This compilation from Blondie covers the gamut of their greatest hits from the early punk-pop days to disco/pop in the mid1980's.
Lasting from 1975-82, Blondie comprised Debbie Harry on vocals, Chris Stein, guitar and vocals, Frank Infante, guitar, Clem Burke drums, Nigel Harris on bass ... Read review
on Blondie's new wave dance hits than on their punk beginnings, songs like "Heart of Glass," "Dreaming," "The Tide Is High," and "Call Me" display the diverse musi...
A review by aspebbles on Best Of Blondie, The - Blondie March 22nd, 2006
Author's product rating:
Originality
Groundbreaking
Lyrics
Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks
A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases
Not applicable
Value for Money
Excellent
Advantages:
Collection of classy pop
Disadvantages:
Either you like Eighties revival or you don't
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
This compilation from Blondie covers the gamut of their greatest hits from the early punk-pop days to disco/pop in the mid1980's.
Lasting from 1975-82, Blondie comprised Debbie Harry on vocals, Chris Stein, guitar and vocals, Frank Infante, guitar, Clem Burke drums, Nigel Harris on bass and Jimmy Destry on keyboards. They were recently inducted into the USA Hall of Fame, but don't let that put you off.
~~ Backtracking Their best known albums are Parallel Lines (1978), from which the tracks Picture This, Sunday Girl and Heart of Glass are taken, and 'Eat to the Beat', from 1979, with Dreaming and Atomic.
During the mid to late 1980's, their singles experimented more with different styles, such as cross over rap. Debbie Harry's inspirational look, a mix of glamour and defiance and their outstanding music definitely influenced and inspired established artistes of today, such as Annie Lennox, Madonna, and more recently, Gwen Stefani.
~~ Songwriting Credits Apart from the following, most of the songs on this compilation were co-written by Debbie Harry and Chris Stein. 'Call Me' was co-written with Giogio Moroder, while The Tide is High is a cover of a song by John Holt. Denis was a cover of a 1960's song.
~~ Tracks 1. Heart Of Glass, 1981 2. Denis, 1981 3. The Tide Is High, 1980 4. In The Flesh 5. Sunday Girl, 1986 6. Dreaming 7. Hanging On The Telephone, 1978 8. Rapture 9. Picture This, 1978 10. Union City Blue, 1979 11. I'm Always Touched (By Your Presence, Dear) 1978 12. Call Me, 1980 13. Atomic, 1979 14. Rip Her To Shreds, 1977
Heart of Glass was a seminal disco hit, which combined the freshness of New Wave with disco, combining 2 opposing elements of pop music at the time. Both this track and Atomic were also originally released in a 12" single format, which was innovative at the time, and in various remix versions. The version of Heart of Glass here is quite long, and if you are interested, try to check out extended versions of other tracks.
The only mainstream hit not included on this compilation is French Kissing in the USA , a hit from later in 1986, and frankly, you are not missing a whole keep, although it was not a bad song.
Most are short, fairly punchy pop songs, with intelligent lyrics, but there are some sweeter, softer numbers thrown into the mix. In the Flesh that as far as I can recall did not make the Top 30. Rip Her to Shreds is the most punky song here, and my favourite is probably track 11, I'm Always Touched (By Your Presence, Dear), pretty funky and danceable.
Denis is a cover and slight reworking of a 1963 American hit, which sounds like a teenage high school number, but was a massive chart hit on both sides of the Atlantic. Rapture and Union City Blue are later experiements with different styles of music, including rap.
I have checked out other Greatest Hits packages for Blondie, and this seems the most comprehensive. Price: around £9.00 .
Advantages: Brilliant album, one of Brians favourites Disadvantages: Something to remember Brian by
...their cd collection doesn?t contain one of her albums. Debbie was born in 1945 in Florida, and her original group ?Blondie? was formed back in 1974.
The band consisted of Debbie Harry (Vocalist), Chris Stein (Guitarist), Clem Burke (Drummer) and Jimmy Destri (Keyboard player) who joined in 1975.
Their first number one US hit was ?Heart Of Glass? which sold over a million copies in the UK. And she continued to storm up the charts well into the eighties. She was quite a sensation and added to the fact she was glamorous, blonde and a bonnie lass she captured the hearts of the male population, posters adorned teenage bedroom walls as she radiated popularity and success. With a clean-cut image she knew how to sock it to the music industry and became a permanent fixture over two decades in the charts.
The Complete Picture: The Best...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Variety, great songs Disadvantages: None
...The Very Best of Blondie & Deborah Harry is a showcase for the versatile vocal talents of Debbie Harry, whose career has now spanned three decades. This album has twenty tracks on it, ranging from the very early Rip Her To Shreds from 1977 to Well Did You Evah ! - the strange duet with Iggy Pop of the Cole Porter song released in 1990. There are many different kinds of songs on here, from pure rock through pop to beautiful ballads. In my opinion, all twenty of the tracks are great ones, although my favourite would probably be Rapture. This proves that Blondie's music is timeless & Deborah Harry will always be a goddess to me....
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Good Tracks Disadvantages: Does Not Include Title Theme Track
...Sugar Rush is one of the best programmes to come out of England in the last few years. It has a brilliant cast, storyline and soundtrack. Each track has been picked perfectly to support the scene in which it is used.
The album has 19 tracks and includes songs fom Jet - Are you gonna be my girl and Sugababes - Nasty Ghetto. Sugar Rush uses songs from different types of music and it is because of Sugar Rush that I discovered the amazing Blondie. Unfortunately the title theme of the programme, Blondie's One Way or Another is not on the album which in my opinion is one of the best tracks selected by Sugar Rush.
Normally I find songs in the background or just the songs playing annoying, but Sugar Rush is an exception as I have enjoyed most of the tracks they used....
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful
Album Notes: Blondie: Debbie Harry (vocals); Chris Stein, Frank Infante (guitar); Jimmy Destri (keyboards); Nigel Harrison (bass); Clem Burke (drums). Producers: Mike Chapman, Richard Gottehrer, Giorgio Moroder. Recorded between 1977 & 1981. An excellent 1981 singles compilation, BEST OF BLONDIE is possibly the best introduction to this legendary New York new wave powerhouse. Fans of the band have long complained that the collection contains none of the band's album tracks, which were usually funnier, weirder and more experimental than their singles, but Blondie were first and foremost a singles band. From their glorious first single "X Offender" (unfortunately not included here), Debbie Harry, Chris Stein and company instinctively understood both the medium of the seven-inch single and the glories of Top 40 radio, and their releases were smart, catchy, tough, sexy pop-rock of the highest caliber. From edgy classics like "Rip Her To Shreds" and "One Way or Another," through sunny pop pastiches like "Sunday Girl" and "Dreaming," to the genre experiments "Heart of Glass," "The Tide Is High," and "Rapture," these 12 songs are as good as singles got during this era.
Titles on disc 1
1.: Heart Of Glass
2.: Denis, Dreaming
3.: Tide Is High
4.: In The Flesh
5.: Sunday Girl
6.: Dreaming, Hanging On The Telephone
7.: Hanging On The Telephone, Rapture
8.: Rapture, One Way Or Another
9.: Picture This, I'm Always Touched By Your Presence Dear
10.: Union City Blue, Call Me
11.: I'm Always Touched By Your Presence Dear, Atomic
12.: Call Me, Rip Her To Shreds
13.: Atomic, Denis
14.: Rip Her To Shreds, Picture This
15.: Union City Blue
Ciao
Listed on Ciao since : 22/03/2006
Compare Best Of Blondie, The - Blondie to other similar Rock & Pop
![101 [SACD] - Depeche Mode](http://imagesa.ciao.com/iuk/images/products/small/598/101_SACD_Depeche_Mode__43598.jpg)
![Hounds Of Love [Remastered] - Kate Bush](http://imagesa.ciao.com/iuk/images/products/small/912/Hounds_Of_Love_Remastered_Kate_Bush__6019912.jpg)
![Appetite For Destruction [PA] - Guns N' Roses](http://imagesb.ciao.com/iuk/images/products/small/237/Appetite_For_Destruction_Guns_N_Roses__44237.jpg)
![River Is Wide, The [Remastered] - Forum (The)](http://imagesb.ciao.com/iuk/images/products/small/251/River_Is_Wide_The_Remastered_Forum_The__6006251.jpg)
This product has not yet been reviewed. 
12.02.2003
16.07.2000
21.04.2007
