The biggest sounding Blondie album by far – and a radical leap from New York new wave scene band to a wildly ambitious pop pastiche machine! The band always had a fearless way of filtering far-reaching pop sounds into their material, even when they were still on the CBGBs scene, and while their stylistic reach grew with each successive album, Autoamerican really takes it to extremes. It's somewhat notorious for favoring session players over the core band, but given how crazy the stylistic breadth is – no disrespect to that incredible core band – it's a creative win, as much BECAUSE they bit off more than they could chew production wise, as it is despite that. It's most famous (or infamous, depending on who's talking about it) for "Rapture", and other tracks include "Europa", "Live It Up", their classic, breezy cover of "The Tide Is High", "Here's Looking At You", "Faces", "Follow Me" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

With "Rapture", "One Way Or Another", "Heart Of Glass", "Call Me", "Atomic", "Rip Her To Shreds", "Hanging OnThe Telephone", "The Tide Is High", "Dreaming" and more. CD

The incredible debut of Blondie! Before branching out into 70s NYC club culture informed pop, Blondie was first-and-formost an incredibly cool punk-era rock & roll band, though never really straight-up punkers themselves – filtering a love of 60s girl group vocals and seedier surf rock influences into catchy songs still raucous enough for CBGBs. While the live gig grit is buffed out of in the studio, there's no lack of game-changing greatness here – and titles include "X Offender", "Little Girls Lie", "In The Sun", "In The Flesh", "Rifle Range", "Kung Fu Girls", "The Attack Of The Giant Ants" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A totally great cut from the glory days of Blondie – originally issued in 1981 only as a flexidisc, but every bit the same sort of hip hop groove as their classic "Rapture"! In fact, this cut might be even more of a hip hop cut – as it features Debbie Harry rapping alongside Fab 5 Freddie, who co-wrote the cut with the group. There's definitely some echoes of "Rapture" in the mix, particularly on the chorus – and the cut is almost as if they reworked the spirit of the tune for a holiday song! 12-inch, Vinyl record

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

Way more than just another look at the music of this legendary group – as the huge package brings together a wealth of rare material, including 36 tracks that appear here for the first time ever – all wrapped up in a beautiful package with a huge set of notes, photographs, and other information too! Erin Osmon serves up a massive oral history of the group, worth the price of the box alone – and there's also interviews and discographical information too – far more than you usually get with a box set of this nature. But honestly, the real charm is all the great unreleased material, added to the too-small catalog of the group's work from these classic years – Titles that include "I'll Never Break Away From This Heart Of Mine", "I Love You Honey Give Me A Bear", "Live It Up (Giorgio Moroder demo)", "Will Anything Happen (inst)", "Spaghetti Song (Atomic part 2)", "Once I Had A Love (Mike Chapman demo)", "Denis (Terry Ellis mix)", "Underground Girl", "Call Me (Chris Stein mix)", "Hardest Part (home tape)", "Theme From Topkapi (home tape)", "Mr Sightseer", "Ring Of Fire (home tape)", "Tide Is High (demo)", and "Susie & Jeffrey". 3CD set features 52 tracks in all – including some great material from are singles and early work too! CD

Blondie had a lot to live up to after Parallel Lines, but they pulled it off here – Eat To The Beat is another classic! Downtown cool, a strong sense of pop history and tight production by Mike Chapman make for a really distinct sound on this one. Standouts include the excellent opener "Dreaming" (one of the finest Harry/Stein songs ever, if you ask us), the punky title track, "Union City Blue" and "Accidents Never Happen", and while Blondie albums are by nature hit-and-miss given the fearless mish-mash of styles they always brought in, the whole thing is pretty great! Other tracks include "Shayla", "Die Young Stay Pretty" and "Living In The Real World". LP, Vinyl record album

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

A crossover classic from the lovely Deborah Harry – a tune that broke Blondie big on the airwaves, yet which also had a great life of its own in the clubs – no doubt due to its driving Giorgio Moroder-influenced disco beat! Yet the track's also got a lot more to live up to, too – an important meeting of punk and disco – reconciled for just a minute, at a level that makes the track a cornerstone for both generations! This special EP features the "disco long", "basic track", "disco instrumental", and "Shep Pettibone mix" versions of the track – plus "The Disco Song" and "Once I Had A Love", both other variations – all on a cool pic disc too! 12-inch, Vinyl record

... CD

One of the few solo albums by this member of the 70s Beach Boys – with work from fellow Beach Boy Ricky Fataar on drums and percussion – plus David Mason and Richard Tee on piano. Arrangements by Nick DeCaro, too! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest albums as a leader from tenorist George Coleman – an artist who we feel often never gave us enough with himself in the lead as well! George brings in that great edge he used on earlier sessions with other leaders, while still also really establishing himself as one of the most expressive tenorists of the 70s in a mainstream mode – almost that balance between straighter swing and sharper corners that Joe Henderson brought to key recordings at the time. The group here are very fluid, and able to shift wonderfully with George's lead – Hilton Ruiz on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums – a masterful lineup who make magic throughout, on titles that include "Amsterdam After Dark", "New Arrival", "Lo-Joe", "Autumn In New York", "Apache Dance", and "Blondie's Waltz". LP, Vinyl record album

A really great record, and maybe one of the few hip hop soundtracks to get at the real feel of the music on the streets – maybe no surprise, as the film for which it was created did the same thing! This isn't a fluffed-up Hollywood take on hip hop, with mainstream soul thrown into the mix – as the record was put together by Fab 5 Freddy and Chris Stein – the latter of whom really invests in his hip hop cred away from Blondie, and also provides some cool guitar bits and effects in the music too! There's some great freestyle bits and turntable tracks that really get at the underground side of the music that was alive and well at the time – and titles include "Wild Style Theme Rap 1" by Grandmaster Caz & Chris Stein, "Basketball Throwdown" by Cold Crush Bros & The Fantastic Four, "Stoop Rap" by Double Trouble & Rodney Cee, "Rammellzee & Shock Dell at the Amphitheatre" with Grandmixer DST, "Wild Style Subway Rap 2" by Grand Master Caz & Chris Stein, and "Cold Crush Brothers At The Dixie". LP, Vinyl record album

Renee Geyer's still working with her hip Bump Band – nice and soulful, and with production by Ricky Fataar and backing vocals from Blondie Chaplin. (Take that, Beach Boys completists!) Titles include "I Can Feel The Fire", "Come On", "Say I Love You", "Do You Know What I Mean", "On Your Way Down", and "Everything Good Is Bad". LP, Vinyl record album

17 classic rock tracks from Billy Idol, Blondie, Jethro Toll, David Bowie, UFO, Rod Stewart, Dave Edmunds, Ten Years After, the Sex Pistols, Iron Maiden, and more. CD

Girl rock galore – a cool little set that brings together important female cuts from the late 70s punk years, then moves forward to show just how much the underground exploded from the 90s into the 21st Century! The set's got plenty of the energy you'd expect from the title – and as with other collections on Ace, the track list is superb – lots of great choices throughout – and supported with a very detailed booklet of notes that ties everything together, and really fills you in on some of the lesser-known artists in the set. CD features 24 tracks in all – and titles include "Spirit FM" by Bad Moves, "Take It Off" by The Donnas, "Out Of Time" by Vibeke Saugestad, "I'll Be Alright" by Baby Shankes, "We Only Come Out At Night" by The Sugar Store, "Peter Gunn Locomotion" by The Delmonas, "Hanging On The Telephone" by Blondie, "Cmon & Kiss Me" by Sun 60, "The Teens Are Square" by The Courettes, "Teenage Kicks" by Dawn Chorus & The Bluetits, "In The City" by Cocktail Slippers, "Juvenile Thrills" by The Launderettes, "Dancing With Joey Ramone" by Amy Rigby, "Rock Boys" by Suzy & Los Quattro, "Take It All Away" by Girlschool, "Unforgiven" by The Go Gos, and "Da Doo Ron Ron/I Wanna Be Sedated" by The Dollyrots. CD

The Flash revival is in full effect – as Grandmaster Flash mixes his way through a host of old school block party classics! The set's stuffed with 16 classics from the 1970s and early 80s – all strung together by Flash in the way you'd hear if you happened to catch him at a street party back in the day. Titles include "Give It Up Or Turn It Loose" by James Brown, "Love Is The Message" by MFSB, "Bra" by Cymande, "Cavern" by Liquid Liquid, "Last Night A DJ Saved My Life" by Indeep, "Rapture" by Blondie, "Before I Let Go" by Maze, "I Can't Wait" by Nu Shooz, "I Found Lovin" by Fatback Band, "Planet Rock" by Africa Bambaataa, "You're The One" by D Train, "Walking On Sunshine" by Rockers Revenge, "It's Just Begun" by Jimmy Castor, and "Rock Your World" by Weeks & Co. CD

Another batch of remixes from the pulsing electro number by Afrika Bambaataa – written by Blondie's Debbie Harry and Chris Stein, with vocals by fellow new wave hitmaker Gary Numan! "Metal" gets served up this time in remixes by Richard F, Friburn & Urik, and the previously released Paul Daley club mix. 12-inch, Vinyl record

A hipper concert than you might expect – recorded in 1973, and originally issued as a double LP. The band by this point includes Blondie Chaplin and the enigmatic Ricky Fataar – and in some way, the songs have a sincerity that's lacking from a lot of the studio albums at the same time. There's a number of the usual 60s hits that you'd expect – plus nice versions of "Darlin", "The Trader", "Sail On Sailer", "Caroline No", "Heroes & Villains", "Leaving This Town", "Let The Wind Blow", "Funky Pretty", and "You Still Believe In Me". LP, Vinyl record album

The title certainly gets it right – as master tenorist George Coleman speaks volumes here with his horn – reminding us that he's one of the all-time giants on his instrument, and a player who's really continued to give us so much wonderful music over the decades! Coleman's right at home on the record – which may well be one of his best in years – open and flowing on his solos, but often with a nice sort of bite, even in the mellower moments – that special sort of edge that George has brought to his playing, from his years with Miles Davis to the many decades after. The group features Mike Ledonne on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and George Coleman Jr on drums – making his debut with the elder George here – and Peter Bernstein makes an appearance on one track for some guest guitar. Titles include the originals "Sonny's Playground", "Time To Get Down", "Blues For BB", and "Blondie's Waltz" – plus a great take on "Invitation", and "You'll Never Know What You Mean To Me" and "The Shadow Of Your Smile". CD

A really great record, and maybe one of the few hip hop soundtracks to get at the real feel of the music on the streets – maybe no surprise, as the film for which it was created did the same thing! This isn't a fluffed-up Hollywood take on hip hop, with mainstream soul thrown into the mix – as the record was put together by Fab 5 Freddy and Chris Stein – the latter of whom really invests in his hip hop cred away from Blondie, and also provides some cool guitar bits and effects in the music too! There's some great freestyle bits and turntable tracks that really get at the underground side of the music that was alive and well at the time – and titles include "Wild Style Theme Rap 1" by Grandmaster Caz & Chris Stein, "Basketball Throwdown" by Cold Crush Bros & The Fantastic Four, "Stoop Rap" by Double Trouble & Rodney Cee, "Rammellzee & Shock Dell at the Amphitheatre" with Grandmixer DST, "Wild Style Subway Rap 2" by Grand Master Caz & Chris Stein, and "Cold Crush Brothers At The Dixie". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice change in sound for Debbie Harry – thanks to Chic production from Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards – who really help the solo singer find a groove that's quite different than her work in Blondie! The style's a mixture of the funky club that Chic did so well, with elements that lean a bit more towards an early 80s rockish dancefloor – almost with a vibe that echoes some of the UK imports trickling over to these shores at the time, but with a definite New York vibe underneath! The setting gives Harry's vocals a great way to hit a more playful nature – that sound that was creeping in a bit in Blondie, but which some folks thought was wrong for the group – and Chris Stein is still on hand to bring in some street-sensitive riffing guitar. Titles include "Backfired", "Military Rap", "Oasis", "Surrender", "Chrome", "Jump Jump", and "The Jam Was Moving". LP, Vinyl record album

Features Maxi Priest, Peter Tosh, Dennis Brown, Blondie, The Heptones, Toots & The Maytals, Third World, and Boy George. CD

Lightning strikes more than once when it comes to the magic of rock and roll – but it leaves behind a different sort of spark every single time – as you'll hear in this collection of work put together by Lenny Kaye, who associates key scenes and key moments that helped the music surge forward over the decades! Kaye picks select cuts from Memphis, San Francisco, Detroit, and other cities – and serves up a massive double-length package of tracks that step easily between genres, and which provide the perfect playlist to his well-penned volume of the same name. Given that Lenny was the guy to give us the legendary Nuggets series back in the day, it's clear he definitely knows what he's talking about – and you'll certainly feel that way after reading the very detailed notes in the set! 48 tracks in all – with titles that include "I'm So Happy" by Danny Cobb, "Marcella" by The Castelles, "Tiger" by Fabian, "Stupidity" by The Undertakers, "Pride Of Man (demo)" by Quicksilver Messenger Service, "Coo Coo" by Big Brother & The Holding Company, Crazy Like A Fox" by Link Cromwellchs, "Looking At You" by MC5, "Cavern Stomp" by The Big Three, "I Hear A New World" by Joe Meek, "Once I Had A Love (1975 version)" by Blondie, "Down At The Rock & Roll Club (alt)" by Richard Hell & The Voidoids, "Leavin Here (version 1)" by The Rationals, and "Gimme Chocolate" by Baby Metal. CD