13. BlondieParallel Lines
This is another teenage discovery. But do you know what it is? Every now and then, I’m on a train or something, and I just remember something and I had this thought, of all things, about The New Seekers and I listened to ‘Beg, Steal Or Borrow’ and I thought, this is really great! Roxy Music are like that too – you suddenly realise that you like loads of their songs.
And with Blondie, whatever environment you hear their music, you can’t help but be brightened up by it. ‘Atomic’ always gets me. But Parallel Lines is hits, hits, hits. What a golden period! What were they on? It’s just fantastic. It’s partly nostalgic of course, but what’s great is when nostalgia stands up. That’s a great feeling.
Blondie were a fucking incredible band and they never cease to make me happy when I listen to any of the songs on this album. But for all the nostalgia, there’s nothing dated about the music; it’s such a force of nature and the whole meaty and chewy ethos of it is strong fucking stuff.
