Blonde Ambition
Here’s a fact, back in the late 70s when Blondie first broke onto the scene Debbie Harry was everything that a front woman should be, gorgeous to look at, captivating stage presence and a unique voice. Thirty years on not much of that has changed, OK she’s starting to look her age but she proves tonight that she still has the voice that made Blondie a household name.
The set list tonight is based around the 30th anniversary of the ‘Parallel Lines’ album but there is still plenty of room for a raft of classics. The large crowd down at the main stage are in fine voice and enthusiastically sing along to pretty much every word throughout the set. ‘Hanging on the Telephone’ is followed by ‘One Way’, ‘Picture This’, ‘Fade Away & Radiate’, ‘Pretty baby’ & ‘11:59’ and throughout the musicianship is faultless, they play like a band at the peak of their career. That said I’m a little surprised at how light most of the songs are, sure they are catchy but they lack any real punch and there’s not a great deal of energy up on stage.
Harry was never the most active front woman and although she dances around a little she never really seems to get into it that much. The crowd don’t seem to mind though and as you’d expect for a set full of well known songs they go down extremely well. They save some of the best until the end with ‘Sunday Girl’, ‘Call Me’ and ‘Tide is High’ leading up to an unusual finale of a cover of the Stones ‘Get Off My Cloud’. A good set for this festival that has a reputation for nostalgia acts on the main stage but I’m not sure I’d pay to go and see them in their own right but I’m heartily outvoted by the majority of the crowd and most seem more than happy with the evening’s proceedings.