Debbie Harry

Deborah Ann Harry (born 1945 July 1, in Miami, Florida) is Grammy Award winning,Golden Globe nominated American rock and roll musician from New Jersey. She originally gained fame as the frontwoman for the new wave band Blondie. Following this success, she went on to develop prolific careers as a solo musician and an actress.

Life and career

Harry was adopted at three months of age by a family from Hawthorne, New Jersey and attended Hawthorne High School. Prior to starting her singing career she moved to New York in the late 60's and worked as a secretary at the BBC Radio New York office for one year. Later, she was a waitress, a dancer in Union City, and a Playboy Bunny.

Early Musical Career

She began her musical career with the folk rock group, the Wind in the Willows. Harry then joined a girl-group trio, the Stilettos, in the early 1970s. The Stilettos' backup band included her eventual boyfriend and Blondie guitarist, Chris Stein. Harry and Stein formed the band Blondie in the mid 1970s, naming it after the catcalls men would give Harry while passing by in their cars. Blondie quickly became regulars at Max's Kansas City and CBGB's in New York City. After a debut album in 1976, commercial success followed in the late 1970s and early 1980s, first in Australia and Europe, then in the United States.

In Blondie

With her two-tone bottle-blonde hair, Debbie Harry quickly became a recognizable icon of punk style. Her look was further popularized by the band's early presence in the music video revolution of the era. The clip for 'Rapture' appeared within the first 24 hours of MTV's launch. Harry's strong stage persona of cool sexuality and streetwise style became so closely associated with the group's name that many came to believe the singer's name to be "Blondie", to her lasting chagrin. To complicate matters further, Harry has sometimes described "Blondie" as being the character she plays onstage with the band as well as the band's name. The difference between the individual Harry and the band Blondie was famously highlighted with a "Blondie is a Group" button campaign by the band in 1979.

Solo Career Begins: KooKoo

Harry began her solo career with the Gold Certified album Koo Koo in 1981 (see 1981 in music). At the time, Blondie had not officially disbanded, so the solo album was seen as a side project and a tentative step toward a solo career. Koo Koo was a collaboration with Chic's Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards and featured the artwork of H.R. Giger on the cover. 'Backfired' was the first single from the album, followed by 'The Jam Was Moving'. Two tracks, 'Backfired' and 'Now I Know You Know' had music videos directed by Giger.

The Demise of Blondie: The Hunter

In 1982 Blondie regrouped and released their sixth studio album The Hunter, which featured the U.S. and U.K. hit single 'Island of Lost Souls' and the U.K. hit 'War Child'. Blondie launched a North American tour to support the release, however, this was cut short when Harry's lover, guitarist Chris Stein, fell ill with the rare genetic disease pemphigus. From 1983 through 1986, Harry minimized her public life and musical career in order to care for him. Stein fully recovered and continues a musical relationship with Harry, but their romantic relationship ended in 1987.

During this period Harry teamed up with Giorgio Moroder (with whom she had worked previously on Blondie's 'Call Me') on the song 'Rush Rush', which was featured in the film Scarface (and later, the Grand Theft Auto III radio station "Flashback FM"). She appeared on Broadway with Andy Kaufman in the wrestling play Teaneck Tanzi. A retitled version of the British play Trafford Tanzi, the show failed to transplant itself successfully to Broadway, and opened and closed in one night.

In 1983 Harry, who had already appeared in a number of independent and underground films, made her major motion picture debut in the David Cronenberg film Videodrome, in which she plays the character Nicki Brand.

Rockbird

Harry's single 'Feel the Spin', produced by John "Jellybean" Benitez, was released in 1985 , and along with the whole soundtrack to the film Krush Groove, peaked at #2 on the U.S. Dance Charts. The song's 'uno dos tres quatro' intro has been sampled on a number of records including S-Express's 'Theme From S-Express'.

In 1986 Debbie Harry released her second solo album Rockbird and the single 'French Kissin' in the USA' brought her into the U.K. top 10 singles chart. Other singles released from the album were 'Free to Fall' and 'In Love With Love' which hit #1 on the U.S. Dance Charts. 'In Love With Love' was a club hit with a proliferation of remixes. Following the release of Rockbird, Debbie took a number of acting roles including the part of Velma Von Tussle in John Waters' 'Hairspray' (1988). She also appeared in the U.S. TV series Wiseguy. A cover of the The Castaways' 'Liar Liar' from the soundtrack to the film Married to the Mob was released as a single in the U.S. Harry's version of Micheal Jay's 'Mind Over Matter' was also recorded in this period, but never released.

Def, Dumb and Blonde

Debbie Harry's next solo venture was the album Def, Dumb and Blonde in 1989. Anchored by the songwriting partnership of Harry and guitarist Chris Stein, Def, Dumb and Blonde was primarily produced by Blondie producer Mike Chapman, with Thompson Twins and Arthur Baker producing two further tracks each. At this point Harry reverted from "Debbie" to "Deborah" for her professional name. The first single 'I Want That Man' was a big hit in Europe, Australia, and on the U.S. Modern Rock Charts. She followed this up with the ballad 'Brite Side' and the club hit 'Sweet and Low' (both of which were produced by Arthur Baker). 'Maybe For Sure', a track orginally originally recorded for the Rock and Rule animated film, was the fourth single released from the album in June 1990 to coincide with a U.K. tour. 'Kiss It Better' was also a Top 15 Modern Rock single in the U.S. and also a moderate hit in Australia.

The Complete Picture

During the period 1989 to 1991 Deborah toured extensively across the world with former Blondie guitarist Chris Stein, Underworld's Karl Hyde, and Blondie Mk2 bassist Leigh Foxx. In July 1991 she played Wembley Stadium with INXS. She also starred in the film Intimate Stranger in which she played a telephone sex worker pursued by a serial killer. In 1991 Chrysalis released a "best of" compilation in Europe entitled The Complete Picture: The Very Best of Deborah Harry and Blondie, containing hits with Blondie as well as solo hits. The collection reached number three in the UK album charts. The album also included her duet with Iggy Pop on the Cole Porter song 'Well Did You Evah!' (produced by Stein) from the Red Hot and Blue AIDS charity album released at the end of 1990. While recording her next album in 1992 Deborah Harry collaborated with German metallers Die Haut on the track 'Don't Cross My Mind', and released the song 'Prelude to a Kiss' on the soundtrack to the film of the same name. She also released a cover of 'Summertime Blues' from the soundtrack to the film That Night in Australia.

1990's

Deborah Harry's fourth solo album Debravation appeared in July 1993. Variously produced by Chris Stein, Arthur Baker and Anne Dudley, the album's first single was the Baker produced 'I Can See Clearly' which was a hit in the U.K. and on the U.S. dance charts (reaching number 2). The B-side was a duet with Joey Ramone entitled 'Standing In My Way'. This was followed by 'Strike Me Pink' in September. Controversy surrounded the latter track's drowning man video, which was banned and subsequent record company promo cancelled. U.S. editions of the album feature two additional tracks recorded with pre-recorded music by REM: 'Tear Drops' and 'My Last Date (With You)'. In November 1993 Deborah Harry toured the UK with Chris Stein, Peter Min, Greta Brinkman and James Murphy. The set list of the Debravation Tour featured an offbeat selection of Harry material including the previously unreleased track 'Close Your Eyes' (from 1989) and 'Ordinary Bummer' (from the Stein produced Iggy Pop album Zombie Birdhouse; a track which under the moniker 'Adolph's Dog' Blondie would cover in 1997). Tentative plans to record these shows and release them as a double live CD never came to fruition. However, a cover of The Rolling Stones 'Wild Horses' is available as a bootleg. At the end of 1993 Chrysalis released the Blondie rarities collection Blonde and Beyond, which featured the previously unreleased tracks 'Scenery' and 'Underground Girl'. In early 1994 Harry took the Debravation tour to the U.S.

In the mid-nineties, Harry teamed up with NYC avant-garde jazz ensemble The Jazz Passengers. Between 1994 and 1998 she was a permanent member of the troupe, touring North America and Europe. She was a featured vocalist on their 1994 album In Love singing the track 'Dog In Sand'. The follow-up album, 1997's Individually Twisted, is credited as "The Jazz Passengers featuring Deborah Harry" and Harry sings vocals throughout, teaming up with guest Elvis Costello for a cover of 'Doncha Go Way Mad'. The album also features a re-recorded version of the song 'The Tide Is High', which she had previously had a hit with while a part of Blondie. A live album entitled Live In Spain, again featuring Harry on vocals, was released in 1998.

Harry collaborated on a number of other projects with a myriad of artists. She featured as vocalist on Talking Heads side project The Heads' 1996 release No Talking Just Head (performing the title track and 'Punk Lolita'). She also sings on a cover of 'Strawberry Fields' by Argentian band Los Fabulosos Cadillacs. In 1997 she collaborated with Jazz Passenger Bill Ware in his side project Groove Thing, singing lead vocals on the club hit 'Command and Obey'. Another JP collaboration appeared on the Edgar Allen Poe tribute album Closed on Account of Rabies (1997). Harry also reunited with Blondie keyboardist Jimmy Destri for a cover of Otis Blackwell's 'Don't Be Cruel' for the 1995 tribute album Brace Yourself. The 90's also saw the release of Blondie remix albums Beautiful (in Europe) and Remixed Remade Remodeled (in the U.S.). New mixes of 'Heart of Glass', 'Atomic', and 'Union City Blue' were released as singles and all made the UK Top 40, while remixes of 'Atomic', 'Rapture', and 'Heart of Glass' had major success on the U.S. dance charts.

1997 - Present: Blondie's Back

In 1997 Blondie began working together again for the first time in 15 years. Two tracks recorded with T.V. Mania (the production duo of Duran Duran members Nick Rhodes and Warren Cuccurullo), 'Studio 54' and 'Pop Trash Movie' were scheduled to be released on a Blondie compilation entitled This Is Blondie. However, the project and the tracks were shelved as the four original members (Harry, Stein, Burke and Destri) embarked on sessions for what would become Blondie's seventh studio album. During this period they released a cover of Iggy Pop's 'Ordinary Bummer' on the Pop tribute album We Will Fall (1997).

After a final tour of Europe with The Jazz Passengers in the summer of 1998, Deborah Harry resumed duties as lead vocalist of Blondie. Prior to the release of No Exit the band completed a rapturously received sell out tour of Europe. Dates at London's Lyceum Theatre were recorded by the BBC and aired on UK Radio. A week prior to the release of No Exit, the lead single 'Maria' debuted at number one in the UK, making Harry the oldest female singer to reach No. 1 in the UK a record she still holds. 'Maria' hit #1 in 14 different countries, the top 10 on the US Dance Charts, and Top 15 on the US Adult Top 40 Charts. The album No Exit debuted at No.3 in the UK and #17 in the US, where it is very close to gold certification, and Blondie announced dates for a major Arena tour that summer during which they played the Glastonbery Festival and Party in the Park in London. 'Nothing Is Real But The Girl' was another UK Top 30 hit, while the title track was released as a single to coincide with further arena dates in November that year.

Tracks culled from dates throughout the 1999 world tour were released as a live album, titled Live in the U.S. and Livid in the U.K., and released in late 1999 and early 2000 respectively. A Blondie Live companion DVD was also released, recorded at a show in NYC Town Hall.

Although Blondie commenced recording tracks for the follow-up to No Exit in 2001 the session were besieged with problems including the loss of master tapes after 9/11 (though the loss of master tapes had nothing to do with the incident itself). In the winter of 2002 Blondie burst back into life with a full scale UK tour. This preceded the release of a new single in summer of 2003 entitled 'Good Boys' (a hit across the UK and Europe that autumn, and top 10 on the US Dance Charts the following spring) and the release of Blondie's eighth studio album, the critically acclaimed The Curse of Blondie. Blondie toured throughout 2003 and 2004 completing two further full scale tours of the UK. A second live album, entitled Live By Request, was released in 2005 along with companion DVD set. 2005 saw the release of a dual disk CD/DVD of The Curse of Blondie and a mash-up, 'Rapture Riders', which combined their 1981 hit 'Rapture' with The Doors' 'Riders on the Storm'. In the winter of 2005 Blondie toured the UK for the fourth time in as many years.

In 2006 they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Around this time Blondie released a new studio track, a cover of the famous Roxy Music song 'More Than This' to promote their "Road Rage" tour. Dates have just been announced for a UK tour in the summer of 2007.

Solo Projects: 1997 - Present

Aside from writing and recording material for Blondie, Harry pursued a number of solo projects. She appears on the 2001 Bill Ware album Vibes 4 singing the track 'Me and You' as well as on ex-Police guitarist Andy Summer's album, Peggy's Blue Skylight on the track 'Weird Nightmare'. A techno cover of Stan Jones' 'Ghost Riders in the Sky' was featured on the soundtrack to the film Three Business Men and was available on her website to download. Harry sings on two tracks on Andrea Griminelli's Cinema Italiano project; 'Amarcord' and 'You'll Come To Me', as well as on a tribute album reinterpreting the music of Harold Arlen, on which she sings the title track 'Stormy Weather'. A high point in Deborah Harry's career as a solo artist came in May 2002 when accompanied by The Jazz Passengers and the BBC concert orechestra she performed a selection of her jazz material at the Barbican centre in London.

In 2003 she was featured vocalist on the song 'Uncontrollable Love' by electro-clash dance producers Blow Up. Harry appeared on the VH1 Divas Live television show, as well as Lifetime's Annual Cancer Awareness Show, where she sang various Blondie hits, as well as dueting with Joss Stone on 'One Way or Another', and Shirley Manson on 'Bounce Along'.

Deborah Harry has continued to produce new music in a variety of guises. In 2006 she spoke out against rapper Lil' Kim's incarceration in the song 'Dirty and Deep' released via the internet. November 2006 saw the release of a collaboration with Moby on the electro-pop hit 'New York New York'. Throughout this period a number of new tracks have surfaced (but since disappeared) from Harry's MySpace page, including 'Charm Alarm', 'Deep End', and 'School for Scandal', as well as a song called 'God Save New York' in which she dueted with Miss Guy (of Toilet Boys fame). Recorded with NYC producer Super Buddha, it is anticipated that these may surface on a Deborah Harry solo album to be released in 2007, possibly to be promoted while she co-headlines Cyndi Lauper's True Colors Tour, in support of the U.S. gay rights organization HRC (Human Rights Campaign).

Acting roles

Some of Harry's notable film roles are appearances in Videodrome (1983); Union City (1980); New York Beat (otherwise known as Downtown '81, in which she plays the angel of the East Village alongside Jean-Michel Basquiat); Rock & Rule (1983), an animated movie where she did vocals opposite Robin Zander of Cheap Trick; John Waters' Hairspray (1988), in which she played the big-haired and villainous Velma von Tussle, paired with Sonny Bono as her husband; and Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990). She also had notable roles in such films as Spun, Cop Land, Heavy and My Life Without Me, and is featured in David Munro's upcoming feature film Full Grown Men.

Her TV guest appearances include The Muppet Show, MADtv, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Will & Grace, Absolutely Fabulous, Saturday Night Live (as a musical guest and a host) and Wiseguy.

She had a voice role in the video game, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, as a cab dispatcher, and sang "Ghost Riders in the Sky" over the closing credits of Alex Cox's film Three Businessmen.

She played the role of "Elizabeth" in the FMV-based game Double Switch, which was released for the Sega CD (1993), the Sega Saturn, Apple Macintosh, and Windows 95.

She played the lead in the 2005 short film I Remember You Now directed by Henry S. Miller, and worked with the same director again in his 2007 psychological thriller Anamorph.

Trivia

• Harry entered the Guinness World Book of Records in 1999 as the "Oldest Female Singer to Reach No. 1 in the UK Chart." This happened when Blondie went to number one with "Maria" on February 13, 1999 at the age of 53 years and 227 days.

• She is a strong advocate for Gay Rights and Gay Marriage. Though she has stated that she identifies as mostly heterosexual, Harry has said she has had intimate relationships with both men and women. [1] [2] She is consequently featured True Colors Tour 2007 thereon.

Current Projects Overview

• Harry is one of the faces of MAC Cosmetics' Viva Glam VI campaign. The campaign donates every cent of the selling price of their iconic lipstick shades to the MAC AIDS Fund, which helps people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide.

• Performing Solo as part of Cyndi Lauper's True Colours Tour, with several other artists.

• European Tour in 2007 (with Blondie).

• Solo Album, with 2007 release (rumoured).

Discography

See also Blondie discography

Albums

• Koo Koo (1981)
• Rockbird (1986)
• Once More Into The Bleach (1988)
• Def, Dumb and Blonde (1989)
• The Complete Picture - The Very Best Of Deborah Harry And Blondie (1991)
• Debravation (1993)
• Individually Twisted (1997) (The Jazz Passengers featuring Deborah Harry)
• Live In Spain (1998) (The Jazz Passengers featuring Deborah Harry)

Singles

Artist	Year	Song	US Hot 100	US Dance	US Modern Rock	UK singles	Album
Debbie Harry	1981	"Backfired"	43	29	-	32	Koo Koo
Debbie Harry	1981	"The Jam Was Moving"	82	-	-	-	Koo Koo
Debbie Harry	1983	"Rush, Rush"	105	28	-	87	Scarface (Soundtrack)
Debbie Harry	1985	"Feel The Spin"	-	-	-	-	Krush Groove (Soundtrack)
Debbie Harry	1986	"French Kissin' in the USA"	57	-	-	8	Rockbird
Debbie Harry	1986	"In Love With Love"	70	1	-	45	Rockbird
Debbie Harry	1986	"Free To Fall"	-	-	-	46	Rockbird
Debbie Harry	1988	"Denis '88"/ "Rapture '88"	-	-	-	-	Once More Into The Bleach
Debbie Harry	1988	"Liar, Liar"	-	-	14	-	Married To The Mob (Soundtrack)
Deborah Harry	1989	"I Want That Man"	-	-	2	13	Def, Dumb and Blonde
Deborah Harry	1989	"Kiss It Better"	-	-	12	-	Def, Dumb and Blonde
Deborah Harry	1989	"Brite Side"	-	-	-	59	Def, Dumb and Blonde
Deborah Harry	1990	"Sweet and Low"	-	17	-	57	Def, Dumb and Blonde
Deborah Harry	1990	"Maybe For Sure"	-	-	-	89	Def, Dumb and Blonde
Deborah Harry	1992	"Summertime Blues"	-	-	-		That Night (Soundtrack)
Deborah Harry	1993	"I Can See Clearly"	-	2	-	23	Debravation
Deborah Harry	1993	"Strike Me Pink"	-	-	-	46	Debravation
Groove Thing featuring Debbie Harry	1997	"Command and Obey"	-	42	-	-	This Is No Time
Groove Thing featuring Debbie Harry	1999	"Command and Obey" (Remix)	-	49	-	-	-
Deborah Harry and Robbie Jacks	1998	Der Einzige Weg (The Only Way)	-	-	-	-	-
Deborah Harry	2001	"Ghost Riders In The Sky"	-	-	-	-	Internet Only Release
Deborah Harry	2006	"Dirty and Deep"	-	-	-	-	Internet Only Release
Moby featuring Debbie Harry	2006	"New York, New York"	-	-	-	43	Go: The Very Best of Moby

Filmography

• Unmade Beds (1976)
• Deadly Hero (1976)
• The Blank Generation (1976) (documentary)
• The Foreigner (1978)
• Mr. Mike's Mondo Video (1979)
• Union City (1980)
• Roadie (1980)
• New York Beat Movie (1981)
• A New Face of Debbie Harry (1982) (short subject)
• Rock & Rule (1983) (voice)
• Videodrome (1983)
• Forever, Lulu (1987)
• Satisfaction (1988)
• Hairspray (1988)
• New York Stories (1989)
• Tales from the Darkside: The Movie (1990)
• Double Switch (full motion video video game) (1993)
• Dead Beat (1994)
• Drop Dead Rock (1995)
• Heavy (1995)
• Wigstock: The Movie (1995) (documentary)
• Sandman (1996) (short subject)
• Cop Land (1997)
• Six Ways to Sunday (1997)
• Who Is Harry Smith? (1998) (documentary)
• Joe's Day (1998)
• Zoo (1999)
• Red Lipstick (2000)
• The Fluffer (2001)
• Deuces Wild (2002)
• Spun (2002)
• Try Seventeen (2002)
• End of the Century: The Story of the Ramones (2003) (documentary)
• My Life Without Me (2003)
• A Good Night to Die (2003)
• Ghostlight (2003)
• The Tulse Luper Suitcases, Part 1: The Moab Story (2003)
• Mayor of the Sunset Strip (2003) (documentary)
• Ramones Raw (2004) (documentary)
• Picture This: Blondie and Debbie Harry (2004) (documentary)
• Honey Trap (2005) (short subject)
• Kiki and Herb Reloaded (2005) (documentary)
• All We Are Saying (2005) (documentary)
• Patch (2005) (short subject)
• Face Addict (2005) (documentary)
• I Remember You Now... (2005) (short subject)
• Full Grown Men(2006)

Upcoming:

• Anamorph (2007)
• House of Boys (2007)

External links

• Deborah Harry Home Page, Official Deborah Harry site
• Deborah Harry, Deborah Harry's personal blog on official Blondie site
• Deborah Harry's MySpace, Official MySpace page
• DHBIS Mailing List, Official Deborah Harry & Blondie Mailing List
• Tribute To Deborah Harry, By former tour manger
• Retro Fan Club, Extensive collection of old fan club memorabilia
• UnRated Magazine: Blondie Live Review

• Deborah Harry at the Internet Movie Database

This article is based on a GNU FDL LGBT Wikia article: Harry Debbie Harry

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