Blondie - Parallel Lines [180g] (LP) Vinyl

Parallel Lines is the third studio album by the American new wave band Blondie, released on 8 September 1978 by Chrysalis Records and produced by Mike Chapman. It followed Plastic Letters and became the band's commercial breakthrough, the record that carried them out of the New York underground and into the mainstream on both sides of the Atlantic.

The album reached number 1 on the UK Albums Chart in February 1979 and number 6 on the US Billboard 200 in April 1979, and it charted in the UK for 106 weeks during the late 1970s. It was certified Platinum in the United Kingdom on 6 February 1979, with UK sales of 1,694,353 copies. Rolling Stone placed it at number 146 in the 2020 revision of its 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and in 2024 the Library of Congress selected it for preservation in the National Recording Registry as a culturally, historically or aesthetically significant recording.

The Album

Blondie entered the Record Plant in New York in June 1978 to make their third album, and their first away from producer Richard Gottehrer. The Australian producer Mike Chapman drove the sessions hard, rebuilding individual parts take by take and pushing the band towards a tighter, more disciplined pop sound while encouraging Deborah Harry to concentrate on phrasing, timing and attitude rather than sheer effort. Recording was completed in six weeks, well inside the six months Chrysalis co-founder Terry Ellis had allowed for it.

The result runs to twelve tracks and 39 minutes, moving between new wave, punk rock, pop rock and power pop. Two of the songs are covers: "Hanging On The Telephone" was written by Jack Lee and originally recorded by The Nerves, and "I'm Gonna Love You Too" was first performed by Buddy Holly. The album produced several successful singles, notably the international hit "Heart Of Glass".

This Pressing

This is the Chrysalis reissue in the Back To Black series, catalogue number 5355034, first issued in May 2015 and pressed on 180g heavyweight black vinyl playing at 33 1/3 RPM. It is a single LP, pressed by MPO and manufactured in the European Union, carrying the complete twelve track album across two sides.

The single sleeve reproduces Edo Bertoglio's original cover photograph, with art direction and design by Ramey Communications, illustration by Frank Duarte and lettering by Jerry Rodriguez. The record is housed in a printed inner sleeve carrying the full lyrics and the original credit notes. The album was recorded at the Record Plant in New York City, mixed at Forum Studio and mastered by Steve Hall at MCA Whitney Recording Studios.

Track Listing

Side One
1. Hanging On The Telephone
2. One Way Or Another
3. Picture This
4. Fade Away And Radiate
5. Pretty Baby
6. I Know But I Don't Know

Side Two
1. 11:59
2. Will Anything Happen?
3. Sunday Girl
4. Heart Of Glass
5. I'm Gonna Love You Too
6. Just Go Away