I'm gonna get ya! (Greatest Hits: Sight & Sound - Blondie)

Member Name: paulhanton

Product:	Greatest Hits: Sight & Sound - Blondie
Date:	13/10/09 (104 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Iconic songs that stand the test of time.

Disadvantages: 4 naff fillers.

Blondie:

Greatest Hits: Sound & Vision (2006).

Before I launch into this review I should say firstly that you can get either this version, the one I am reviewing for £7.99 from iTunes, which, for 18 tracks is pretty good value......or, if you buy 'in the shops' you get 20 tracks and a music DVD, even better value, if you want the DVD. In fact, just to complicate matters further, there are two release versions of this album, 2005 and 2006, the album I bought from iTunes has, I swear, changed from when I bought it!

Blondie was iconic in my teenage years, I was 15 when she hit the charts and like many 15 year old lads I was besotted. She (Debby Harry) was raunchy, feisty, musically great and lyrically inventive. I will go as far as to say that strong female singers like Madonna may not have made it if Debby Harry had not paved the way.

Although Blondie were kind of formed before '78 it was really that year and the next 3 and a half years that were their heyday, although in truth, some of the later songs lacked the punch of the early stuff.

When I first heard 'Denis' I was immediately blown away, not least because she sung some of it in French, how cool was that? Essentially this was a guitar and drums post punk number that was very simple, very catchy and bloomin' brilliant, of course it is included on this album.

The first seven tracks are completely memorable and recognisable as Blondie, no doubt at all. Unfortunately we get to track 8 and I cannot say this was a greatest hit, in fact I had never heard of it before this album; a strange offering that seems to be a weakened version of 'being boiled' from 'Human Leagues', very poor. Come to think of it, I had never heard track 8 before this album either, rubbish, what a shame, for from track 9 we are back into classic Blondie until another bizarre, never heard of offering at track 11.

One of the things that strikes me about this album is the sheer diversity of the musical offerings over such a short career. 'The Tide is High' is a calypso based offering that is just never lost in time, 'Rapture' captured the beginning of the hip hop/rap movement and from a white group, brilliant, 'One Way or Another' captured the raw energy of punk just as the genre was waning in Europe. In fact, 'One Way' is probably my favourite Blondie track mainly because of the gruffness she puts into her vocals at points. Then again, the dreamy vocals of 'Sunday Girl' do rather make my spine tingle and gain...when she sings in French...well, I'm 16 again!

If tracks 8, 9, 11 and 18 were omitted from this album it would be damn near perfect. As it is, the inclusion of said tracks, drags the album down a star in my opinion.

Overall, a great nostalgic listen and good value for money, recommended.

1. Heart Of Glass
2. Sunday Girl
3. Atomic
4. Call Me
5. The Tide Is High
6. Rapture
7. Maria
8. In the Flesh
9. Rip Her to Shreds
10. Denis
11. Picture This
12. Fade Away and Radiate
13. Hanging on the Telephone
14. One Way or Another
15. Dreaming
16. Union City Blue
17. Island of Lost Souls
18. Good Boys

Summary: Blondie.