Anyone in any doubt about the precarious nature of the music industry might look no further than Debbie Harry. The frontwoman of Blondie is still singing for her supper at 77 – a reality you might put down to the bad record deals she says she struck with predatory management. “We weren’t the first band to be ripped off and we won’t be the last,” she said in 2019.
In truth, though, Harry (née Angela Trimble) is at Glastonbury for the sheer love of the game. It’s Blondie’s third outing, after a set in 2014 and one all the way back in 1999. Their 5pm start means that they come straight after Yusuf/Cat Stevens in the 3.15pm slot, making this year a de facto Legends double-header. Blondie were founded in New York by Harry and guitarist Chris Stein in 1974 – meaning that they have close to 50 years of bangers to choose from. Today their influence can be heard in artists from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs – whose contrast of abrasive guitars and melodic vocals is particularly reminiscent of Blondie – to Lady Gaga.
