Blondie (album)

Blondie is the eponymous debut studio album by American rock band Blondie. It was released in December 1976, by Private Stock Records.

Blondie
Studio album by Blondie
Released	December 1976
Recorded	August–September 1976
Studio	Plaza Sound Studios, New York City
Genre	New wave punk rock
Length	33:25
Label	Private Stock, later re-released on Chrysalis
Producer	Richard Gottehrer
Blondie chronology
Blondie (1976) Plastic Letters (1977)
Singles from Blondie
"X Offender" Released: June 17, 1976 "In the Flesh" Released: October 1976 "Rip Her to Shreds" Released: November 1977

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[2]
Q	[3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[4]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	7/10[5]
The Village Voice	B+[6]

Overview

The first single "X Offender" was originally titled "Sex Offender", but since radio stations would not play a song with such a provocative title, the band renamed the song. After disappointing sales and poor publicity, the band ended their contract with Private Stock and signed with Chrysalis Records in 1977. Chrysalis re-released the album in September 1977, along with the single "In the Flesh". The album reached No. 14 in Australia,[7] where the band had already had a Top 3 hit with "In the Flesh". The album also charted at No. 75 in the UK in early 1979, where the band had become immensely popular.

Through the production of Richard Gottehrer, who had worked with the Angels and other artists of the 1950s and 1960s, much of the music is suffused with the girl group sound of that era. Harry told an interviewer in 1978 that the band never intended to be retro and when some journalists described them that way, it was "quite a shock".[8] Likewise she rejected any attempt to brand the music as pop, insisting that Blondie played new wave music.[9]

The album was first digitally remastered by Chrysalis Records UK in 1994. In 2001, the album was again remastered and reissued, this time along with five bonus tracks. "Out in the Streets" (The Shangri-Las cover), "The Thin Line" and "Platinum Blonde" are three of five tracks from a 1975 demo recorded by Alan Betrock; all five were first issued on the 1994 compilation The Platinum Collection. Bonus track "Platinum Blonde" was the first song that Debbie Harry wrote.[10] Original single versions of "X Offender" and "In the Sun" are both sides of Blondie's first single, issued on Private Stock, and are different mixes from the album versions. The two Private Stock versions are both remastered from vinyl.

Track listing

Side One

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"X Offender"	Deborah Harry, Gary Valentine	3:14
2.	"Little Girl Lies"	Harry	2:07
3.	"In the Flesh"	Harry, Chris Stein	2:33
4.	"Look Good in Blue"	Jimmy Destri	2:55
5.	"In the Sun"	Stein	2:39
6.	"A Shark in Jets Clothing"	Destri	3:39

Side Two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
7.	"Man Overboard"	Harry, Stein	3:22
8.	"Rip Her to Shreds"	Harry, Stein	3:22
9.	"Rifle Range"	Stein, Ronnie Toast	3:41
10.	"Kung Fu Girls"	Harry, Valentine, Destri	2:33
11.	"The Attack of the Giant Ants"	Stein	3:34

Bonus tracks on 2001 CD re-issue

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
12.	"Out in the Streets (Original Instant Records demo)"	Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich	2:20
13.	"The Thin Line (Original Instant Records demo)"	Harry, Stein	2:16
14.	"Platinum Blonde (Original Instant Records demo)"	Harry	2:12
15.	"X Offender (Original Private Stock single version)"	Harry, Valentine	3:13
16.	"In the Sun (Original Private Stock single version)"	Stein	2:38

Personnel

Blondie

• Debbie Harry – vocals
• Chris Stein – guitar, bass on "X Offender"
• Gary Valentine – bass guitar, guitar on "X Offender"
• Jimmy Destri – Farfisa organ, grand piano, RMI piano, Roland synthesizer
• Clem Burke – drums

Additional personnel

• Ellie Greenwich – backing vocals on "In the Flesh" and "Man Overboard"
• Micki Harris – backing vocals on "In the Flesh" and "Man Overboard"
• Hilda Harris – backing vocals on "In the Flesh" and "Man Overboard"

Production

• Richard Gottehrer – producer
• Craig Leon – producer ("X Offender", "In the Sun"), remix engineer
• Rob Freeman  – engineer
• Don Hunerberg – assistant engineer
• Greg Calbi  – mastering
• David Perl  – art direction, design
• Shig Ikeida – photography
• Originally recorded at Plaza Sound Studios, New York, August  – September 1976 and released on Private Stock (2023) in December 1976, reissued on Chrysalis (1165) in October 1977.
• Kevin Flaherty  – 2001 re-issue producer
• Alan Betrock  – original producer of "Out in the Streets", "The Thin Line" and "Platinum Blonde"

Charts

Chart (1977)	Peak position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[11]	14

Chart (1979)	Peak position
UK Albums (OCC)[12]	75

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[13]	Gold	100,000^^
^^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

1. Ruhlmann, William. "Blondie – Blondie". allmusic.com. AllMusic.
2. "Blondie: Blondie". Entertainment Weekly. New York: 85. September 21, 2001.
3. "Blondie: Blondie". Q. London (97): 135. October 1994.
4. Coleman, Mark; Berger, Arion (2004). "Blondie". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 85–86. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved September 23, 2011.
5. Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). "Blondie". Spin Alternative Record Guide. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
6. Christgau, Robert (February 14, 1977). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
7. "Blondie Day on Green Adelaide 5 technologyauthority.net. Archived August 30, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
8. Ravendale, Ian (1978). Audio interview: Blondie's Debbie Harry (1978) (mp3). Rock's Backpages Audio. Event occurs at 4:15 – via Rock's Backpages.
9. Ravendale interview. Event occurs at 1:15.
10. Che, Cathy (1999), 'Deborah Harry: Platinum Blonde', MPG Books Ltd, Cornwall, p. 81.
11. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. pp. 37–38. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
12. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
13. "British album certifications – Blondie – Blondie". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Blondie in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.