Customer Reviews

Remixed Remade Remodeled

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

 

 

Purists universally panned this 1995 release as being akin to a desecration of the original tracks. Well, the title tells it all; they are remixed, remade, and remodeled. That does not take away the fact that Blondie was one of the most influential bands of the 80's.

This eleven-track set explodes with thumping beats and the singular delivery of Debbie Harris, the voice (and the hair) behind the group.

Rapturous!

I agree that updating older songs with new remixes can sometimes be a mistake, but that's not the case here. If you are a clubhead, you will love this disc. This version of "Atomic" hit #1 on Billboard's Dance Chart and the mixes of "Rapture" and "One Way Or Another" are classic. Be warned: these are completely reworked versions of these songs and are virtually unrecognizable to the originals. If you love dance music, you'll like this; if not, you won't.

The import version of this remix collection is a must-have for Blondie completists because it has remixes of some songs that are not on here, as well as alternate mixes of some of these track, so the track listing is slightly different. the tracks you will find on "Beautiful" that are not on here are:

1. Union City Blue (Diddy's Power & Passion Edit)
4. Heart Of Glass (Diddy's Adorable Illusion Mix)
5. Sunday Girl (The Hardly Handbag Mix)
6. Call Me (Debbie Does Dallas)
9. Hanging On The Telephone (Nose Bleed Handbag Mix)

If you also own all the maxi CD singles released at the time, you'll have a few of the mixes from the Beautiful release already, but it is a good place to get those mixes if you missed out on the CD singles.

My philosophy is simple: If it isn't broken, don't fix it.

Attempting to modernise such Blondie hits like "Heart of Glass" is not a good idea. They are great songs, but when given the rave club treatment, they come across as mediocre dance songs one would expect from Ace of Base. In some of the songs, all that is added is one consistant beat, nothing more. Other times, they are overlong and lousy remixes (like the bonus tracks of the "Atomic" CD that you never listen to).

I am not a big fan of remixes, sometimes they work, but when they don't work, it can totally butcher a good song. Some of the remixes are good, but not enough for me to recomend this to any Blondie fan.

Other than the genuinely great remix of Atomic by Diddy, the remixes here are highly forgetable. Most remixes completely miss the point of the orginal tracks and sound like they were slapped together very quickly for a quick buck. Avoid.

Blondie may be known for their catchy dance pop tunes, but their material is weightier than you'd think. Nonetheless, this remix album is a highly successful collection of reinterpretations of the band's hits. Tracks of note are MK's housed-up "Heart of Glass," the energetic, trance-like "Atomic" by Diddy, and the disco-injected "Dreaming." Armand Van Helden's version of "Atomic" is effective as well, as does "One Way or Another." The disc's sole disaster happens to be the band's biggest hit: "Call Me." It's a missed opportunity that doesn't work. I also wasn't feelin' K-Klass's "Rapture," either. Still this is an above-average remix project that should please dance lovers and Blondie fans alike.

This has been out there for awhile, but it still holds together. A great listen, well worth the download. Still as much fun to listen to and dance to today as when it was originally issued. Enjoy.

New wave innovator Blondie gets revamped for more modern club floors. There aren't any real surprises here; the mixes seem appropriately careful with the vocals, usually emphasizing the backbeat and updating the melodies with HI-NRG electronic florishes. Phillip Damien adds in a little Eurhythmics on his catchy mix of "One Way or Another," and Pete Arden and Vinny Vero throw in some Latin-Caribbean flavor to "The Tide is High." For those miss the good ol' days of raves, the Utah Saints version of "Dreaming" will bring back all those good hardcore memories, but Armand Van Helden's hard house "Atomic" is disappointingly one-note. The mixes aren't particularly innovative -- they certainly are good for what they set out to do -- until you get to the Black Dog's version of "Fade Away and Radiate." Angular and mysterious, their mix once again shows how ahead of their time The Black Dog were.

These remixed versions of Blondie's hits sounded dated when they came out two decades ago, and time hasn't helped them age. One of the cool things about Blondie is that their music was just as welcome on a rock radio station as it was in the dance clubs - not an easy tightrope for any artist to walk but one that Blondie pulled off rather well. These remixed versions wouldn't be welcome many places. They kind of suck. But its still Blondie so I gave it 2 stars.

In 1995, a massive project was undertaken to make modern dance remixes of Blondie classics. In the US, this was released as "Blondie: The Remix Project remixed, remade, remodeled" and has 11 tracks. In the UK, this was released as "Blondie Beautiful: The Remix Album" with 12 tracks. Although both releases have many of the same remixes, each CD has tracks not found on the other.
As the US release, this may be easier to find. But for true fans, you need both the US and UK releases.