Blondie & Deborah Harry

“Blondie Is A Band” they famously proclaimed at some point in the late 70s. But that didn’t stop Chrysalis issuing not one but two compilation records in subsequent decades which put Debbie Harry's solo records alongside older Blondie hits. Of course, you can understand why. Harry was so much the focus of the band - she looked like a pop star, you could well believe that she had previously been a Playboy Bunny, and she helped give Blondie "a look" - her iconic image invented Madonna, who then invented everybody else, and during her solo years, still looked 15 years younger than she actually was. Whether she was singing “Presence Dear” or “French Kissin’ In The USA”, Harry’s voice was pristine, and she looked stunning - it’s easy to see why it’s such a marketable punt to merge the two elements of her career into one.

Blondie have always been the more celebrated act - when a Harry solo collection was issued at the end of the 90s, even the cover photo was from a photo shoot taken when Blondie were in their infancy…in other words, it was a picture from before Harry had even recorded her first solo album. And with a new Blondie album due this year, “Panic Of Girls”, now is as good a time as any to look at both Blondie and Debbie (or Deborah) Harry from start to finish.

The Early Years

Blondie’s first demos were taped in 1975, but it was not until the following year that the Harry/Chris Stein/Gary Valentine/Jimmy Destri/Clem Burke lineup of the band signed to Private Stock. None of the demo material would end up being used on the band’s first LP though. Their debut single, “X Offender”, was issued in the US during the summer of 76, backed with “In The Sun”. In the UK, the release was cancelled, and unreleased copies of the single have now become premier Blondie rarities. Their second US single, “In The Flesh”, was issued at the tail end of the year. In the UK, Private Stock had another go at issuing “X Offender” as a single, and using a new mix of the track, with “In The Flesh” appearing as a AA side on the flip, this became Blondie’s first “official” UK 45. Promo videos were filmed for both “X Offender” and “In The Flesh” thereafter, using the same set but with the band decked out in different outfits for the two songs. The new mix of “X Offender” was included on their debut LP “Blondie”, issued early on in 77, as was “In The Flesh”, but “In The Sun” appeared on the record in a new version.

Within only a few months, the band were reportedly unhappy with the label’s handling of their career - neither the album nor any of it’s singles had caused much of an impact. The band promptly left the label and signed with Chrysalis, who reissued the LP. In the UK, the decision was taken to re-promote the album with a AAA side single, consisting of “Rip Her To Shreds”, “X Offender” and “In The Flesh”. The single appeared on both 7” and 12” (“3 Tracks For 75p” the sleeve excitedly barked), a gimmick repeated on several subsequent 45's. “Blondie” was reissued in 2001 with some of the 1975 demos, and both sides of the original “X Offender”/”In The Sun” 45.

“Blondie” was a decent, sometimes patchy record, but it’s follow up was anything but. “Plastic Letters” was a revelatory listen, the band getting a perfect mix of pop and punk throughout the record. Valentine left the band midway through recording, meaning that only four band members appeared on the cover, although Frank Infante came in as a replacement soon after, and is apparently on all tracks on the LP. The band covered a 1963 Randy & The Rainbows single “Denise”, but altered the gender and retitled it “Denis” - it was to be issued as the lead single from the LP, and the accompanying video clip featured a sixth band member, Nigel Harrison, who did not play on the record but was by now in the band for their next tour. Both Harrison & Infante would “officially” join the band on album number three, 1978’s “Parallel Lines”, regarded by many as their classic album. The follow up to “Denis”, “(I’m Always Touched By Your) Presence Dear”, written by Valentine, included a non-album track on the B-side entitled “Poet’s Problem”. “Plastic Letters” has been reissued on CD twice, both times including previously unreleased tracks. The 1994 edition included an alternate version of “Denis”, the 2001 edition no longer includes this but instead has a previously unreleased live take of “Detroit 442”.

The first 45 from “Parallel Lines” was “Picture This”, the only Blondie UK single to be issued on coloured vinyl. It was pressed on yellow vinyl, not quite sure if the choice of colour was significant, although Harry did appear in an all-yellow outfit in both the promo video and the band’s “Top Of The Pops” appearance. The next release, “Heart Of Glass”, appeared on a 12” which included an extended mix and an instrumental mix. Later copies of “Parallel Lines” replaced the original LP version with the 12” mix instead, with most - if not all - CD copies using the 12” mix as well. The last single from the album, “Sunday Girl”, was also recorded in French, and appeared on the 12” edition, before resurfacing on a multitude of Blondie compilations in following years. The 2001 edition of “Parallel Lines” included a previously unreleased version of “Heart Of Glass” from early album sessions, the 2007 edition removed this rarity and replaced it with a DVD of video clips and alternate takes of other songs from the album, already available on other compilations. The cover photo was, however, altered for this edition. A freebie copy given away with The Mail On Sunday on 5th December 2010 included three tracks from “Panic Of Girls” as bonus tracks.

By the time of 1979’s “Eat To The Beat”, Blondie were proper pop stars - especially in the UK, where they played a celebratory New Years Eve gig in Glasgow which is now available on the “Blondie At The BBC” set. “Eat To The Beat” saw them start to further indulge their disco leanings which they had touched upon with “Heart Of Glass”, with “Atomic” being the most noticeably different sounding song on the record when compared to their New Wave beginnings. It was edited for single release, with 12” editions including a live cover of David Bowie’s “Heroes” as an extra track. An “Eat To The Beat” Video Album was also issued at the same time, but has been deleted for years.

1980 saw the release of the band’s first “stand alone” 45, “Call Me” - taped for the “American Gigolo” soundtrack. The single appeared in different sleeves in different countries - some with Harry on the cover, some with the film’s star Richard Gere - and in different colours. An Instrumental mix appeared on the flip, whilst a Spanish Language version of the song appeared as a bonus track on the 12”. The standard version of the track was actually edited down from the original album mix, with a running time of barely half of that of the original. In the US, the 12” edition included the album mix and a longer version of the instrumental. The instrumental mixes were credited to “Giorgio Moroder”, who had recorded the song with the band, which explains why these mixes have rarely surfaced on any Blondie collections since. This is arguably a bit of a misnomer, as from what I can gather, the rest of the band do all actually play on the instrumental versions.

The first release from 1980’s “Autoamerican”, Blondie’s slightly schizophrenic mix of multiple genres, was a cover of “The Tide Is High”, again edited for single release. The B-side was a track only otherwise available on Cassette editions of the album, “Suzy & Jeffrey”. It’s follow up was arguably the most important song on the album, “Rapture” - Blondie’s nod to late 70s Rap Culture, which not only name checked Hip Hop Icon Fab 5 Freddy, but also featured him in the accompanying video. The track was edited for the 7”, whilst the 12” featured extended mixes of both the A-side and the “Autoamerican” album track, “Live It Up”. The 1994 reissue of “Autoamerican” included both sides of this 12”, but later reissues have omitted the “Live It Up” remix. Despite “Rapture” being a monumentally important release in the band’s history, it was actually the beginning of the end.

The End of Blondie / The Start of The Solo Career

In 1981, Harry set off on a solo career whilst the band took a short break. “Koo Koo” was in effect Harry fronting Chic, with Chris Stein also involved. The first single, “Backfired”, was edited for the 7”, and extended for the 12”, but other tracks issued as singles in some countries failed to be released as 45’s in the UK. The album itself sold in only moderate numbers, and was considered a poor relation to Blondie’s albums.

It has been claimed that sales of the record were dented by Harry’s label themselves - Chrysalis had put the record out, but also released “The Best Of Blondie” later the same year. In an attempt to entice punters, “new” material was included in the form of new mixes of “Heart Of Glass”, “Rapture”, “In The Flesh” and “Sunday Girl”. There was no mention on the sleeve that “Rapture” was a new mix. The album was retitled “Blondie’s Hits” for release in Holland, where despite using the same rear sleeve as the UK edition, the “Special Mixes” listed were replaced by the normal album/single versions. An accompanying video was issued, with a different track listing, and with each video “inter-connected” with special additional footage to create the effect of a 50 minute long video-album.

Blondie returned in 1982 with the much maligned “The Hunter”, mauled by the critics, who hated everything from the music to the cover showing Harry wearing a quite ridiculous over-sized wig. “Island Of Lost Souls” was edited for 7” release, whilst the follow up single “War Child” was extended for the 12”. This mix has been included on later CD repressings of the album ever since. A variety of outside issues, including Stein facing a life threatening illness, internal band fighting, and poor ticket sales of an upcoming US tour, saw the band finally throw in the towel. An offshoot label of Chrysalis, Air, released a career spanning greatest hits double vinyl LP in 83 called “Encounters With Blondie”, but for some reason, it was withdrawn from sale, and now sells for a ton - minimum.

Harry released a handful of new solo singles featuring exclusive A-sides over the next few years, “Rush Rush” in 1983, and “Feel The Spin” in America only in 1985, before issuing her second solo album, “Rockbird”, in 1986. By now, the world of multiple remixing was taking hold, and all of the songs released as singles from the album were edited/remixed numerous times for different formats. Another stand alone single, “Liar Liar”, followed in 1988.

The same year, saw the release of “Once More Into The Bleach”, a remix album split half and half between Blondie and Debbie Harry solo material. The Blondie songs were newly remixed for the set, most of the solo material consisted of already available mixes. Two singles were taken from the album, “Call Me” and “Denis”, the former of which included a Debbie Harry solo track as one of the B-sides, the only Blondie single to ever be released in the UK in such a style.

The following year saw the release of “Def Dumb And Blonde”, Harry’s third solo LP. Unlike the singles from “Rockbird”, it was only the “extended play” formats that were of interest in most cases, with the 7” and Cassette singles that were released featuring nothing exclusive this time around. The vinyl copy of the album included 11 songs, but other formats had more - 15 on the CD. After another one off single in 1990, a cover of “Well Did You Evah” with Iggy Pop for the “Red Hot & Blue” charity LP, Chrysalis issued their second Blondie/Harry split LP, a best of set called “The Complete Picture”. As well as “Well Did You Evah”, the 20 track album included nineteen other singles, although not all of them appeared in single form (the mix of “Atomic” included was the album version). Despite featuring five photos of Harry post-Blondie on the cover, only six of the twenty songs were actually from her solo career. Single mixes were used for “Island Of Lost Souls” and “Sweet And Low”, whilst the mix of “Rapture” was that from “The Best Of Blondie” - although none of this was mentioned on the sleeve, yet again. According to Wikipedia, the mix of “Heart Of Glass” is a shorter version of the “Special Mix” from the same album, but when I tried listening to all these different "HOG" mixes one after the other recently, they started to sound the same after a while.

The Temporary End of the Solo Career and the re-birth of Blondie

In 1993, Harry’s fourth solo LP, “Debravation” was released. As well as a Cassette featuring a new B-side, and a 12” full of remixes, there were a pair of “Greatest Hits” CD EP’s of the first single “I Can See Clearly“, both using Blondie hits as some (or all) of the B-sides. A follow up single, “Strike Me Pink”, was also multi-formatted, but it was only the two CD Singles that had exclusive material. Also issued the same year was “Blonde And Beyond”, an oddball collection of B-sides, hit singles, album tracks and previously unissued material. It was the first UK Blondie LP to include Debbie only on the front cover (although virtually every UK single beforehand had been released in such a style), and it would not be the last. The “rare” material had a running time of 40-45 minutes, and included the 12” mix of “Heart Of Glass”, already available on the then current CD edition of “Parallel Lines”. The album also included another alternate unreleased version of the same song, this one dating from the debut album sessions of 1976.

In 1994, EMI released what was at the time the most ambitious Blondie best-of, “The Platinum Collection”. It included the A-side and B-side of every UK 45 released between 1976 and 1982, although B-sides only available on 12” singles were omitted. Where a single had also been issued in the US with a different B-side, this extra B-side was also included. Where they existed, 7” edits were used - the version of “Heart Of Glass” is a slightly longer mix than that used on the original LP, which was used on some - but not all - 7” editions of the single when first released, with a running time of 4.10. The set ended with five demos from 1975, two of which “Puerto Rico” and “Once I Had A Love”, remain exclusive to this set. The latter, is yet another early version of “Heart Of Glass”, meaning that since 2001, unreleased versions taped in 75, 76 and 78 had now been issued. Also included were a pair of new remixes of “Atomic” and “Rapture”.

The remixed “Atomic” had also been released as a single at the same time - a CD single with a stack of five new mixes was issued, whilst a second CD included the same mix from “The Platinum Collection” along with three old “hits” - including the original 1980 edit of the same song. It was also the first single from a remix LP, “Beautiful”, released the following year. Remixed versions of “Heart Of Glass” and “Union City Blue” were also issued as singles in 95, whilst the US version of “Beautiful” came in a new sleeve, with a slightly altered track listing, called “Remixed Remade Remodelled”.

In 1996, the Dutch label Disky issued “Denis”, the first of a never ending stream of budget label compilations. It was a mix of hit singles, album tracks and rarities, but neither this nor the barrage of similar compilations that followed offered anything that was not already available elsewhere. Meanwhile, Harry continued her solo career of sorts, becoming the semi permanent lead singer of jazz ensemble The Jazz Passengers on both stage and on record.

Blondie Return

It was at this point that tentative efforts to reunite the band began. The basic line up of Harry/Stein/Destri/Burke had hoped to join up with originating member Valentine, but this line up of the band was only together for a brief period. Harrison, from the “second” line up, apparently taped some demos with the rest of the band, but in the end, the band’s next studio album would feature neither him nor the other sixth member, Infante. The decision by the band to reunite as a four piece led to legal action from both, and created bad blood between the two camps that has never gone away today. When I met the reformed band in early 1999, I got my vinyl copy of “Autoamerican” signed - I can’t remember who did it, but one of the band, as well as signing the sleeve, drew lines through the images of both Infante and Harrison, as if to say “these people no longer exist in our world!”

Whilst the reformed band slowly started work on studio album seven, EMI released a limited edition US live album in 1998 called “Picture This Live”, including previously unreleased material culled from shows taped in 1978 and 1980. The release of the album was one of several on EMI that were issued to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the label, and was reissued in a new sleeve with a new cover the following year. Later on during 98, another hits set called “Atomic” was issued, using a cover photo from the original five piece line up, partly due to the ongoing legal battles. Once again, the “4.10” mix of “Heart Of Glass” was used, whilst all of the other singles which had been edited for single release, appeared here in their edited forms. A pair of new remixes of “Atomic” appeared at the end, and even though an “Atomic 98” CD Single was pressed up in the UK, it was withdrawn from sale. The CD was reissued again the following summer, in a new silver sleeve, retitled “Atomic Atomix”, and came with a second CD full of remixes. Of the nine songs on the bonus disc, two were from “Beautiful”, and two were from “Once More Into The Bleach”. The original unedited mix of “Call Me” was included, as was the 12” Instrumental mix of “Heart Of Glass”, the extended version of “War Child” and another new mix of “Atomic”, taken from the withdrawn single. The version of “Rapture” included was the US 12” Mix - longer than the LP version, but shorter than the UK 12” mix, and thus made it’s UK debut on this release.

At the end of 1998, Blondie returned to the UK to play their first gigs here for some 18 years. The tour included a pair of gigs at the London Lyceum, the second of which was taped for broadcast on BBC Radio 2. A sampler cassette featuring short clips of four songs from the forthcoming LP, “No Exit”, was made available at the shows. The first single from the record issued early the following year, “Maria”, hit number 1 in the UK - not bad for a band who, technically, had been AWOL for the last seventeen years. It was a classic Blondie pop moment, and it’s quality was very much indicative of “No Exit”, generally regarded as a major return to form after “The Hunter”. A second single, “Nothing Is Real But The Girl”, was arguably even better, and by the end of the year, the band had returned to UK stages, including a slot at the Glastonbury Festival. Blondie would start to tour on pretty much an annual basis from now on. Initial copies of “No Exit” included a free 4 track live CD from the Lyceum broadcast, whilst a full live album from the tour, “Livid”, appeared in 2000.

In 2002, yet another Greatest Hits album, titled - um - “Greatest Hits” was issued. It included the four “special” mixes from the “Best Of Blondie”, along with plenty more hits. The US edition used a picture of the “Infante” line up, the UK one instead used a photo of Harry, Stein, Destri and Burke only. An accompanying DVD featuring the videos was issued, which was basically a reissue of the “Best Of Blondie” Video, with three extra clips. It was followed in 2003 by another studio LP, “The Curse Of Blondie”, and another live LP, “Live By Request”, in 2005. The Japanese edition used a photo of the six-person touring line up of the band, with Harry and Co joined by Leigh Foxx and Paul Carbonara on the cover.

In 2005, yet another best of appeared, “Greatest Hits : Sight And Sound”. Using a superb cover, this was basically a CD with a free DVD (hence the title), and offered up a few rarities like a new version of “In The Flesh”, and an official outing for the Blondie/Doors mash up, “Rapture Riders”, which was planned to be released as a single, but got no further than the promo stage. The DVD included most of the band’s videos released between 76 and 03 (no “Call Me” though), and unlike the “Best Of Blondie” video, these were the original “unedited” clips. 2007 saw Harry return to her other day job, with the release of a fifth studio LP, “Necessary Evil”.

During 2009 and 2010, the specialist reissue label The Beat Goes On reissued all four of Harry’s pre-Necessary Evil albums on a pair of 2-on-1 CD sets. Harry’s first two solo albums had been credited to “Debbie Harry”, the second pair “Deborah”, and BGO decided to pair albums one and three, and two and four, together. The first pairing was credited to “Debbie Harry”, and the second “Deborah Harry”, just to confuse maters. Each set came as a two disc release inside a specially designed slipcase. The first set included the 11 track vinyl edition of “Def Dumb And Blonde”, rather than the 15 track CD edition.

2010 also saw the release of “Blondie At The BBC”, a CD/DVD set featuring material from the 70s and 80s. The CD consisted of the band’s New Year Eve show from Glasgow in 1979, with a running time of some 75 minutes, whilst the accompanying DVD included 40 minutes of the same show, broadcast on “The Old Grey Whistle Test”. The DVD was padded out with clips from “Top Of The Pops” and a “Plastic Letters” era 3 song set on “Whistle Test”, this time, in the Whistle Test studio, absolutely fizzing with energy. The label designs on the two discs mirrored that which was originally used on the plastic moulded 7” singles that Chrysalis issued during the same time period - a sweet touch. A similar approach was also used on 2009’s double CD set “Singles Collection”.

All of which brings us to “Panic Of Girls”. Since “The Curse Of Blondie”, Destri has left, rejoined, and left the band again, and the group - according to their website - now seems to consist of Harry, Stein, Burke, Foxx and two new members - Matt Katz-Bohen and Tommy Kessler.

Blondie always had an edge over their closest counterparts - with Harry’s looks helping them look unlike any other band hanging around CBGB’s, their love of punk, pop and disco, helped them go further than most of the three-chord brigade. Whether they were thrashing through “Detroit 442”, hitting the harmonies on “Denis”, or re-writing the rule book on “Rapture”, they really do deserve their place in the history books.

Discography

Listed below is the (almost) complete Blondie and Debbie/Deborah Harry discographies. For the albums, I have listed all of the UK releases I am aware of, plus selected reissues. Formats shown are personal choices or items from my own collection. The singles shown, aside from any issued on one format only, include only those with unique material or unique cover art. Notable additional formats are listed where they are considered worthwhile, some “extra” formats including rare material are excluded if the songs can be found on any of the albums listed either above or in the LP discography below (the MK 12” mix of “Heart Of Glass”, included on the 1995 "HOG" CD Single, for example, is also on the “Remixed…” USCD).


ESSENTIAL BLONDIE LP DISCOGRAPHY

Blondie (1976, Chrysalis 7243 533596 2 1, CD, 2001 reissue with US 7” single mixes of “X Offender” and “In The Sun”)
Plastic Letters (1977, Chrysalis CDCHR 6085, CD, 1994 reissue with alternate version of “Denis”)
Plastic Letters (1977, Chrysalis 7243 533598 2 9, CD, 2001 reissue with previously unissued live take of “Detroit 442”, some reissued in 2002 in box set with 2001 edition of “Blondie”)
Parallel Lines (1978, Chrysalis CDL 1192, LP with “3.54” mix of “Heart Of Glass”)
Parallel Lines (1978, Chrysalis 7243 533599 2 8, CD, 2001 reissue with “1978” version of “Once I Had A Love” and “5.50“ mix of “Heart Of Glass“)
Eat To The Beat (1979, Chrysalis CDP32 1225-2, CD, 1987 reissue, 2007 release includes original “Eat To The Beat” Video Album on bonus DVD)
Autoamerican (1980, Chrysalis 7243 830794 2, CD, 1994 reissue with both sides of the UK “Rapture” 12” as bonus tracks)
The Best Of Blondie (1981, Chrysalis CHR 1337, LP, most copies have free Debbie Harry poster)
The Hunter (1982, Chrysalis 533 670 2, CD, 2001 reissue with “War Child (Extended Version)”)
Once More Into The Bleach (1988, Chrysalis CJB-2, 2xLP)
The Complete Picture (1991, Chrysalis CCD 1817, CD)
Blonde And Beyond (1993, Chrysalis 321 9902, CD)
The Platinum Collection (1994, Chrysalis CDCHR 6069, 2xCD)
Beautiful (1995, Chrysalis 7243 8 34604 2, CD)
Denis (1996, Disky DC 867192, CD, reissued in 2006 by EMI as “The Blondie Collection” in new cover)
The Esssential Collection (1997, EMI Gold CD GOLD 1091, CD, cover image dates from after band had split, 1999 reissue uses photo from “correct” period, with “Eat To The Beat” era logo, a superior release [499 4212])
Picture This - Live (1998, Capitol 72438-21440-2-1, US CD, copies originally shrinkwrapped with “EMI 100” scratch card inside)
Picture This - The Essential Blondie Collection (1998, EMI CDMFPE 6416, CD, includes remixes of “Atomic” and “Union City Blue” as bonus tracks)
Atomic (1998, Chrysalis 494 9962, CD)
Atomic / Atomix (1999, Chrysalis 499 2882, 2xCD)
Call Me (1999, EMI Gold E524 2562, CD, includes remix of “The Tide Is High” as bonus track)
No Exit (1999, Beyond 74321 648372, 2xCD, rear sleeve makes no mention of disc 2, 2-disc editions should have sticker on front cover with track listing)
Philadelphia 1978 Dallas 1980 (1999, EMI 7243 5 21233 2 2, CD, UK edition of “Picture This - Live“)
Livid (2000, Beyond 74321 71254 2, CD, retitled as “Live” in US with different version of “One Way Or Another”)
Blondie Is The Name Of A Band (2000, Burning Airlines PILOT 71, 2xCD, 1978 German TV Show on both audio and video discs)
Greatest Hits (2002, Capitol 7243 5 43105 2, CD)
The Curse Of Blondie (2003, Epic 511 921 9, CD in slipcase)
Live By Request (2005, Cooking Vinyl COOKCD 332, CD)
Personal Collection (2005, Big Time IFPI 3066, CD, “The Mail On Sunday” newspaper freebie, 7 tracks from “Live By Request”, and 3 songs by Harry with The Jazz Passengers, plus “limited play” bonus tracks on enhanced CDRom section)
Greatest Hits: Sight And Sound (2006, EMI 345 0542, CD, initial copies feature “Sight And Sound” sticker on cover, repressings omit this and are thus simply titled “Greatest Hits”)
Blondie: Daily Star Sunday (2007, Upfront BLONUP01, CD, 15 track newspaper freebie, Blondie only feature on first 7 tracks, all from “Live By Request”)
Blondie Collection (2008, EMI Gold 50999 2 07979 2 8, CD)
Singles Collection (2009, EMI 50999 968037 2, 2xCD, includes A and B sides of the 77-82 EMI singles, including instrumentals, remixes, and 12” bonus tracks, both sides of “Rapture” 12” included again. Extended mix of “War Child“ missing, whilst Spanish version of “Call Me“ omitted in favour of full length album version)
Blondie At The BBC (2010, Chrysalis 50999 64215822, CD+DVD)


IMPORTANT BLONDIE SINGLES DISCOGRAPHY

X Offender/In The Flesh (7”, Private Stock PVT 105)
Rip Her To Shreds/In The Flesh/X Offender (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2180)
Rip Her To Shreds/In The Flesh/X Offender (12”, Chrysalis CHS 2180-12)
Denis/Contact In Red Square/Kung Fu Girls (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2204, listed as “Denis (Denee)”, later pressings housed in Chrysalis company bag, rather than Debbie p/s. The track was later included on a compilation LP called “Street Level“, where it was retitled yet again as “Denis Denis“)
Denis/Contact In Red Square/Kung Fu Girls (12”, Chrysalis CHS 2204 12)
(I’m Always Touched By Your) Presence Dear/Poet’s Problem/Detroit 442 (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2217)
(I’m Always Touched By Your) Presence Dear/Poet’s Problem/Detroit 442 (12”, Chrysalis CHS 2217/12)
Picture This/Fade Away And Radiate (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2242, initial copies on Yellow Vinyl)
Hanging On The Telephone/Will Anything Happen (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2266)
Heart Of Glass/Rifle Range (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2275)
Heart Of Glass (5.50 Disco Mix)/(Instrumental)/Rifle Range (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12-2275)
Sunday Girl/I Know But I Don’t Know (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2320)
Sunday Girl (LP Version)/(French Version)/I Know But I Don’t Know (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 2320)
Dreaming/Sound Asleep (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2350)
Union City Blue/Living In The Real World (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2400)
Atomic (Edit)/Die Young Stay Pretty (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2410)
Atomic (Edit)/Die Young Stay Pretty/“Heroes” (Live) (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 2410)
Call Me (Edit) +1 (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2414)
Call Me (Edit)/(Spanish Version) +1 (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 2414)
The Tide Is High (Edit)/Susie And Jeffrey (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2465, B-side spelt differently in different countries!)
Rapture (Edit)/Walk Like Me (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2485)
Rapture (Special Disco Mix)/Live It Up (Special Disco Mix) (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 2485)
Island Of Lost Souls (Edit)/Dragonfly (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2608, also released as a picture disc)
Island Of Lost Souls/Dragonfly (12”, Chrysalis 12 CHS 2608)
War Child/Little Caesar (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2624, also released as a picture disc)
War Child (12” Mix)/Little Caesar (12”, Chrysalis 12 CHS 2624)
Denis (The 88 Remix)/Rapture (Teddy Riley Remix)/(Dub) (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 3328, also released as a picture disc)
Call Me (The 88 Ben Liebrand Remix)/Backfired (88 Forest & Heller Remix) (7”, Chrysalis CHS 3342)
Call Me (The 88 Ben Liebrand Remix)/Backfired (88 Forest & Heller Remix)/Call Me (Original Version)/Hanging On The Telephone (CD, Chrysalis CHS CD 3342)
Call Me (The 88 Ben Liebrand Remix Extended)/(Original Version)/Backfired (88 Forest & Heller Remix Extended) (12“, Chrysalis CHS 12 3342, also released as a picture disc)
Atomic (Diddy’s Edit)/(Diddy’s 12” Mix)/(Diddy Pushes The Button Mix)/(Boom Mix)/(New Disco Mix) (CD1, Chrysalis CDCHSS 5013)
Atomic (Diddy’s Edit)/Sunday Girl/Union City Blue/Atomic (Edit) (CD2, Chrysalis CDCHS 5013, different p/s)
Heart Of Glass (Diddy’s Adorable Illusion Mix)/(Richie Jones Club Mix)/Call Me (E-Smoove’s Beat Vocal Mix) (12”, Chrysalis 12 CHS 5023)
Heart Of Glass (Diddy’s Adorable Edit)/Rapture (Pharmacy Dub)/Atomic (Explosive Ecstacy Mix) (Cassette, Chrysalis TC CHS 5023)
Union City Blue (Diddy’s Power & Passion Edit)/(Diddy’s Power & Passion Mix)/(Vinny Vero’s Turquoise Mix)/(Jammin’ Hot I Can’t Believe It’s Not Diddy Mix)/(Burger Queen Peroxide Power Mix) (CD1, Chrysalis CDCHSS 5027)
Union City Blue (Diddy’s Power & Passion Edit)/I Feel Love (Live)/Union City Blue (The OPM Poppy Mix)/(LP Version) (CD2, Chrysalis CDCHS 5027, different p/s)
Maria (Radio Edit)/(Soul Solution Remix Radio Edit)/(Talvin Singh Remix Edit) (CD1, Beyond 74321 645632)
Maria (Radio Edit)/Screaming Skin (Live)/In The Flesh (Live) (CD2, Beyond 74321 637372, different coloured sleeve with sticker on case)
Nothing Is Real But The Girl (Boilerhouse Lounge Mix)/Rip Her To Shreds (Live) (Cassette, Beyond 74321 669484)
Nothing Is Real But The Girl (Radio Remix With Alternative Intro)/Rip Her To Shreds (Live)/Maria (Live) (CD1, Beyond 74321 669472, with insert)
Nothing Is Real But The Girl (Boilerhouse Mix)/(Danny Tenaglia Club Mix)/(Danny Tenaglia Instradub) (CD2, Beyond 74321 663802, different colour sleeve, with insert)
No Exit (The Loud Rock Remix - Radio Version)/(The Infamous Hip Rock Version)/Maria (J&B Mix)/(Talvin Singh Rhythmic Mix)/Nothing Is Real But The Girl (DT Edit)/Hot Shot (CD, Beyond 74321 716532)
The Coca Cola Connection EP (5 track CD Single given free with multi-packs of Coca Cola, no cat no, includes “Atomic”. The withdrawn “Atomic 98” single also featured a Coca Cola ‘plug’ on the cover)
Heart Of Glass (LP Mix)/(Video) (“The Sun” newspaper freebie, Enhanced CD, Chrysalis SUNW 008. White cover with band name and title, different to original 1979 release)
Good Boys/Maria (Live At The House Of Blues)/Rapture (Live)/Good Boys (Video) (CD1, Epic 674399 2)
Good Boys (Album Version)/(Giorgio Moroder Extended Long) (CD2, Epic 674399 5, unique p/s)
Good Boys (Giorgio Moroder Extended Long)/(Scissor Sisters’ Gyad Byas Myax Ya Mix)/(Return To New York Mix) (12”, Epic 674399 6, border around p/s, otherwise same as CD1 cover)


DEBBIE & DEBORAH HARRY UK LP DISCOGRAPHY

Koo Koo (1981, Chrysalis 7243 8 30796 2, CD, 1994 reissue with bonus tracks “Backfired (12” Mix)” and “The Jam Was Moving (12” Mix)”)
Rockbird (1986, Chrysalis CHR1540, LP)
Def Dumb And Blonde (1989, Chrysalis CDP32 1650-2, CD)
Debravation (1993, Chrysalis CDCHR 6033, CD, US issue includes extra tracks)
Collection (1998, Disky CD 888402, CD, includes rarities such as Def Dumb & Blonde bonus track “I’ll Never Fall In Love” and “Feel The Spin”, later reissued by EMI as “French Kissin‘ The Collection“)
Most Of All (1999, EMI 7243 5 22945 2 7, CD, cover image actually from late 70s. Remixes of “I Want That Man” appear at end, planned single release of this 45 in UK cancelled)
Necessary Evil (2007, Eleven Seven ESE003, CD)
Koo Koo/Def Dumb And Blonde (2009, BGO BGOCD869, 2xCD)
Rockbird/Debravation (2010, BGO BGOCD 951, 2xCD)


SELECTED DEBBIE & DEBORAH HARRY UK SINGLES DISCOGRAPHY

Backfired (7” Edit)/Military Rap (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2526)
Backfired (12” Mix)/Military Rap (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 2526)
The Jam Was Moving (7” Mix)/Chrome (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2554)
The Jam Was Moving (12” Mix)/Inner City Spillover (12” Mix)/Chrome (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 2554)
Rush Rush +1 (7”, Chrysalis CHS 2752, US version comes in different cover)
Rush Rush (Extended Version)/(Extended Dub Version) (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 2752, US version comes in different cover)
French Kissin’ (7” Edit)/Rockbird (7”, Chrysalis CHS 3066, some copies in fold out sleeve)
French Kissin’ (Dance Mix)/(Dub Version)/Rockbird (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 3066, border around sleeve unlike 7” pressing, also pressed as 12“ Picture Disc)
In Love With Love (London Mix Edit)/French Kissin’ (French Version, 7” Edit) (7”, Chrysalis CHS 3128)
In Love With Love (Extended Version)/Feel The Spin (Extended Dance Version)/French Kissin’ (Full Length French Version) (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 3128, also pressed as 12“ Picture Disc)
Free To Fall (7” Edit)/Feel The Spin (7”, Chrysalis CHS 3093, also pressed as 12“ Picture Disc with different track listing)
I Want That Man (12” Remix)/(7” Version)/(Instrumental)/Bike Boy (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 3369, also pressed as 12“ Picture Disc)
I Want That Man (12” Remix)/(7” Version)/(Instrumental)/Bike Boy (CD, Chrysalis CHSCD 3369)
Brite Side (Remix)/In Love With Love/Bugeye (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 3452, also pressed as 12“ Picture Disc)
Brite Side (Remix)/In Love With Love/Bugeye (CD1, Chrysalis CHSCD 3452)
Brite Side (Remix)/French Kissin’/Bugeye (CD2, Chrysalis CHSCCD 3452)
Sweet And Low (Phil Harding Remix)/(Phil Harding Dub)/(Phil Harding 7” Mix) (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 3491, also pressed as 12“ Picture Disc)
Sweet And Low (Phil Harding Radio Edit)/(Phil Harding Dub)/(Phil Harding Single Version) (CD, Chrysalis CHSCD 3491)
Maybe For Sure/Get Your Way (7”, Chrysalis CHS 3537, also pressed as 7“ Picture Disc)
Maybe For Sure/Get Your Way (Cassette, Chrysalis CHSMC 3537)
Maybe For Sure/Get Your Way/End of the Run (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 3537)
Maybe For Sure/Get Your Way/End of the Run (CD, Chrysalis CHSCD 3537)
Well Did You Evah +1 (7”, Chrysalis CHS 3646)
Well Did You Evah +1 (Cassette, Chrysalis CHSMC 3646)
Well Did You Evah +1 (12”, Chrysalis CHS 12 3646, also pressed as 12“ Picture Disc)
Well Did You Evah +1 (CD, Chrysalis CHSCD 3646)
I Can See Clearly/Atomic/Heart Of Glass (“Best Of Blondie” edit) (CD1, Chrysalis CDCHSS 4900)
I Can See Clearly (Shakedown Mix)/Call Me/In Love With Love (London Mix Edit) (CD2, Chrysalis CDCHS 4900)
I Can See Clearly (Single Mix)/Standing In My Way (Cassette, Chrysalis TCCHS 4900)
I Can See Clearly (D:Reamix)/(D:Ream Instrumental)/(Deep South Mix)/(Murk Habana Dub) (12”, Chrysalis 12 CHS 4900)
Strike Me Pink/On A Breath/Sweet And Low (Phil Harding 7” Mix) (CD1, Chrysalis 7243 8 80833 2 4)
Strike Me Pink/8½ Rhumba/Dreaming (CD2, Chrysalis CDCHS 5000, also pressed as 12“ Picture Disc with “Sweet And Low (Phil Harding 7“ Mix)” as bonus track)

I have not listed any singles released by other acts “featuring Debbie Harry”, nor any download releases, so I would suggest looking at the Wikipedia entry for Deborah Harry for more details of her extra-curricular activities. There is also a "Blondie Vs Edison" release of "Heart Of Glass" which sampled parts of the original, from 2006.

Note 1: In 2004, EMI issued a CD Singles Box Set from the Chrysalis years, which included reissues of all the UK singles from “Rip Her To Shreds” through to “War Child”. All tracks from the 7” and 12” editions were used, but in a moment of artistic licence, the “Call Me” disc added the “Album Mix” and “12” Instrumental” versions of the track, previously only available in the US.

Note 2: There are now several videos/DVDs by the band in existence, including one called “Blondie Live!” taped during the ill-fated 1982 US tour. I am hoping to go into greater detail in Blondie on Film in a future blog.

Note 3: As a solo artist, Harry has recorded numerous songs for soundtrack and Various Artist LP’s, many of which have also been issued as stand alone singles - but not necessarily in the UK. The songs concerned are: Feel The Spin, Liar Liar, Summertime Blues and Prelude To A Kiss (Promo only release). The link below goes into greater detail about all of Harry’s various solo escapades.


Further reading:
Blondie Official Site: http://www.blondie.net/
The Complete Discography: http://www.recmod.com/