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Sarah Warden16/12/2005
DEBBIE Harry is one of the only women in the world who has
defied the conventions of age to remain at the top of the music
industry for more than 30 years.
Lots of men sell out stadia well into their dotage - think
McCartney, Jagger, Dylan etc - but Harry is one of very few women
who has managed to retain the respect of a young audience for
decades.
And it's probably because the group's music has never gone out of
fashion.
Blondie's style has always been impossible to pin down. They began
life as punks, claim to have been responsible for the first ever
hip-hop hit, and have dabbled in rap for as long as they have been
around.
They topped the charts countless times in the late 70s and 80s with
hits that millions still know the words to - Atomic, Denis, Call Me
- and then had a falling out and eventually disintegrated.
But the 16-year gap in their music production and solo success for
Harry didn't foul the band's friendship and they surprised everyone
when their comeback hit Maria became one of the dancefloor anthems
of the 1990s.
And while some of their chart-toppers, like The Tide is High, have
been turned into cheesy toned-down versions by popstars from the
miming era, Blondie have simply got on with making new music.
Their latest album is called The Curse of Blondie. More of a
blessing, I'd say.
Blondie play The Apollo on December 16.
JUST as the re-release of Fairytale of New York next week will
show up most songs vying for the Christmas number one slot as
dross, seeing the Pogues in concert is likely to be a good way to
get rid of X Factor/Girls Aloud cobwebs and remind us all of what
good music is really about.
Ever since they were formed as Pogue Mahone, an Aglicised version
of the Irish for "kiss my arse", the Pogues have been like a breath
of fresh air for folk music in particular and music in general,
with their traditional musical talent, songwriting skills and
distinctive character.
With albums with names like Rum, Sodomy and the Lash, named after a
quote from Winston Churchill, they followed in the footsteps of The
Clash on a political level - Joe Strummer was briefly a member -
and combined their attitude with traditional musical roots.
Some among the folk community have doubtless been a bit put out by
their punk influences, radicalism and, in the case of Shane
MacGowan, alcoholism, over the years, but they are one of very few
bands to have attracted new followers to the traditional form over
the last two decades.
So forget Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire and enjoy Happy
Christmas your arse, I pray God it's our last.
That's the tune of the season!
The Pogues play the MEN Arena on December 17.
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