My Top 2000 Songs #1131: Rip Her To Shreds

In my mind, Blondie manages to be both underrated and overrated. Underrated insofar as they have a solid greatest hits album chock full of terrific pop singles, not to mention some terrifically fun deep cuts on the first few records. But at the same time overrated: while often grouped with other first-wave NYC punk/new wave acts like the Ramones, Talking Heads, and Television (and I'd throw in the Feelies, typically omitted from that CBGB's cast of legends but equally deserving), I've never found them to be quite at that level of innovation. In other words, not necessarily a groundbreaking band musically (culturally is a different story), but still damned great.

I think their self-titled 1976 debut holds up pretty well, a mix of retro girl-group pop and a proto new wave edge, captured particularly well on "Rip Her To Shreds." Musically it owes far more to 50s pop and 60s garage band rock than to the punk scene (though you can hear a bit of Stooges in the music), but lyrically it has a pretty savage edge. Whether it's directed unpleasantly at certain women in the scene, or more appropriately at the catty coverage of such women in the press, is kinda left up for grabs.

Live 1979 (some distortion in the recording):

Live 1977:

Live 1999:

Covered by Come Ons:

As covered for Mean Girls: