Parallel Lines: Blondie Gets Linear and Mainstream
Written: Dec 21 '08
Product Rating:
Pros: An incredible release from an incredible band.
Cons: You shut yo mouth.
The Bottom Line: Though I enjoyed Blondie's crazy experimentation on Autoamerican more, Parallel Lines is still another 5-star Blondie album with incredible songs and a near-perfect feel.
tjhassecrets's Full Review: Parallel Lines [Bonus Tracks] [Remaster] by Blondi...
Don't be fooled by the highly sarcastic title of this review. Despite the fact that Blondie was getting to become a mainstream pop/rock band, their 1978 Parallel Lines album is the complete package: the hits, the fun, the Blondie-persona. Pure and unadulterated. Though I didn't enjoy it as much as I did Autoamerican from 1980, it's still one of the greatest records that not only they released, but to come out of the 1970s. Delivering hit single after hit single, Parallel Lines became the band's magnum opus, well-known for its disco experimentation and new wave sound. I consider this album to be a great representation of what they did and where they were going with the first half (1975 to 1981) of their career. The fun, 1950s influences present on the eponymous Blondie are well balanced with the new wave Plastic Letters and Eat to the Beat, along with some of the pure fun found on The Hunter.
With Parallel Lines, Blondie became a huge success, making vocalist Debbie Harry a household name. Her powerful vocals really shine on this album, and they mesh well with the highly stylized instrumentation. Despite the fact that on the album's cover (especially on the 30th Anniversary Edition) Ms. Harry is prominently featured in her white party dress, the band is just as much a star. Our opener is a signature Blondie song: Hanging on the Telephone combines a punk attitude with a mainstream rock sound, letting the listener know where they are and they've been. This song, as well as just about every other track, is a short snippet of a tune, clocking in a little over two minutes. It's amazing that they can pack so much style into such a short time, but they do. Debbie's growling vocals go to war over the band's urgent strumming and pounding. One Way Or Another is another signature track, starting off with one of the most well-known guitar introductions in the history of music, being used (and misused) by everything from cheesy commercials to The Rugrats Movie (re-sung by Ms. Angelica Diva Pickles).
Other singles include the personal favorite Sunday Girl, which is like 1955 wrapped up in catchy pop song (featuring some impromptu French from Ms. Harry, a common theme found throughout her solo work), as well as Picture This, another song only Blondie could make. But the biggest hit from this album, and this is no surprise at all, is the disco anthem Heart of Glass, which shot them into the stratosphere. This dance track has a beat that you never want to end, and the result of the overproduction is something Chris Stein referred to as "manual disco." In other words, rather than using a machine, the entire song's bass, vocals, percussion, etc. are all done through instrumentation rather than through a button. Impressive. Once had love, and it was a gas; soon turned out, had a heart of glass.
While this album is primarily known for its hit singles, the album cuts are just as solid. I'm Gonna Love You Too is intense, loud, in-your-face, and takes the Chuck Berry rock n roll sound to a whole new level, as Debbie screams "You're gonna say you'll miss me, and you're gonna say you'll kiss me, and you're gonna say you'll love me, 'cause I'M-A GONNA LOVE YOU, TOO!" She's very demanding on this song, and chances are, it's working. 11:59 is a great urgent track about when it all comes to a head-- the death theme would be revisited on Jem's 24, another amazing song about counting down to a death. Just Go Away, which closes out this incredible album, is another playful 50s inspired song that really could have been a hit single, so put up or shut up.
If you're not a fan of Blondie, this album will make you one. If you are a fan of Blondie, then you probably want to beat me for saying Autoamerican is better. Anybody interested in hearing such an original spin on the classic rock and roll sound needs to hear this album. In fact, everybody needs to hear this album, because without Debbie Harry's snarling, sexy attitude and talent, we wouldn't have much of the music we have now.
I'm in the phone booth-- it's the one across the hall. If you don't answer, I'll just rip it off the wall!
TRACKLIST Hanging on the Telephone One Way or Another Picture This Fade Away and Radiate Pretty Baby I Know But I Don't Know 11:59 Will Anything Happen? Sunday Girl Heart of Glass I'm Gonna Love You Too Just Go Away
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