Blondie: From Punk To The Present: A Pictorial History

Unless you were around for the original punk rock blitz of the '70s, it’s hard to think of Debbie Harry as anything but the icily beautiful figure in early MTV videos. Blondie: From Punk To the Present ,a hefty 500 plus page volume traces the band’s history from the mid-70s to 2002, and contains interviews, fan drawings, photos, album reviews and material culled from a variety of sources. The interviews included will give a sense of history and place to younger fans, those only familiar wit the music and not with the chronology. Arranged in a historical timeline, with entries from infamous punkzine New York Rocker, High Times magazine, Salon.com, fanzines and assorted newspaper reviews of concerts and albums, this book provides every bit of info you ever want to know about Debbie Harry and Blondie. All the Madonnas, Britneys, Xtinas and Kylies of the world owe their images, in part to Debbie Harry. Debbie first cross-breed the tough girl and the sex kitten, andher imprint bore none of the crassness or pre-packaged media manipulation of many of her sucessors.

Although her brief film career is not covered in a separate section, there is a cornucopia of Blondie is a band info. Most telling is the interview she did with music critic Victor Bockris for High Times. This interview contains the famous quote ‘The only people that can express anything that hasn’t been expressed in rock ‘n’ roll are fags and girls.” Other interviews included in this anthology are from the 1980 TV program Kids Are People, Too and a 1997 interview with Musician magazine about working with The Jazz Passengers. There is also a section on the roots of New York punk, as well as interviews with other band members (i.e. Clem Burke interviewed by Modern Drummer in 1999.)

Blondie’s 1999 album No Exit is well represented with reviews and accompanying articles from the time of the record’s release. Even Debbie’s recent solo appearances, (poetry readings, New York’s Wigstock are included. The photographs scattered throughout the book will give older fans memories a jolt and let younger fans a glimpse of one of rock’s first enduring female icons. The photo of Debbie, Chrissie Hyde and Viv Albertine of the Slits is a reminder of the days when female rockers were the rule, not the exception. For fans of Blondie or students of rock music history, this book is a valuable resource. It’s a bit steep at $35.00 list, but it’s doubtful you’ll need another book about Debbie Harry and Blondie after purchasing this one, at least until Debbie writes her autobiography.

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