| Pollinator | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 5, 2017 (2017-05-05) | |||
| Recorded | 2015–17 | |||
| Studio | Magic Shop, New York City | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 45:34 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | John Congleton | |||
| Blondie chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Pollinator | ||||
Pollinator is the eleventh studio album by the American rock bandBlondie, released on May 5, 2017 byBMG Rights Management.[2][3]
In contrast to previous Blondie albums, the band recorded many songs that were written for them by other artists, a collaborative process which inspired thealbum's title. More than half of the tracks on the album were written by other artists, includingSia,Johnny Marr, andCharli XCX, while the remainder were written or co-written by members of Blondie themselves.[4]
Released to generally favourable reviews, the album peaked at no. 63 on the USBillboard 200 chart, with the first single "Fun" reaching no. 1 on theBillboard Dance Chart. The album was a greater success in the UK, peaking at no. 4 and giving Blondie their ninth British Top 10 album and the band's highest UK chart peak in 18 years.Pollinator was the band's last album released in drummerClem Burke's lifetime before his death in 2025.
The album returns to a more band-oriented sound following the group's experimentation with electronic music for their previous releaseGhosts of Download. Many of the songs on the album were collaborations written by outside writers, including songs written byTV on the Radio's David Sitek,Johnny Marr,Sia, Nick Valensi fromThe Strokes,Charli XCX, Canadian YouTube personality Adam Johnston, a.k.a. YourMovieSucks (who records music under the name An Unkindness), andDev Hynes. Five of the album's tracks were written or co-written by Blondie bandmembers, with two songs written by Debbie Harry and Chris Stein (Harry also co-wrote one track with Hynes) and another two were written by Blondie keyboardist Matt Katz-Bohen with his wife Laurel. Lead guitarist Chris Stein stated in an interview withMojo, "We thought to ask people because there's so much good music swirling about", rather than it being a result of running thin on ideas. "We sorted the contributors ourselves, or someone would send us a bunch of songs and we'd pick one" he continued, explaining that Blondie and producer John Congleton had curated the submissions.[5]
The album was officially announced on January 23, 2017, when the band uploaded to their social media a scan of an interview withMojo magazine which confirmed the album's release date.[5] On January 30, the album's cover and track listing were unveiled.
The album cover was designed by the visual artistShepard Fairey.[6]
The band's performance atWTTW's Grainger Studio in Chicago, taped on December 10, 2015, aired on thePBS concert seriesSoundstage on January 26, 2017, containing the new songs "My Monster" and "Gravity".[7][8] "Fun" was released on February 1, 2017, as the album's lead single.[3] A second track, "My Monster", was released as aniTunesinstant grat, and made available to those who had pre-ordered the album, on February 19, 2017. "Fun" became Blondie's most successful single in years, rising to Number 1 onBillboard'sDance Club Songs (Blondie's first appearance on that chart since 2003's "Good Boys" and first number 1 since 1995's "Atomic" remixes) and many charts in other countries.[9]
The second single, "Long Time", had its first play onKen Bruce's show onBBC Radio 2 on March 21, and was released as a single on March 24.[10] It was released on a limited edition 7" vinyl, as was "Fun", backed with non-album track "The Breaks".[11] "Long Time" gave the band another Top 5 hit on the USBillboard Dance chart, their second from this album.
Later in April two more songs were released: "Fragments" and "Tonight". "Fragments", released for streaming only, is a song originally written and performed by Canadian YouTuber and musician Adam Johnston, who releases music under the name An Unkindness, that gained much attention during the Australian tour and was released as a promo track on YouTube.[12] "Tonight" is a Charli XCX penned track, sung in duet with Laurie Anderson. It was released on a limited edition 1000 copies one-sided 7" pressing,[13] sold at Blondie's pop up shop at theCamden Market as a promotional single.[14] This song has also appeared on the CD edition of the album as a hidden-track after "Fragments".
On September 19, "Doom or Destiny" (featuringJoan Jett) was released as the album's fourth single, backed with a politically charged video directed by Rob Roth.
In summer 2017, Blondie undertook a co-headlining tour of the US with the bandGarbage, in whichDebbie Harry appeared onstage in fullhoney bee regalia. In keeping with thePollinator album, the costume was designed as a statement about the dwindling bee population and environmental health. Harry also wore a full-length cape which declared: "STOP FUCKING THE PLANET" in large block letters.[15][16]
Blondie toured for the album during 2017 and 2018, visiting several cities in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Germany, France, Ireland, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Cuba. A date in Chile was scheduled but later cancelled and rescheduled for 2019 and going sold-out in ten minutes.[17] Finally, the Chile concert was cancelled.[18] During July–August, 2017 Blondie co-headlined the "Rage and Rapture Tour" withGarbage, playing 27 shows in the US, Canada and Mexico.
In 2019, Blondie were invited to perform inHavana,Cuba as part of a cultural exchange through the Cuban Ministry of Culture. Director Rob Roth created the documentaryVivir en La Habana with recordings and interviews from this travel, which premiered in several festivals and produced the homonimous live EP.
The average setlist does not represent all of the shows of the tour.[19] Other songs performed on the tour included "Doom or Destiny", "Tonight" and "Best Day Ever" fromPollinator, "Picture This" and "Fade Away and Radiate" fromParallel Lines, "A Rose by Any Name" and "Euphoria" fromGhosts of Download, "In the Flesh" fromBlondie and "The Tide Is High" fromAutoamerican. Covers of "Rainy Day Women ♯12 & 35", "I Feel Love", "My Heart Will Go On", "Paranoid" and "You Can't Put Your Arms Around a Memory" were also performed.[20]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 6.1[21] |
| Metacritic | 71/100[22] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [23] |
| Consequence | B−[24] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[25] |
| The Guardian | [4] |
| The Line of Best Fit | 7.5/10[26] |
| Mojo | [27] |
| Pitchfork | 6.7/10[28] |
| Q | [29] |
| Rolling Stone |  [30] |
| Vice | A−[31] |
At Metacritic, the album has a score of 71 out of 100, based on 22 reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[22] Critics generally commented on the large number of collaborators and composers, lamenting the small number of Harry-Stein-penned tracks, and praised Congleton's production and Harry's interpretation.
Jon Dolan fromRolling Stone said that "Each [collaborator] puts their own reverent spin on the band's vintage neon Nu Yawk garage rock, as 71-year-old Debbie Harry has a catty good time all over the place." In an A− review, Robert Christgau pointed at the tension between Harry's age (which people would normally consider old) and her youthful and energetic attitude: "Any youngish person who doesn't buy her «Take me back home again/I wanna make love again,» not to mention 53-year-old Johnny Marr's «Human beings are stupid things when we're young,» has much to learn about the aging process in this ever-changing world we hope we all age in". Stephen Thomas Erlewine fromAllMusic highlighted the balance between the effort to dialogue with modern sounds and the intention to be faithful to the identity of the band.
Dave Simpson fromThe Guardian celebrated Burke's drumming and Harry's warm delivery.[4]Maura Johnston fromPitchfork highlighted "Fragments," the closing track, stating that: "It's part 'Is That All There Is,' part defiant wave goodbye—and it's a fitting close to an album that shows one of the most crucial American rock bands searching for footing in a chaotic, collapsible pop landscape."[28]
Pollinator has charted higher in most regions than their previous three albums. The album debuted and peaked at number 4 in the United Kingdom, the band's ninth Top 10 album and seventh Top 5 there (and their first since 1999'sNo Exit). As of July 2017, the album has sold 24,206 copies in the UK.[32] The album also debuted at number 1 in the UK Independent Albums Chart, and remained in the top 50 for 16 consecutive weeks. In the United States, the album debuted and peaked at number 63 on theBillboard 200, also the band's highest charting album in their native country since 1999. The album was more prominent onBillboard's Top Independent Albums Chart where it debuted and peaked at number 4. In Australia, the album peaked at number 29.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Doom or Destiny" (featuringJoan Jett) | 2:54 | |
| 2. | "Long Time" |
| 4:35 |
| 3. | "Already Naked" |
| 4:06 |
| 4. | "Fun" |
| 4:19 |
| 5. | "My Monster" | Johnny Marr | 3:29 |
| 6. | "Best Day Ever" | 3:58 | |
| 7. | "Gravity" | 3:47 | |
| 8. | "When I Gave Up on You" | 4:02 | |
| 9. | "Love Level" (featuringJohn Roberts) |
| 4:19 |
| 10. | "Too Much" | 3:08 | |
| 11. | "Fragments" | Adam Johnston | 6:57 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Tonight" (featuringLaurie Anderson) | 5:39 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "The Breaks" |
| 4:15 |
| 13. | "Fun" (Greg Cohen Spirit of 79 remix) |
| 4:35 |
| 14. | "Fun" (Eric Kupper disco remix) |
| 4:12 |
| 15. | "Fun" (Drew G remix) |
| 4:19 |
| Vivir en La Habana | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EP by | ||||
| Released | July 16, 2021 (2021-07-16) | |||
| Recorded | 2019 | |||
| Venue | Teatro Mella,Havana, Cuba | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 39:32 | |||
| Label | BMG | |||
| Producer | Deborah Harry, Chris Stein, Clem Burke, Rob Roth | |||
| Blondie chronology | ||||
| ||||
In 2019, Blondie were invited to perform inHavana,Cuba as part of a cultural exchange through the Cuban Ministry of Culture. This experience was documented by director Rob Roth in the short filmBlondie: Vivir en La Habana, which featured 16mm, 8mm film and digital footage from the shows, band members sightseeing Havana and interviews. Guitarist Chris Stein couldn't travel but is present in footage shot in New York. The film is divided into three segments: "Water", "Fire" and "Air", which present a meditation on the experience as well as highlights from the two-night live musical performances with special guests Alain Perez, David Torrens and Afro-Cuban rock band Sintesis at Havana's Teatro Mella.[40]
The short film made the selection of several film festivals in 2021, such as In-Edit Festival (Spain), Rizoma Festival (Spain),Tribeca Film Festival 2021 (United States),Sheffield DocFest 2021 (England),Reykjavik International Film Festival 2021 (Iceland),Sonoma International Film Festival 2022 (United States),BBC's LongShots 2022 (United Kingdom).
An EP, entitledVivir en La Habana, was released in July 2021 in vinyl and streaming. It consists of recordings of six live tracks from the Cuba shows with extra guitars added by Stein in a New York studio.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Tide Is High" (Contains excerpts ofDeee-Lite's "Groove Is in the Heart") | 8:39 | |
| 2. | "Long Time" |
| 5:11 |
| 3. | "Wipe Off My Sweat" |
| 4:01 |
| 4. | "Heart of Glass" (Contains excerpts fromDonna Summer's "I Feel Love" andThe Shangri-Las' "Train from Kansas City") |
| 7:32 |
| 5. | "Rapture" (Contains excerpts fromBeastie Boys' "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)") |
| 9:53 |
| 6. | "Dreaming" |
| 4:13 |
| Total length: | 39:32 | ||
Blondie
Additional personnel
Vivir en La Habana personnel
| Chart (2017) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[42] | 29 |
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[43] | 27 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[44] | 55 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[45] | 30 |
| Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[46] | 26 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[47] | 78 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[48] | 86 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[49] | 21 |
| Irish Albums (IRMA)[50] | 57 |
| Italian Albums (FIMI)[51] | 62 |
| New Zealand Heatseekers Albums (RMNZ)[52] | 3 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[53] | 4 |
| Slovakia Albums (ČNS IFPI)[54] | 14 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[55] | 86 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[56] | 22 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[57] | 4 |
| UK Independent Albums (OCC)[58] | 1 |
| USBillboard 200[59] | 63 |
| USIndependent Albums (Billboard)[60] | 4 |
| USTop Alternative Albums (Billboard)[61] | 7 |
| USTop Rock Albums (Billboard)[62] | 15 |
