Customer Reviews

Necessary Evil

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

In the past 30 years, Deborah Harry has not only established herself as the coolest woman in the universe, but also as the most adventurous recording artists ever. Throughout her career with Blondie, The Jazz Passengers, and her other four solo albums, she has pretty much tackled every musical genre that's out there.
With NECESSARY EVIL, Debbie doesn't waste time trying to prove what she can do. We already know. It's a solid pop album that offers up some diverse musical landscapes, but does not zig zag all over the place like her last two solo albums ("Def Dumb & Blonde" & "Debravation") and the last two Blondie releases ("No Exit" & "Curse of Blondie"). The sequencing of the songs on NECESSARY EVIL is perfect. The infectious grooves and melodies blend together wonderfully. "Two Times Blue" starts the album as a luscious pop wonder which is followed by the harder hitting "School for Scandal", which shows that age is no barrier for delivering cool, sexy lyrics. "If I Had You" is a power ballad that gives a nod to the girl group sound of the sixties, or more obviously, Blondie's earliest material of the same nature. "You're Too Hot" is a hypnotic sizzler with only six words ever sung (or shouted) that takes the album to a boiling point. This song has stayed in my head non-stop since I saw her perform it on the True Colors Tour back in June! "Whiteout" is a sublime pumping track that is equally addictive as "You're Too Hot". Two stand-out ballads are "Needless to Say" and the album closer "Paradise" (a beautiful song told from the perspective of a suicide bomber!).
What's most remarkable about NECESSARY EVIL is that Deborah Harry seems to be having fun on the record. That's pretty amazing for someone who has been in the business as long as she has. The fact that she keeps challenging herself as a songwriter and vocalist is pretty much unheard of. Not mentioning any names, but most performers in her age range stick to what they know and don't stray too far from the format. Deborah Harry never does this and that is why she is the greatest female rock icon out there.
Realistically NECESSARY EVIL will not get the promotion it needs and therefore will probably not be the commercial success it deserves to be, but that's all so unimportant. As I said with "The Curse of Blondie", what is most important is that she's made another great album that will hold up over time. It's a great addition to her discography and one she should definitely be proud of. As a life long fan of DEBORAH HARRY, I am thrilled by NECESSARY EVIL and can only hope she keeps making music forever!

I have seen some good and some odd reviews of this cd but to me as a fan of Ms. Harry since 1979 it is always a welcome site to see a new cd as either Blondie or Jazz Passengers or as a solo act-- you know you are going to get something new and different to hear.

When I first played the cd I was a bit taken back with some of the songs-- There are some that I would have left off (Charm Redux and Heat Of The Moment) but then I read an interview with VH1- their Track by Track series and in that Debbie goes through each track and gives you an idea of the song's origin or meaning or the fact that some of the instrumentals through out the cd is to break up the theme of some songs or add a different feel to others and I am thinking that here is a woman who has busted her butt for over 30 years and she can basically set this cd up as she wished. The new Billboard interview also lets you know that she recorded the cd basically with her own money and really is set up for her fans and not sure how well it will actually sell but wanted to make a cd for herself and fans alone. Be damned with what others think I guess.

So here is what I think of Necessary Evil. The lead track "Two Times Blue" is to me not even the best track on the cd. It is a "Maria" type pop hit that has such a killer hook -- try and find the Nickel And Dime radio remix because that is THE best version of the track. Now for the most part on the cd Debbie is much more aggressive sexually lyrically and vocally than the last 2 Blondie cds. "School For Scandal" is pure Alternative Rock that smolders with her delivery. The best track on the new cd is the 3rd song "If I Had You"-- flawless from the intro to the end of the song. It is heart on sleeve/honest Debbie vocals shining all through the song. This song is a huge hit if the label or radio could find a way of finding each other. The second best track is the title track "Necessary Evil" and it's cock rock guitars and Debbie's smarty vocal performance. This needs a really solid remix to run up the dance chart."You're Too Hot" starts out with a new Debbie persona-- Black Gospel Debbie just going all Gospel at the intro and then it breaks into a flat out yelling/chant of a vocal with heavy guitars all through the song. Listed on the credits-- Debbie played guitar on the song. Then you get 2 lovely ballads- "What Is Love" with it's killer hook but odd break off to a bit of chanting and the super personal "Needless To Say". The tracks "Dirty And Deep" and "You're Too Hot" are companions and so is the "Needless To Say" and "Heat Of The Moment" as well. So that should be obvious. The cd from 1-14 are produced by Super Budda.
The bonus tracks or tracks 15-17 are produced by Chris Stein and Bill Ware from Jazz Passengers. They are sort of Middle Easteren/African influenced and a different in scope and feel from the first 14 tracks. "Jen Jen" is basically an instrumental with chants and a New Order type guitar running through the song-- think of the b-side to "Strike Me Pink"--- 8 1/2 Rhumba and you get the idea of the song. The next bonus song- "Naked Eye" is a classic Stein/Harry written track-- a song of love about leaving your mark on your partner -- good or bad. The last track is the female suicide bomber track "Paradise" and it was hard to get into the lyrics when Debbie is singing almost as a wind /saxapohone instrument . Written by Roy Nathanson from The Jazz Passengers and it sounds more POP jazz in style. Listen a few times like I had to and it will grow on you.

So for me on the whole the cd is a fascinating look at the mind of Deborah Harry. Since a child I have been fascinated in what she has to think and say musically and to me is one of the few artists you can hear thinking as the songs progress. Like I said before some will LOVE this cd or think it is ODD but to me it is never boring ever.

Now, here's the thing folks...I have read many of your reviews, and I cannot, for the life of me, understand why some of you rated this CD one star? Most of you rated is as I did with 5 stars, but I am directing this to the few who rated it lower. First and foremost, I am truly not a "gritty, grundgy, punk rocker"... I prefer Debbie singing her sweet falsetto to a thumping dance beat. I have ALWAYS loved previous outings like "Sweet and Low", "In Love With Love", "Backfired", and of course all of the Blondie classics. But, here is a CD that is so atypical of all of that. It is hard rocking and edgy. You can just feel the energy that Debbie is putting into these songs! From the pop gem, "Two Times Blue", which could easily be a "Maria" remake, to the hard to catagorize "Love You With A Vengence", and the somewhat tribal "Deep End", it is truly a masterpiece!

In closing, as I said before, I love my Debbie "fluff", but the meatier Debbie is is much more filling in the long run.

On "Necessary Evil" Debbie Harry rocks out harder than she has in years (with just a slice of hip hop as we've come to expect). With most of the tracks (particularly "White Out" and "You're Too Hot") Debbie proves she still has punk attitude in spades. It's an album full of sing a long hooks and her voice is magnificent throughout. It sounds like she was really enjoying herself with this one. I highly recommend it!

This album is too hot! After a couple listens I was hooked and now the cd has yet to escape my car's cd player. This is one disc to not miss. Thank you Debbie for taking the time to get this out after so long an absence as a solo artist. DJ Gary

Debbie Harry has put together a recording that represents her well....downtown, clever, edgey, straight forward, versatile, sophisticated, and fun. This is the best solo material she has stacked together. Needless to Say is beautiful, You're Too Hot over the top, White-Out really driving, Love With Vengence sexy and james bond-like, Two Times Blue soaring, School For Scandal is rocking, Charm Alarm fun as hell, Paradise haunting, I could go on....This music is really Debbie with her funky spirit, beautiful voice, and her artistic style. You deserve to own this....buy it for yourself.

This album is Phenomenal!! Thanks to Miss Deb Harris, we needed an album like this to put this music era in perspective. I'm a french-Canadian by the way...but I got ears and I know this is good music. In a time, when everything is more prohibited than the 70s, Miss Harry reminds us about people and politician or specialist who's always in study trying to analyse human beings all the time..be on the net..do sex cam...people don't socialise anymore! Why you should need to go to a bar or a club..when you got a flat screen right there in your home! Nevertheless, it's good music to my ears..and I recognise the Blondie I always known in the 80s... in her lyrics, in her voice..She was Fabulous then..She is now. 5 STAR DEB!!!

Debbie Harry's last solo release was 14 years ago. In that time she has toured with a jazz band, reformed with Blondie to international acclaim (her home country, the USA, being the least responsive), been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and finally seems to be getting the respect and admiration she deserves as both an artistic genius and a cultural icon. It is now common knowledge that many of today's most popular female stars, like Madonna, Gwen Stefani and Courtney Love were most likely lip-syching in the mirror to Blondie 45's with a hairbrush-microphone, and even pop-tarts like Paris Hilton, Hillary Duff, Pink, Ashlee Simpson and Lindsay Lohan admit to drawing on Debbie for everything from musical style to attitude to fashion sensibilty. A much more confident woman now than she was 14 years ago, you can hear the difference from her last release, with a strong commanding prescence in every track on "Necessary Evil". Starting off with the radio-friendly "Two Times Blue", the CD continually startles its listener with each track delving into new unexpected genres of music. Some of the tracks are good, some are bad and some are very, very strange. But the fact that she is releasing such a cool, youthful and artistic CD should be cause for you to bow down and kiss the floor Debbie has set her high-heeled feet on. She may be more confident, but she's still that same beautiful weirdo with the herky-jerky dance moves who appeared on "The Muppet Show" three decades ago.

I'm a huge fan of Deborah Harry and Blondie, and I find it interesting how Debbie's solo work never impresses critics as much as Blondie's. I like both, but I think that musically and lyrically this album is as good as any of the the comeback Blondie albums.
That said, I have a fairly low tolerance for the slow, jazzy, sax-infused numbers, but Debbie's rapping is even better here than on the Blondie albums and overall she's in good vocal form. The sheer variety in music on this album pretty much guarantees that there is something for everyone.

Deborah Harry of multiple talents has again put her magical spell on "Necessary Evil", This is her BEST album EVER!! I love her creativity on this project and of course everything she does! It's hard to single out my favorite tracks on this because they are ALL good! The youthful, fun and "rappy" -"Dirty and Deep" is fabulous and I LOVE the punk essence of "White Out"..."Needless To Say" reminds me so much of one of the ballads of her Blondie days, feels very retro to me and of course you cannot forget the radio friendly "Two Times Blue"-(the remixes of this are sublime!)and don't forget to listen to the lovelorn ballad "What Is Love", As usual Debbie puts her creative, unique mark on this album and there will be another generation of "Debbie Wannabes" from this...I am sure of it!! Deborah is a trend setter,
Not a follower...REMEBER THAT!