BLONDIE : DREAMING [CHRYSALIS - ESP 1979] 7'

Blondie "Dreaming" single 7"

(Chrysalis) 1979 made in Spain

cat. num. 100 701-A

#new wave #pop rock

Dreaming3:03Sound Asleep4:12

Blondie was unusual among the New York punk bands in that they were unafraid to dabble in the cheesiest conventions of pop music, not out of their much-vaunted "sense of irony," but because they genuinely loved them. As a result, Blondie was the only New York punk band to write many honest-to-AM love songs, and "Dreaming" is probably the gooiest of the lot. For all the downtown hipster references of Debbie Harry's lyrics, the soaring chorus is as googly eyed as Davy Jones in any episode of The Monkees where he falls in love with that week's guest star, and she jumps into it with the guileless verve of Lesley Gore singing "Sunshine Lollipops and Rainbows." The song's real stars, however, are Chris Stein's bumblebee buzz guitar riff and especially Clem Burke, who overplays like Keith Moon on espresso-laced purple hearts, throwing utterly unnecessary rolls and fills into nearly every bar of the song. It's an amazing performance, possibly the most over-the-top effort by a rock & roll drummer in the entire 1970s, and a must to hear.