Blondie
As first of the New Wave bands to be commercially significant (you never saw the Sex Pistols on The Mike Douglas Show, right?), Blondie herewith reinforces its position. The title tune and tracks like Living in the Real World still feature the relentless garage-band primitive beat, but lead vocalist Deborah Harry works through a range of styles including mainstream rock'n'roll. On Die Young Stay Pretty (co-written by Harry and her guitarist boyfriend, Chris Stein), she flirts with reggae; on the ballad Shayla she lets loose Patti Smith style. There's even a screamer and a lullaby. Produced with more care than Parallel Lines, its breakthrough LP, the band's sound is less raw but still fresh. Everyone seems to have as much fun as when Blondie was more cultivating the we're-weird-wanna-make-something-of-it image.
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