BLONDIE, BOXED

The first-ever authorized Blondie boxed set, Blondie: Against the Odds 1974-1982, will be released 8/26 via UMe and The Numero Group.

The set will be available in four configurations: Super Deluxe Collectors’ Edition of their six studio LPs plus out-takes and rarities; Deluxe four LP; Deluxe eight CD; and three CD. Their six albums have been expanded to include more than four dozen demos (including the group’s first-ever recording session), alternate versions and studio outtakes.

Against The Odds includes extensive liner notes by Erin Osmon; track by track commentary from Debbie Harry, Chris Stein, Clem Burke, Jimmy Destri, Nigel Harrison, Frank Infante and Gary Valentine; essays by producers Mike Chapman, Richard Gottehrer and Ken Shipley; a 120-page illustrated discography; and hundreds of period photographs.

"It really is a treat to see how far we have come when I listen to these early attempts to capture our ideas on relatively primitive equipment,” Harry said. “Fortunately the essence of being in a band in the early ‘70s held some of the anti-social, counter-culture energies of the groups that were the influencers of the ‘60s. I am excited about this special collection. When I listen to these old tracks, it puts me there like I am a time traveler. As bad as it was sometimes, it was also equally as good. No regrets. More music.”

For nearly two decades, the bulk of Blondie’s audio and visual archive sat inside Chris Stein’s barn just outside Woodstock, N.Y. Among the artifacts were 100 reel-to-reel tapes, a half-dozen cassettes, a few storage tubs crammed with records, bits of promotional flotsam, flyers, a stray Warhol print and mirrored dressing-room signage from four sold-out January 1980 nights at London’s Hammersmith Odeon.

Said producer Steve Rosenthal: “Years of searching, months of mixing, mastering and restoration, days of decisions went into this box set to highlight the unique path they traveled—from CBGB’s to MSG.”

Blondie's cover of The Doors' "Moonlight Drive" was released on 6/8. Also, UMe would like to remind you that Bruce Resnikoff is a group.