like ‘Buckle Up’, ‘You Got Me In Trouble’, and the title track. The closest thing to a ballad is ‘Free to Fall’, but I use that word loosely, as once the chorus kicks in Harry sings it with a fierceness usually reserved for the rockers. And the soft-loud percussion arrangement gives the song a fullness and power that works really well. The album is packed with layered vocals that add dimension and richness to the songwriting, and also reaffirm the sensuality of Harry’s voice. ‘French Kissin’’ is an obvious example. Of course, what would a Deborah Harry album be without some disco-tinged number? ‘Beyond the Limit’, co-written by Chic’s Nile Rodgers, fills the void.
Rockbird is proof that an entire album can be fueled by energy and attitude alone. This is essential feel-good music, and few albums I’ve personally heard can make it all sound so damn fun and everlasting like Rockbird successfully does.
As as addendum, I’d also recommend Koo Koo and her third solo album, ’89’s Def, Dumb and Blonde, considered by many fans to be her best solo album. I might agree with that---the return of producer Mike Chapman (who produced all of Blondie’s biggest albums, including Parallel Lines and Eat to the Beat) certainly plays a crucial role. And the variety on display is impeccable. There’s some solid, rockin’ stuff on her fifth release, ’07’s Necessary Evil, though it’s too long for its own good. Its eclecticism is so magnetic I can even live with the mushy ballads. And you might be thunderstruck by just how fresh and modern it sounds. Superior to both of Blondie’s reunion albums, ’99’s No Exit and ’03’s The Curse of Blondie (though I think I’ve underrated the latter for awhile now...I’m lovin’ it more and more nowadays), and ’82’s The Hunter, for that matter. Oh, and avoid ’93’s Debravation like the plague, by far the worst studio album of Harry’s career, Blondie or solo. The material’s lifeless and cheesy, and Harry sounds like she’s bored and going through the motions (well, ‘Standing in My Way’ is good, but the rest is a mess). It’s the only Harry-related studio album that I don’t own.
I hope you enjoy both picks.
My links take you to Lala, but both albums are also available on iTunes, Rhapsody, and Amazon Mp3.
Blondie - Eat to the Beat (1979)
How do you follow up one of the greatest albums of the ‘70s and the New Wave era (Parallel Lines)? You keep what worked and dive into new territory at the same time. To accomplish that is no easy feat, but Blondie take the extraordinary pop songcraft paramount on Parallel Lines and juice it up to the core, all the while adding a plethora of sonic textures, aluminum-tight backbeats, and cascading arrangements. This album defies categorization. Sure, you’ve got the power-pop numbers (‘Dreaming’, ‘Union City Blue’, ‘Shayla’, ‘Sound-A-Sleep’), the disco-charged juggernaut ‘Atomic’, the dance-fueled Jamaican bomb-rush of ‘Die Young Stay Pretty’ and ‘Slow Motion’, and the pure punk ecstasy found in ‘Eat to the Beat’, ‘Victor’, and ‘Living in the Real World’. But when you begin to absorb the intricate elements on display, it baffles the mind just what the band has accomplished musically---so efficiently, effortlessly, with sass and rapturous attitude to spare. It’s an album that makes me wish I were old enough to witness the band at the height of their powers.
Deborah Harry’s vocals have never been better. Her angelic singing on ‘Shayla’ gives me the goosebumps each and every time. The notes she hits on ‘Union City Blue’ is one for the history books. I love the way she plays the pin-up doll on ‘Slow Motion’, sexily slinking away with a bouncy backbone, then screams her insides away on the pulverizing ‘Victor’. Harry could stand head-and-shoulders with any of her peers, male or female. That’s what I always loved about her. She wasn’t just trying to project some artificial image to keep her funds going. This was a gal who understood that to be a rock star you had to earn the status first and foremost. Harry also realized that to be in a great rock band you have to allow your bandmates to take equal spotlight. Drummer Clem Burke, guitarists Chris Stein and Frank Infante, and bassist Nigel Harrison all deliver their parts like a well-oiled machine. There’s no way I could write this and not mention the extremely underrated Jimmy Destri, who is the band’s keyboardist and co-wrote and arranged many of the band’s best songs, including ‘Slow Motion’, ‘Atomic’, and ‘Living in the Real World’ from this album, and great tunes like ‘Look Good in Blue’ (from their self-titled debut), ‘Detroit 442’ (from Plastic Letters), ‘11:59’ (from Parallel Lines), ‘Angels on the Balcony’ (from Autoamerican), ‘Danceway’ (by far the best tune on The Hunter), and ‘Maria’ (the only tune from No Exit that can stand up to their classic era).
One of my Desert Island albums? Oh hell yes.
Deborah (Debbie) Harry - Rockbird (1986)
Ah, the solo album. An association that doesn’t always reap up the most positive feelings. A lot of times, expectations play a role in deciding the success of such a project, especially one involving a lead singer from a band that literally changed the culture of music forever. While I chose a Deborah Harry solo album as my companion piece, I want the merits of the actual album to stand on their own when diving into the material.
I kept going back and forth about whether I should choose Harry’s first solo album, 1981’s Koo Koo, or this one. I love ‘em both for very different reasons, but I chose Rockbird for the juxtaposition with Eat to the Beat stylistically.
This is one of my fave album covers of all-time, not only because of the photo, but since it represents the music so amazingly well. In essence, what you see (hear) is what you get. You can judge this book by its cover. What’s so special about Rockbird is its simplicity---the direct hooks, bubblegum orchestration, candy-coated production, and most of all, Harry’s willingness to let it all loose and have some fun. It’s an album of its time, no doubt, but it hasn’t aged terribly, unlike the majority of Madonna’s early catalogue. Where there could be campiness, in its place is a keen awareness of how to produce songs with vitality and a retro mania.
If you dig ‘The Hardest Part’, ‘Accidents Never Happen’, ‘Die Young Stay Pretty’, ‘Slow Motion’, and the title track off of Eat to the Beat, I think you’ll find much to love on Rockbird. Like those tunes, the songs function around a robust coating, where the idea is to assault the need for immediate gratification. Opener ‘I Want You’ gets the ball rolling with a keyboard crunch-blast, thanks to producer Seth Justman’s proficient technique (he used to be the keyboardist for the J. Geils Band, and co-wrote many of their songs). And speaking of keyboards, the way they are used on ‘Secret Life’ will have you pogoing instantaneously. Justman’s involvement adds a muscular aggression to the majority of the album, especially on tunes like ‘Buckle Up’, ‘You Got Me In Trouble’, and the title track. The closest thing to a ballad is ‘Free to Fall’, but I use that word loosely, as once the chorus kicks in Harry sings it with a fierceness usually reserved for the rockers. And the soft-loud percussion arrangement gives the song a fullness and power that works really well. The album is packed with layered vocals that add dimension and richness to the songwriting, and also reaffirm the sensuality of Harry’s voice. ‘French Kissin’’ is an obvious example. Of course, what would a Deborah Harry album be without some disco-tinged number? ‘Beyond the Limit’, co-written by Chic’s Nile Rodgers, fills the void.
Rockbird is proof that an entire album can be fueled by energy and attitude alone. This is essential feel-good music, and few albums I’ve personally heard can make it all sound so damn fun and everlasting like Rockbird successfully does.
As as addendum, I’d also recommend Koo Koo and her third solo album, ’89’s Def, Dumb and Blonde, considered by many fans to be her best solo album. I might agree with that---the return of producer Mike Chapman (who produced all of Blondie’s biggest albums, including Parallel Lines and Eat to the Beat) certainly plays a crucial role. And the variety on display is impeccable. There’s some solid, rockin’ stuff on her fifth release, ’07’s Necessary Evil, though it’s too long for its own good. Its eclecticism is so magnetic I can even live with the mushy ballads. And you might be thunderstruck by just how fresh and modern it sounds. Superior to both of Blondie’s reunion albums, ’99’s No Exit and ’03’s The Curse of Blondie (though I think I’ve underrated the latter for awhile now...I’m lovin’ it more and more nowadays), and ’82’s The Hunter, for that matter. Oh, and avoid ’93’s Debravation like the plague, by far the worst studio album of Harry’s career, Blondie or solo. The material’s lifeless and cheesy, and Harry sounds like she’s bored and going through the motions (well, ‘Standing in My Way’ is good, but the rest is a mess). It’s the only Harry-related studio album that I don’t own.
I hope you enjoy both picks.
