Blondie

Blondie are one of the most iconic bands of all time. Who hasn’t drunkenly tried their hand at ‘Heart Of Glass’ at karaoke or sung along to ‘Rapture’? Having enjoyed success for so many years, they’ve had evolving influences and more experiences of touring than we’ve had hot dinners. Blondie’s drummer, Clem Burke, talks to us about working with Debbie Harry, playing to thousands of people and what’s coming up for Blondie in the future.

Hey! How are you doing?

I’m fine today, just getting ready for our U.S tour. We’re touring with Devo, which we’re looking forward to.

You’re playing at Homebake, Sydney too. Are you looking forward to that?

I think we’re the first international band to headline that, which is exciting.

What’s it like being part of one of the most iconic bands to date?

Well it’s something I’ve gotten used to over the years I guess – not to be taken for granted though! We had a lot of early success in Australia and rather than just being a US band, we’re very much an international band and play all over the world, which is great. I think other bands who have had success in the States didn’t particularly translate around the world the way we did.

You’ve enjoyed success for a long time as a band. What do you think bands have to do to get to that stage?

A bit of innovation at the time when you form and doing something a bit different that time catches up with. We were a part of the whole ‘heebie jeebie’ New York music movement which has assimilated into popular culture nowadays and we’re one of the few bands who are still relatively together from back in that era. We also had a fantastic image with Debbie as a front person, we had a bit of eye-candy, and I think we were just different at that time.

How much is it about the music?

The music is what stands out. The songs are the main thing now. An image changes, an image can fall by the wayside as people age, but the musicianship continues.

Do you think there have been any significant changes to the way you perform over the years?

I think you get more confident as you get a bit older and it’s still very exciting to play to thousands of people, there’s no doubt about that. I don’t want to say performing is an addiction or an obsession, but it is a gratifying experience to perform your music to people who are enjoying it.

Is there a song you particularly enjoy performing, one the crowd really responds to?

If you’ve got a new song, that’s always fun to perform. It’s fun to do something unexpected with that, to debut it. But then when you’ve got a song that’s very iconic and recognisable like a part of ‘Rapture’ you can sense the exuberance of the audience.

What effect do you want your music to have on people?

We were never really a particularly dark band, so it’s more like a party when we perform. The music is probably a little bit more uplifting in general. There’s a dark side to it, there’s an edge to us as people because of coming from New York City, that being where we grew up. But the music is more about sending out a positive message and feeling. That’s how our music affects people, we don’t want them to feel down when they’re listening to Blondie.

At what point as a band did you realise you had ‘made it’?

Oh jeez, I don’t know. It’s a rollercoaster ride. You could be selling out a club to 300 people and then you sell out theatres to 3000 people and then suddenly you’re playing to 30,000 people. There are career highs and also career lows. I think when you realise you’ve been doing this for such a long time that’s got to be part of making it. When you’re able to have a career and make a life out of it. And of course the money helps!

What things have influenced your music?

Growing up in New York, being the melting pot that it is, there’s a lot of culture around you. That’s why you see the band exploring with different types of things, whether it be Disco, Rap or Dance music. You’re just influenced by the art, the people, by the architecture. Most stages in life you can incorporate into your music, I think that’s what we’re a product of. We’re definitely an urban band and the sound is influenced by what came before, musically. Now it’s influenced by bands like The Village People, or something more contemporary. Dance music of today and contemporary rap music has become an influence now. The roots of the band though, are in the 60s and 70s.

So your music evolves with the times, is that what helps it to stay relevant to people?

I think we encapsulated a lot of the times, we expanded on what was going on for us and what was going on in the rest of the music scene around us. People feed off each other, and with art you always take elements from other people. I think our music is also experimental, such as ‘Heart Of Glass’ which was an experimental song for us at the time. It was a big pop song and we were experimenting, stepping out of our comfort zone. I think that’s one of the things we still try to do now, it keeps you ahead of things a little bit.

You have also been a drummer for other really big names such as Joan Jett. Is there a collaboration you particularly enjoyed?

I worked with Eurythmics for a bit and we did a couple of gigs around Australia and that was really good for me, I really enjoyed that. I like playing for other musicians, like Blondie is my home base and then you go off and do other things and you learn from that. I’ve worked with a lot of people over the years and being in Blondie was what first enabled me to do these things. When you work with other people, you learn and you come back to your home base with new knowledge. You’re growing as a person and as a musician.

What’s it been like working with Debbie Harry?

Well, we’ve known each other for a really long time. It’s kind of like a strange little family. Of course when I first met Debbie I sensed her charisma and the magic that she had and that’s why I chose to work with her and why she chose to work with me. It’s a relationship that’s gone on a very long time, we’ve all travelled as a band, we’ve all slept in the same bed and now this is where we are!

What’s the craziest thing that’s happened to you guys on tour?

Probably the first time we came to Australia in the 70s, that was pretty crazy! I don’t think we were prepared for the success that we were having down there and that was a whirlwind experience for us. Having said that, we tried to keep things in check a lot. Of course there have been mishaps, but nothing outrageous! It’s all a rollercoaster, you have to hang on and not lose control! We had a great deal of success and we’re still having fun and being on tour is just exciting, it’s kind of like being on holiday. Touring is really very organised, but for example London was quite crazy. We would be talking to thousands of people in the street after playing and there was this chaos, which I really enjoyed. I enjoyed the chaos of success, it’s something you need to embrace.

What’s happening for Blondie in the future?

Oh jeez! Well, I can tell you we’re going to be on tour in Australia in December and next year we’re planning to do a world tour with a very strong co-headliner. We’ll also be writing and recording more music, but predicting for example five years down the line, would be difficult.

Thank you so much for talking to me!

Ok, take care, bye!

By Anna Tabrah