Three Songs from Blondie

The soundtrack to my life when I was in my middle teens included such bands as Cheap Trick, The Cars, The Knack, The Ramones, and Blondie. It is for that reason that I was particularly saddened by Clem Burke's death. Aside from being the drummer of one of my favourite band and one of the best drummers ever, Clem Burke's death spells the end of Blondie for me. It's hard to see the band continuing with only Deborah Harry and Chris Stein, particularly given Chris Stein's health has not been good of late. Anyway, I have been listening to Blondie more than usual and I thought I would share three of my favourite songs from the group.

First up is my all-time favourite Blondie song, "Atomic." The song was written by keyboardist Jimmy Destri and Debbie Harry. It originated as his attempt to doing something along the line of Blondie's earlier song "Heart of Glass," but evolved into something else. Amazingly enough, while "Atomic" is one of Blondie's best known songs, it only went to no. 39 on the Billboard Hot 100 when it was released in 1979.


Like "Atomic,' "Dreaming" is also from the Blondie album Eat to the Beat. It was written by Chris Stein and Debbie Harry. The song grew out the line "dreaming is free," which occurred to Chris Stein. Debbie Harry then worked out the rest of the lyrics from there. I have always thought that "Dreaming" was one of Blondie's more purely power pop songs, power pop being my favourite subgenre of rock music.Though I don't think it is remembered as well as "Atomic," it actually did better on the Billboard Hot 100, going all the way to no. 27.



While "Atomic" and "Dreaming" were both singles, "Petty Baby" was an album track from Parallel Lines. The song was supposedly inspired by Brooke Shields in the movie Pretty Baby (1978), While I have no doubt that this is true, I have always had trouble wrapping my head around it because of the line "petite ingenue." Supposedly by the time she was 13 she was already 5' 4", which I really wouldn't describe as "petite." Maybe Debbie Harry underestimated Brooke Shields's height or simply liked the line. Regardless, I do love the song and there is no denying it is catchy.

Godspeed Drummer Clem Burke

Clem Burke, the drummer for the rock group Blondie, died on April 6 2025 at the age of 70. The cause was cancer. He had played on every single one of Blondie's albums.

Clem Burke ws born Clement Bozewski on November 24 1954 in Bayonne, New Jersey. His father had also been a drummer and he began playing drums while very young. In the late Sixties and early Seventies he played with various local New Jersey bands. He was also a member of the St Andrew's Bridgemen Drum and Bugle Corps in Bayonne for a time.

It was in early 1975 that Debbie Harry and Chris Stein recruited Clem Burke to replace original drummer Billy O'Connor. The band went onto perform regularly at Max's Kansas City and CBGB in New York City. They eventually signed with Private Stock Records and their first, self-titled album was released in December 1976. Their debut album would be followed by Plastic Letters in 1978. Their breakthrough album, Parallel Lines, was released in 1978. It was also that year that they had their first major hit, "Heart of Glass," which went all the way to no. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Blondie continued to do very well, producing such hits as "Call Me," "Atomic," "The Tide is High," and "Rapture," until their album The Hunter in 1982. The album itself only went to no. 33 on the Billboard album chart while the only single from the album to chart, "Island of Lost Souls," only went to no. 37 on the Billboard Hot 100. The band announced they had disbanded in November 1982.

While Blonde was split up,Clem Burke would play with various other artists. He played frequently with The Romantics, and even appeared on their albums Made in Detroit (1993) and 61/49 (2003). He also played with Eurhythmics on two albums (In the Garden in 1981 an Revenge in 1986). Clem Burke also worked with such artists as Iggy Pop, Chequered Past, Pete Townshend, The Adult Net, The Plimsouls, and others.

Blonde regrouped in 1997 and released their first new album in years, No Exit, in 1999. Clem Burke appeared on every one of their albums until the final one, Pollinator, in 2017. When Blondie wasn't touring he played with a Blonde tribute band, Bootleg Blondie.

Clem Burke was one of the best drummers in the history of rock music. His style was not unlike that of Keith Moon or Earl Palmer. He hit hard and he hit fast. That is not to say that he was not capable of subtlety,  and he could play on a ballad as easily as he could a power pop rabble rouser. It was Clem Burke's adaptability as a drummer that let Blondie do songs in styles from disco ("Heart of Glass") to reggae ("The Tide is High"). It is little wonder that he played with artists as diverse as The Romantics, Wanda Jackson, and The Ramones. He was definitely one of the best drummers of his time.

Jay North Passes On

Jay North, beset known as the star of the classic sitcom Dennis the Menace, died on April 6 2025 at the age of 73. The cause was colon cancer, which he had been fighting for years.  He also starred in the 1966 movie Maya and the short-lived TV show of the same name.

Jay North was born on August 3 1951. He was only four years old when his father left his family. He never saw his father again. His mother was the secretary to the West Coast director of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA). He was six years old when his mother, through her connections with AFTRA, arranged for him to appear on the local children's program Cartoon Express on Los Angeles television station KHJ. It was there that talent agent Hazel MacMillan discovered him.

Jay North made his television debut on an episode of Wanted: Dead or Alive in 1958, playing a boy who hires Josh Randall to track down Santa Claus. In the late Fifties he also guest starred on the shows 77 Sunset Strip, Rescue 8, Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse, Sugarfoot, The Detectives, The Donna Reed Show, and The Red Skelton. It was in 1959 that he began his starring role on Denice the Menace, which was based on the Hank Ketchum comic strip of the same name. The show proved to be a success and ran for four seasons. He made his film debut in The Miracle of the Hills (1959). In the late Fifties he also appeared in the movies The Big Operator (1959) and Pepe (1960). In the latter he had a cameo as Dennis the Menace.

In the Sixties Jay North continued to appear on Dennis the Menace. He appeared in the movies Zebra in the Kitchen (1965) and Maya (1966). Maya (1966) led to the short-lived television series Maya, on which Jay North also starred. He also guest starred on the shows The Red Skelton Show, Wagon Train, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., The Lucy Show,My Three Sons, and Jericho. He provided the voice of Prince Turhan on the "Arabian Knights" cartoon segment of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour. He also provided the voice of Terry Dexter on the animated cartoon Here Comes the Grump.

In the Seventies Jay North voiced a teen-aged Bamm-Bamm Rubble on The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show. He guest starred on Lassie and appeared in the TV movie Scout's Honor. He appeared in the B-movie The Teacher (1974). He served for a time in the United States Navy.

In th Eighties he had a week-long guest appearance on the soap opera General Hospital. He also gust starred on Not Necessarily the News. He appeared in the Yugoslavian movie Dikiy veter (1985).  In the Nineties he was a guest voice, playing himself, on The Simpsons. In the Naughts he had a cameo in the movie Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003).

Starting in the Nineties, Jay North worked with Paul Petersen of The Donna Reed Show in the organization A Minor Consideration, which is devoted to supporting past and present child actors.

Perhaps because I have seen it more than anything else he was in, I remember Jay North best from his debut appearance in the Wanted: Dead or Alive episode "Eight Cent Reward," in which he played a boy who hires bounty hunter Josh Randall to track down Santa. Even though it was his first acting job, young Jay North was entirely convincing in the role. Of course, I also remember him from reruns of Dennis the Menace. While there have been TV movies and a feature film since the sitcom, it is still a young Jay North I picture when I think of a live-action Dennis Mitchell. He also did well in his various guest appearances on TV shows and the few movies he did. He will certainly be well remembered.