Classic Album #15 - Blondie - Parallel Lines

[smokeyb]

Parallel Lines is the third studio album by American new wave band Blondie, released in September 1978 . The album reached #1 in the UK in February 1979 and proved to be the band's commercial breakthrough in the USA, where it reached #6 in April 1979. As of 2008, the album had sold over 20 million copies worldwide.

The album was produced by Mike Chapman.

Having bought their previous album “ Plastic Letters” the year before I couldn’t wait to hear their new album when it was released, I remember buying it on its release. Was I excited....you bet. I was one of those sad chaps that had a picture of Debbie on my wall, the shame I know, well I was young.

I chose this album as it was my favourite album for a few years from '79 till I heard Dare by the Human League.


Side 1
1. "Hanging on the Telephone" (The Nerves cover)   Jack Lee   2:17
2. "One Way or Another"    Deborah Harry, Nigel Harrison   3:31
3. "Picture This"    Harry, Chris Stein, Jimmy Destri   2:53
4. "Fade Away and Radiate"    Stein  3:57
5. "Pretty Baby"   Harry, Stein  3:16
6. "I Know But I Don't Know"    Frank Infante   3:53

Side 2
7. "11:59"    Destri 3:19
8. "Will Anything Happen?"    Jack Lee 2:55
9. "Sunday Girl"   Stein   3:01
10. "Heart of Glass"    Harry, Stein   3:54
11. "I'm Gonna Love You Too" (Buddy Holly cover)   Joe B. Mauldin, Niki Sullivan, Norman Petty  2:03
12. "Just Go Away"   Harry   3:21

Blondie were:

• Deborah Harry – vocals
• Chris Stein – guitar, 12-string guitar, E-bow
• Clem Burke – drums
• Jimmy Destri – electronic keyboards
• Nigel Harrison – bass guitar
• Frank Infante – guitar





www.youtube.com/watch?v=qScghpoVX30


By sheer coincidence BBC 4 showed this documentary on Friday of the making of the album, link below:

www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b04fmgkb/blondies-new-york-and-the-making-of-parallel-lines

[o]

Brilliant, you know what, I was going to choose this album if it was my turn!
I love the singles and the documentary was very interesting, not sure about the non singles though, so will enjoy listening to it when I am finished with the Velvet Underground.

[vastar iner]

By another sheer coincidence I've just bought a biography of Blondie from The Works for six quid. I might even get to read it in a few years' time.

[thehitparade]

For some reason I thought we'd already done this one? Clearly not though.

[Shireblogger]

Oh good. A nice choice.

[Deleted]

My second favourite their album after a debut.

[vastar iner]

So, 1979. The sense of fun that rock and pop had in the early seventies had been replaced by the achingly artificial and the dully mediocre. Then punk came and wiped the slate clean. What would be the next big thing? Well, surely a mix of the best of everything? A touch of punk, a soupçon of pop, a dash of disco and a hint of new wave.

It probably wasn’t expected from the depths of the Bowery though. CBGB’s had been famous for its somewhat leftfield bands; Television, Talking Heads, Ramones, Cramps. Uncompromisingly uncommercial, intermittently arty the sound of the streets of Noo Yoik, very in yer face, take us or leave us. Too elite for the masses. They were Warhol in music.

Blondie was another one of these. A meaningful name; subverting the stereotype with that subtle hint of Nazi chic. Their first single was upfront. “X Offender”. Fantasising about abuse. Plus others in that vein. “Rip Her To Shreds”. Does what it says on the tin. And finally a breakthrough - in Britain, always more open to punk novelties, rather than in their Captain & Tennille-obsessed homeland - with a jaunty cover.

So then. That difficult third album.

Phone rings.

And SHOUT. Right there. Debbie Harry. Driving shouty punky pop. A hint of stalkerish menace. Rising to that howl of agonizing detestation at the end. Wow. What a start. And then we’re straight into a level set of chords that descends to a new level before the drums. If the last one was stalkerish, “One Way Or Another” takes it to another dimension. “I’m gonna get ya.” It’s gone from pleading to murderous. Even Deb’s voice has lowered an octave, from despair to despise. And finishes off with a mania. Almost a rallentando.

So it’s time for a change of pace. A paean to masturbation. Not the sort of thing you expect from a blonde sweetheart. Watching someone shower. Wanting a picture. But what a chorus. Barely possible to follow it. Fantastic keyboards, Bjorkesque wailing. An epic of crescendo - and the song’s not even close to being over. It keeps on with further apices and peaks.

Wow wow wow.

And another change of pace. Even slower, Heavier, more synthy. The lyrics match the electric theme. Beams, dreams. Before we go to something more, well…Beach Boys. “Pretty Baby”, about Brooke Shields, but, my God, this is absolutely, utterly, glorious. Blondie hit the perfect pop beat more than any other group, perhaps ever, and this is one of their absolute best.

“I Know But I Don’t Know” is the only duff track so far; filler rather than killer. Picks up with “11:59”, which is a bizarre one; sci-fi? Before we go to more fundamental runaway punk. The songs are largely just that; they are songs. Which sounds obvious, but the point is they stand or fall on their own merits, not as being part of a coherent whole. What’s interesting is they sound fresh, but basic, in that the tech of those days did not allow for the sort of complex production techniques of today; these are down to sheer playing.

Which bears fruit with “Sunday Girl” and “Heart Of Glass”, the former conventional, the latter more disco; the former with sympathy, the latter with seduction. But there’s some lovely guitar work on HOG, especially in the chorus, subtle, background, distant echoes. So obviously hit singles, perhaps they felt guilty, as “Heart Of Glass” is followed by something more straight up bubblegum punk, very garage-y in its chorus. Before something a bit more straightforwardly punk again.

Wow.

Wow indeed.

To rate this as an album is different to the ones before, because this is like a greatest hits; a series of individual songs. It’s difficult to carry off. There are usually a couple of poor fillers on any album, an experiment gone wrong perhaps or some sort of jam session. This only has one. I can’t think of many albums of that sort with that percentage of non-vaspod-skippability. You’re basically looking at the oeuvre of Altered Images or The Pipettes. Ahead even of The Beach Boys. Despite that one poor track, it aimed for the stars and reached them. I have to give it top of the shop. 10 out of 10.

And their greatest single was yet to come.

No wonder I never got Madonna. I'd already seen someone whose shoes Ms Ciccione is not fit to lick.

[Shireblogger]

Blondie – Parallel Lines

Context
1981’s “The Best Of Blondie” is my all-time most played album, partly because it is brilliant, and partly because there was a significant period when it was one of only 4 albums that I owned. Following Blondie’s early 80s demise, the CD market was flooded with cheap and nasty compilations, and a proper CD release of their original albums was a long time coming. And when I finally listened to them, I initially preferred “Eat To The Beat” to “Parallel Lines”. I’ve since modified my opinion.
8/10

General Overview
The majority of the tracks on “Parallel Lines” are superb, and the band could easily have culled 5th and 6th singles from it, had they been so minded. It has an immediacy, nothing goes on too long, and there is sufficient variety to maintain attention.
9/10

Intro & Outro
Two rings on the trimphone, and we’re away with a classic paean to a failed romance. Blondie made this cover version their own, and its fits perfectly at the start of the LP. At the other end, “Just Go Away” sounds like a compromise, allowing the band to indulge their new wave sensibilities, when it is clear to almost everyone else that they should focus on the mainstream.
7/10

Music
Clem Burke is the unsung hero of Blondie. His intricate drum patterns, sometimes double-tracked, propel the songs along, bringing energy and a framework that the others can hang from. Whilst the band was Stein and Harry’s, Burke was the magic ingredient which made it work so well. “Parallel Lines” was the first album recorded by the classic line-up, and Destri, Harrison and Infante all make valuable contributions, demonstrating why too many cooks do not always spoil the broth. Five of the band members take songwriting credits, with only Burke unluckily missing out.
9/10

Lyrics
To an impressionable 11 year-old, the lyrics were mind blowing. To a slightly more worldly 40-something, they still conjure fabulous images. “I know a girl from a lonely street, cold as ice cream but still as sweet”. “Lost inside adorable illusion”. “Electric faces seem to merge, hidden voices mock your words”. And, of course, “I will give you my finest hour; the one I spent watching you shower”. I shudder to think how many fantasies Deborah unlocked with that couplet.
9/10

Production & Sound
Here lies the dichotomy of “Parallel Lines”. On the one hand, the appointment of glam legend Mike Chapman as producer was a masterstroke, turning Blondie from another New York new wave band with a couple of catchy singles, into the planet’s biggest pop-rock band. There is no doubt at all that it was Chapman’s influence behind the desk that made the album what it is – just listen to the early versions of “The Disco Song” aka “Once I Had A Love” which appear on the re-issued CDs, and compare them to the finished article, “Heart Of Glass”. But the album still feels a little rushed, with a couple of the tracks (“Pretty Baby”, “Will Anything Happen”) not given the studio time they deserved. The remixes of “Heart Of Glass” and “Sunday Girl” (by Chapman) which appear on “The Best Of Blondie” are richer and more vibrant than the #1 singles and album cuts, which just goes to show how dynamic this could have been if they’d taken another couple of months.
9/10

High Points
“Heart Of Glass”, of course. Landing in exactly the right place between disco, new wave, and adult pop. No wonder it sold a million, without any gimmicks or unusual promotion. The Buddy Holly cover “I’m Gonna Love You Too” is another favourite of mine. I could list almost every track as a high point, but I’ll stop here.
10/10

Low Points
None. As I’ve already said, a couple of songs fall a little short of the benchmark, but they aren’t really low points.
7/10

Packaging
Another classic cover. One which caused some tension in the band, apparently, with the guys all cheesily grinning into the lens, whilst Deborah, hands on hips, pouts and smoulders. Unmistakeable, and the perfect accompaniment to the music contained within.
10/10

On balance
It’s a great album. Four tremendous singles, and another four tracks which could easily have been singles. It says plenty that One Direction’s best release is a cover of one of the cuts which failed to get a 7” issue in Britain.
8/10

TOTAL SCORE
Once I had a love, and it was divine.
86/100.

For Haven:
8.5/10

[raliverpool]

Formed in the Mid 1970s out of the new New York rock underground scene around Max's Kansas City and CBGB within Manhattan that also gave the world Patti Smith Group, the Ramones, Talking Heads, Television, Mink DeVille, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, the Cramps, etc by guitarist Chris Stein and his partner a former waitress and Playboy Bunny Debbie Harry. Their first album globally released on Chrysalis Records was not a commercial success until one of its singles B-side was played by mistake and "In The Flesh" subsequently became a top 3 hit in Australia in 1977. Early 1978 saw the release of their second album "Plastic Letters" become a significant hit across Europe with the singles "Denis" and "(I'm Always Touched by Your) Presence, Dear" go Top 10 in the UK, as the music weekly and to the lesser extent the tabloids fall in love with the peroxide Blonde bombshell. But for their third album they teamed up with uber pop/rock producer Mike Chapman and in this album had an appropriate pop sensibility that resistance was futile.

Chapman's manufactured pop songwriting/production background resulted in a very hands on autocratic approach leading to Bassist Nigel Harrison becoming so frustrated with Chapman's drive for perfectionism that he threw a $50,000 synthesizer at him during recording. He also messed around with the band's previous record it live in the studio stance so upsetting a few of the band's ego's along the way. Whilst he encouraged to bring out what he saw as the band's strengths, and hide their weaknesses such as encourage Chris Stein to focus more on the songwriting and arranging and less on the guitar playing leaving it to the superior Frank Infante. And he encouraged Debbie to phrase her singing more like a Broadway starlet with an attitude, rather than just trying to rock or croon out as before. Hence the album was finished well under budget in 6 weeks when the record label had given the band 6 months to write and record despite its musical sensibilities being Punk, Power Pop, New Wave, Reggae, Doo-Wop, and for the blockbusting hit Studio 54 Disco..

The result was the album was ready to go 9 months after the release of their second album. But is it choc full of filler along with the hits which have been perhaps dulled by overplay and bad cover versions by One Direction; Girls Aloud; Def Leppard; Mandy Moore; Melissa Joan Hart; Bob Sinclar; Sophie Ellis-Bextor; Dead Or Alive; The Pretenders; Arcade Fire; Nouvelle Vague ..... ?

Hence we come to this album (#. "Track" length - Rating out of 10):

Side one
1. "Hanging on the Telephone" Jack Lee 2:17  - 9.0 Completely surpassing the 1976 original by the LA punk band The Nerves www.youtube.com/watch?v=emy5mA8Ixtc turning it into a punchy power pop anthem with attitude.
2. "One Way or Another" Deborah Harry, Nigel Harrison 3:31 - 8.0 Maybe the aberration of 1D destroying two Post Punk anthems in one go alongside an equally unforgivably awful video is still too fresh in my mind to fully enjoy this track as much as I used to. Still at least it confirmed SCowell's money making lucre are more manipulated and less talented than these Muppets www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0DV4yHz6FQ
3. "Picture This" Harry, Chris Stein, Jimmy Destri 2:53 - 10.0 New Wave power pop perfection. Vocally this track clearly showed the benefits of Mike Chapman persuading Debbie to sing this like a Broadway starlet with attitude as the emotional phrasing on this elevates this Abba-esque track to a higher dramatic level.
4. "Fade Away and Radiate" Stein 3:57 - 10.0 For anyone who has only heard the singles or has a Best of Blondie compilation, then this Roxy Music meets Eno Bowie era New Wave track is the undiscovered jewel. Featuring Robert Fripp on guitar it also goes slightly Reggae on the outro, something the band would pursue further in the future.
5. "Pretty Baby" Harry, Stein 3:16 - 7.0 A straight ahead Post Punk track with Glam Rock and 60s Girl group harmonies influencing it.
6. "I Know But I Don't Know" Frank Infante 3:53 - 7.0 This Iggy Pop and The Stooges inspired track (well it makes me want to sing www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJIqnXTqg8I) features its songwriter sharing the vocals with Debbie.

Side two
7. "11:59" Destri 3:19 - 8.5 Once upon a time when C90 mix tapes where the equivalent of a Spotify playlist I put this track alongside this UK male storytelling equivalent www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxhN7MQ6uYw
8. "Will Anything Happen?" Jack Lee 2:55 - 5.5 The one track which sounds like it could have come from their debut album.
9. "Sunday Girl" Stein 3:01 - 8.0 This UK #1 hit has dated considerably more than its the next track which also topped the UK charts. To my ears it is not as good as their musically similar international chart debut single www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmONePejIIA
10. "Heart of Glass" Harry, Stein 3:54 - 10.0 The ultimate New Wave/Disco crossover track. Resistance is futile. Pop perfection.
11. "I'm Gonna Love You Too" (Buddy Holly cover) Joe B. Mauldin, Niki Sullivan, Norman Petty 2:03 - 5.5 To this day I don't know why they recorded this admittedly rather good Buddy Holly track www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtfXBxLzlFU , as it sounds like something you would have expected Darts or Showaddywaddy to have covered at the time.
12. "Just Go Away" Harry 3:21 - 6.5 A p*ss off song inspired by Harry reading about the story of Bettie Page the former early 1950s Playboy pin up who quit at the height of her popularity to become a reclusive evangelical Christian, before mental health issues followed on later in life.

Overall 8 (89.0 / 11 = 80.91% (76%-81%) category).

A great album let down by lacking a couple more great songs where otherwise we have covers as filler. If they had taken another month to come up with more material this album could have easily have been a GOAT contender.

My recommendation for a similar album just has to be Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Armed Forces (1979) www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RZpAotDVdw&list=PL6VJme_L98wLDc2KRrbo6FvLGs3cFHn3n


The Blondie album (1976-1982) rates:

Blondie (1976) 7
Plastic Letters (1977) 7
Parallel Lines (1978) 8
Eat To The Beat (1979) 8
Autoamerican (1980) 6
The Hunter (1982) 3

Is The Hunter really that bad, oh yes it is. The band were burned out through exhaustion and drug addiction, which can best be summed up by this unintentionally tragic mess of a lip sync performance of the only significant hit from it:



Much like with Dire Straits' Brothers In Arms; Madonna came along at the right place and right time due to Blondie imploding; Olivia Newton-John; Pat Benatar; Stevie Nicks; Linda Ronstadt; etc all starting to age due to exhaustion/drug addiction/taking time out to have children, etc to fill the void in the USA music scene. Incidentally, Jeff Pope, the British television producer and screenwriter whose latest ITV production Cilla has just finished to critical acclaim and high viewing figures has stated if he could do another pop star screenplay but for film rather than TV (as he did with his 2013 BAFTA award winning/Oscar nominated Philomena) then it would be the Debbie Harry and Blondie story. He certainly could afford an inferior actress than Sheridan Smith to star in it as he would have a superior music score to work with.

[o]

wonderwall is doing October's album.


Hanging on the telephone – Classic! A cracking start! 7/10
One way or another – Stalker song! One Direction, p*ss right off! Snarling Debbie Harry. 7/10
Picture this – Slower, but still powerful & effective. 7/10
Fade away and radiate – It’s okay. 5/10
Pretty baby – 50s feel. 6/10
I know but I don’t know – Bit more punky, like their roots. 5/10
11.59 – Best of the non singles 7/10
Will anything happen – More punky and upbeat 6/10
Sunday girl – Least favourite of the singles 6/10
Heart of glass – Iconic, can picture the video, great pain in the ass lyric 9/10
I’m gonna love you too – Really familiar and I like it! 7/10
Just go away – S’ok, bit of an uneven ending. 5/10
Rating 6.5/10, a little weak outside the singles, but they may grow with more listens, plus the singles are so good!

[Earl Purple]

Certainly one of my favourite albums at the time, by one of my favourite bands.

I wasn't overly keen on either Jack Lee composition, or I Know But I Don't Know, the weakest track on the album. Had a soft spot for "Fade Away And Radiate" strangely and loved all the rest including the Buddy Holly cover.

[smokeyb]

Side 1
1. "Hanging on the Telephone" (The Nerves cover) Jack Lee 2:17 Surely one of the best opening album tracks of all time, grabs you by the throat. 10/10
2. "One Way or Another" Deborah Harry, Nigel Harrison 3:31 Luckily I managed to avoid the recent cover of this, but as for the original I love it 9/10
3. "Picture This" Harry, Chris Stein, Jimmy Destri 2:53 Simply stunning musically and lyrically. It doesn’t get much better than this, or does it? 10/10
4. "Fade Away and Radiate" Stein 3:57 What’s not to like about this track, it has a bit of everything in it. 10/10
5. "Pretty Baby" Harry, Stein 3:16 Just love Debbie’s voice on this one, good song 8/10
6. "I Know But I Don't Know" Frank Infante 3:53 Another catchy song 8/10

Side 2
7. "11:59" Destri 3:19 Not the best track on the album but still decent 8/10
8. "Will Anything Happen?" Jack Lee 2:55 This one seems a bit out of place but Debbie’s voice makes it sound good 8/10
9. "Sunday Girl" Stein 3:01 Another excellent song and a deserved No. 1. 10/10
10. "Heart of Glass" Harry, Stein 3:54 Pop perfection indeed, superb. 10/10
11. "I'm Gonna Love You Too" (Buddy Holly cover) Joe B. Mauldin, Niki Sullivan, Norman Petty 2:03 Strange song to find on this album 7/10
12. "Just Go Away" Harry 3:21 Doesn’t reach the heights of the previous tracks 7/10

Overall score 105/120

Haven Ranking 9/10

[Mic1812]

I watched a documentary on Blondie a few weeks ago on the iplayer for BBC4.
Fascinating to find out that they hardly made any money at all and were ripped off by management.

Is Hunter really a bad album. Ive heard worse but i think the direction was wrong.

I know Parallel Lines is their most classic album but i have a likening to Eat To The Beat more.

[Good Old Days]

My rate : A (Wonderful)

Top 5 songs :
1. Sunday Girl
2. 11:59
3. Heart Of Glass
4. Picture This
5. Hanging On The Telephone

# 1 singles (in my chart) : Picture This, Hanging On The Telephone, Heart Of Glass, Sunday Girl

It's very rare time, when I agree with music critics, but "Parallel Lines" is deserved all-time classic LP.
From four # 1 singles "Sunday Girl" became my favourite and spent 9 weeks on the top of retrospective chart.
Sadly brilliant "11.59" wasn't released as single.