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And that amounts to a wide tapestry of the different kinds of music the entire band were exposed to on a regular basis in different areas of the city. The bright calypso/caribbean styled "The Tide Is High" is one of those great sing-a-long,reflective kind of pop songs I never get tired of hearing no matter how many times I do. The great album cover shows a very sophisticated looking group posed in front of the NYC cityscape and it perfectly matches the music within. Even at it's rockiest this album doesn't sound like the output of a typical new-wave/punk band at all. Exploring the relm of music in general is always a good thing for a band who are in a state of growth most of the time and I have to admit Blondie really rose to the challange here. "Suzy & Jeffrey" is a totally tragi-drama girl group type send up but goes well with the album. The two hits on this album are two of the best songs not only on the entire album but of Blondie's entire career. The only songs here that really nod at the bands earlier psychedelic surf/new wave flavors are "Angels On The Balcony","Go Through It","Walk Like Me" and "Follow Me" and even they are a more stylized and often enough (then) contemporary dance flavored songs than you'd expect of that kind of music.
The UK disco remix presented here plays up the funk by giving it that Stevie Wonder styled "Superstition" beat the Bee Gee's even used on their "Stayin' Alive" to kick out more of a jam in a tune that already more than does so. Debbie Harry's interested in jazz vocalizing makes it's presense known on "Here's Looking At You",again taking nods at big band jazz-styled disco heavily leaning toward the big band jazz aspect of the sound. Certain fans of the group,especially of their earlier music may not get into this-there's probably a good reason why. "Rapture".well I have to agree with Grandmaster Flash that I don't have a clue what Debbie is trying to say when she raps about something "eat cars and then guitars" and so forth but the groove is funk as funk can be,right down to some JB styled guitars and is allowed to go on for a well rounded 6+ minutes in lengh. The recent addition of the eurodisco sound into their framework makes itself very clear not only on the cinematic,orchestrated opener "Europa" but on "Live It Up" and "Do The Dark" as well,both of which showcase a strong mix of eurodisco style electronics with a solid funk/rock flavor. In fact Debbie is downright torchy on "Faces". The extended version of "Call Me" at near 10 minutes is another fine varient on eurodisco helped by the extended lengh. Considering Debbie teaming up with Chic on her first solo album KooKoo shortly to be released this albums sophistication of style and appropriate embrace of heavier funk elements made this in a word a model for a lot of similar musical hybrids in the future.
"Here's Looking At You" is next. Had this song been included on "Autoamerican" it would've been a stronger and more cohesive album.Nevertheless, "Autoamerican" was the last classic [or at least semi] Blondie album. Moreover, Eat to the Beat" was the first "Video LP" to be released commercially for mass consumption.absolutely unheard of at the time and 2 solid years prior to MTV.Clearly,with all of that said. Both, "Heart Of Glass" & "Call Me" reached number one in less than a year of one another.
Not terrible but somewhat unnecessary, the album hasn't "settled" on a particular sound and yet we're being "treated" to not only a ballad but a campy ballad from yesteryear.perhaps they were channeling the stilletoes. Disco dabbles, notwithstanding. A serious tune-up is in order. In the summer of 1980 Blondie was arguably one of the biggest bands in rock and definitely the biggest band of the punk/new wave CBGB's scene.Only 5 years prior, Blondie, was the band "least likely to succeed".clearly, not the most accurate of predictions.Blondie's fortunes changed virtually over-night from "up and comers" to having the world in their palm. The last two tracks on side one finally find themselves on the right road. "Rapture" & "The Tide is High" are good but they're not nearly as strong as "Atomic" & "One way or Another" or "non-hits" such as "Pretty Baby" & "Little Girl Lies". The next two songs work very well back to back and are sonically "classic" Blondie.
As with so many cases before them perhaps gaining world dominance blurred the bands sensibilities instead of sharpening them.To wit, Autoamerican starts it's engine with the over-blown and ponderous "Europa". However, the latter has a little bit of a "nutty" quality to it a'la "Victor" from "EaT To The BeaT"Side two, begins with "In the Dark" a redux "Live it Up". Blondie, is in "pop" form with "Angels on the Balcony" and "Go Through It". Blondie, were at their best performing immaculate pop songs with punky poses. And, Although, "Eat to the Beat" did not chart any top 10 singles in the USA.that was not the case in the U.K. Disco Blondie treads itself out again.a little thin but a far better opener than the absurd "Europa". The 2nd number one off "Autoamerican" is next, "Rapture".I've always liked this song the "rap" is terribly dated but it's still a killer tune and the band sounds crisp and tight and dare I say "funky".Cool video too. "The Tide is High" brings us to the mid-point of side one.
Revving things up is the aptly titled "Live it Up" an interesting pastiche of blondiesque disco and power-pop.why this song wasn't released as a single is a total mystery. Well, not quite. Both "T-Birds" & "Walk Like Me" tap into the 60's girl group sound that Blondie had always been closely associated with.the latter being the more aggressive and "punky" of the two. As the 70's closed and the 80's began, Blondie, were at their commercial and artistic peak. Unlike "Here's Looking at You" this song doesn't come off as a campy throwaway, the playing and singing are far more committed.thus, a believable performance by both Debbie and band.
A sharp turn is taken with "Faces".a "torch" song of sorts from the days of yore. Debbie delivers a strong vocal performance on "Walk Like Me" with plenty of attitude and Chris Stein offers some cool surf/spaghetti western guitar riffs. In summation, I'd say "Autoamerican" is a more "experimental" though weaker, "Eat to the Beat"Regarding the bonus tracks, we have unedited "Disco" versionsof "Call Me" and "Rapture" The other track is "Suzy & Jeffrey" another song in the "Angels On The Balcony" vein. Good song,not great, terrible video. "Autoamerican" should have been the bandsmaster-stroke.However, cracks in the road turned "Autoamerican" into a bumpy ride instead of a smooth cruise down route 66.In retrospect,it seems, the band or more than likely Chris and Debbie weren't content to repeat the New Wave/Power Pop sheen [courtesy of Mike Chapman]of "Parallel Lines" or "Eat to the Beat" and made a conscious choice to "expand" their sound.
Furthermore, there aren't as many great album tracks on this LP as in previous. Bust out the surf board. The first of two number one singles off this album, Blondie doing a lite reggae/calypso. Sadly, Blondie's closer, "Follow Me" [like their opener] is rotten and crosses the finishing line at 30mph instead of 80.Although there are more good cuts than bad on "Autoamerican" the placing of the bad weaken the album overall. By 1982, the band would release their anemic final album "The Hunter", play their last shows that summer and finally break-up by the end of the year.Full Track Listing:1)Europa2)Live it Up [best song on "side-one"]3)Here's Looking at You4)The Tide is High5)Angels on the Balcony6)Go Through ItSide Two1)Do The Dark2)Rapture3)Faces4)T-Birds5)Walk Like Me [best song on "side-two"]6)Follow MeBonus Tracks:Call Me [original long version]Suzy & JeffreyRapture ["Disco" Remix]15 Tracks in total.Line up:Clem Burke:DrumsFrank Infante:GuitarNigel Harrison:BassJimmy Destri:KeyboardsChris Stein:GuitarDeborah Harry:VocalsAutoamerican: released winter of 19806 out of 10 stars
I have owned this album in every imagineable format since its release in 1980. From the hip hop stops of "Rapture", the reggae tune of "The Tide Is High" - jazz on "Faces" , 40s style "Here's Looking At You" and straight up rock on "Walk Like Me" and "TBirds." This is definitive Blondie, and it contains my all time fav Blondie track "Angels On The Balcony. It was; at the time the only Blondie I had, where I actually went into the store and bought it when it first came out. Full of all this is Blondie glory, there isn't a genre not covered on Autoamerican. Plus the whole thing starts with a space age alien soundtrack called "Europa." Plus the remaster has the excellent B-side "Suzy & Jeffrey" which I have never to this day gotten tired of hearing.
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R16DBWBU4G6BD7
Once a band gets momentum fans will buy their albums without having heard a thing from them, all based on the band's reputation for strong, consistent albums. It's as though Blondie said, "Okay, we've got another album to do. That turned out to be a curse rather than a blessing, one that killed Blondie's career. Blondie lost their direction and stylistic cohesion, and for all the expensive production values the songwriting sounded like leftovers from previous sessions. "Blondie", "Parallel Lines" and "Eat to the Beat" were all excellent albums, and Blondie topped it off with the #1 single of its year, "Call Me". On the strength of that history, and two popular singles from this album, fans bought "Autoamerican" in droves. Frequently the first album or two of a great band - like Blondie - doesn't sell so well regardless of how good it is because the band hasn't yet established themselves as a recognizable "brand name". What can we do." A commendable approach to inspiring creativity, but in this case the well was running dry.
The long version of "Call Me" is a must have for any fan but it's available on any number of CDs. We can't repeat the same formula. No need to suffer through the disappointment of an album that should have been titled "Autopilot". Apart from the two hit singles the only memorable number is "Angels on the Balcony". This was the case with Blondie up to this point. Blondie is often remembered as an 80s band, but the truth of the matter is that they didn't make it out of the 70s intact.
The reason the next album, "The Hunter" died on the vine was not so much that it was a bad album; its lackluster sales were due to Blondie losing its fan base because of how destitute "Autoamerican" was, killing what would have been repeat sales for Blondie's next album.The fact that one of the two hits on "Autoamerican" was a cover, not an original, should have served fair warning that the band was running dry after a good string of winners. Better to pick up that one track on the compilation "Blonde and Beyond". Compilations don't do this band justice - celebrate Blondie with "Eat to the Beat", "Parallel Lines" or "Blondie" instead.
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