ONE POLL OR ANOTHER - ILM Artist Poll #83 - BLONDIE

Destri their best songwriter: consistently interesting.

The biggest prima donna in the band too, by most accounts.

Underrated Blondie album cut: "Bermuda Triangle Blues (Flight 45)," from Plastic Letters.

I make no apologies for including two-thirds of Parallel Lines on my ballot. Great songs across the first four records, but that one is the classic for a reason.

"Poets Problem"

Good old "unique b-side"

Oh, and "Platinum Blonde", "Puerto Rica" and "Thin Line".

I don't recall "Thin Line" I have to say..

So I've went on a Blondie listening spree today in preparation for this poll, and I'm up to The Hunter now... fucking hell, what a weird record.

If you post the French lyrics from "Sunday Girl" as they're presented on the Lyricswiki site into Google Translate, you get something amazing for the final chorus:

Dé pê che-toi, dé pê che-toi et attends
Toute la semaine absent et pourtant j'attends
J'ai le cafard, je t'en prie viens voir
ce que ton amour repré sente pour moi
I got the Blues

Go fishing, go fishing and wait
All week absent and yet I wait
I have the cockroach, please come see
What your love represents for me
I got the blues

Underrated Blondie album cut: "Bermuda Triangle Blues (Flight 45)," from Plastic Letters.

― some sad trombone Twilight Zone shit (cryptosicko), Monday, June 26, 2017 8:34 PM (two days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yes! Will definitely have this one high on my ballot.

I haven't heard the bilingual 'Sunday Girl' since the very early '90s - must check that out again, I'd forgotten about it!

having fun listening to their catalog. the singles are just so good, hoping that my final ballot won't be overboard with them.

btw it was mocked at the time but I liked and still enjoy No Exit, which has at least two cuts ("Maria," "Nothing is Real But the Girl," and maybe "Under the Gun") I'm seriously considering.

No Exit was mocked? I don't remember that, but I do remember "Maria" being almost universally praised.

Lots of "lol Coolio."

"Maria" did get to #1 in England.

"Boom Boom in the Zoom Zoom Room" and that dog song way more LOLable than the Coolio guest spot.

No Exit was my sort-of entry point into Blondie back in '99, in that I already knew/loved a bunch of their singles, but it finally goaded me into checking out their back catalogue. It ain't perfect (see above), but I have a lot of affection for it, and will probably include at least 3 tracks from it on my ballot.

I don't have any time for nu-Blondie. I heard 'Maria' played to death as a hit single at the time and that was more than enough.

For sure "Maria" is going where "The Tide is High" is supposed to on my ballot.

Tide Is High is the only song on the first 5 albums I actively dislike.

I never want to hear it again.

which are the fan-favourites that aren't singles/big hits? 11:59 and Slow Motion have a strong following if memory serves.

"Just Go Away," "Angels on the Balcony," "Fade Away and Radiate"

I also loathe 'The Tide Is High'

gonna bump it up one place on my ballot each time someone slams it

'I Know But I Don't Know' and 'Live It Up' also two underrated moments in their back catalogue.

I still like "The Tide is High," but I'm sick to death of "One Way or Another."

I'm sick of all the PL singles except "Sunday Girl" and "Picture This" (which weren't American singles).

I will never tire of "Heart of Glass." I still like "Hanging on the Telephone" if it catches me on a good day.

Hanging has my favorite nothing drum fill ever.

Bang-bang-bom-bom, Bang-bang-bom-bom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caX7ZyrAn38

^ Check out the lousy vibe in this clip.

exhausted and liquored out

I love clips like this. There's something compelling about watching a band that are on the slide and hate each other.

The strange part was that they were coming off Aotoamerican, their biggest American album.

Autoamerican was a hit? It's kind of hard to imagine, as its such an odd (and I would argue, unsuccessful) record. I imagine record stores at the time having a lot of "the rest of it doesn't sound like["The Tide is High"/"Rapture"] type complains/returns.

two #1 US hits, album went to #7

man, I had no idea there was an 8:06 version of "Call Me"

Sunday Girl and Picture This weren't American singles? never knew this!

the vinyl back cover of 'our' Best Of Blondie looked like this

https://img.discogs.com/B8EW3B07QquXAsfssnN-Dei4nYw=/fit-in/600x600/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-246364-1374135694-9937.jpeg.jpg

while the US one looked like this

https://img.discogs.com/ztRufGrU88jJUX2AUawjYrNqZOs=/fit-in/600x592/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-162581-1356861432-2055.jpeg.jpg

eat to the beat : back in the day my parents got a sony betamax video machine.
it was the future, despite having nothing to watch on it.
then someone lent/gave us a video album by blondie : a visual representation of 'eat to the beat'.
i f*cking loved that video.
many years later, it became available on a cd/dvd set that i somehow was sent.
guess i should dig the dvd out and watch it again.

anyone watched this lately?

― piscesx

ahh .. different cover, but same groove.

I kinda lump the original run of Blondie LP's into pairs: Blondie & Plastic Letters obviously come from the same place, as do Parallel Lines & Eat to the Beat, with Autoamerican & The Hunter being some kind of attempt at branching out.

man, I had no idea there was an 8:06 version of "Call Me"

― sleeve, Thursday, June 29, 2017 9:21 PM (six minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yup, there is and it fucking rules! My preferred version by a long way. There's also a longer version, iirc.

Eat To The Beat must have been the first video-album. or one of the first few. there weren't too many i guess. i know Soft Cell had a stab at one, Eurythmics too.

Eat To The Beat must have been the first video-album. or one of the first few. there weren't too many i guess. i know Soft Cell had a stab at one, Eurythmics too.

― piscesx,

as sputnik said : "welcome to the future .. "

The Tide is High >>> Rapture

though i don't think TTiH is going to make my ballot because of over exposer.

been having a blast listening to this band this week. haven't even replayed Parallel Lines but i know that album inside and out. close to every song from there will probably make it.

I'M YOUR DOG
BUT NOT YOUR PET
AWOOOOOOO

"Scenery" is a nifty obscure Blondie demo... I think this might sneak onto my ballot. I'd forgotten it, but I first heard it on that "Blonde & Beyond" comp from the early 90s. Along with "X Offender" and "Presence, Dear," it really make me wish Gary Valentine had written more songs for the band...

The Tide is High >>> Rapture

I rarely fp people, but you're testing me.

Fan Mail has a shot at being my number one, as far as favs that weren't hits go.

i always seem to have the wrong pick so many of my selections, so this is more par for the norm for me. this is why i love ILM, where i can find some like souls and the board delivers again and again.

xpost

^^^ A+