Remember When Blondie Scored Their First No. 1 Hit in 1979?

In 1979, Blondie scored their first No. 1 hit with “Heart Of Glass”. On the band’s third studio album, Parallel Lines, “Heart Of Glass” was written by band members Debbie Harry and Chris Stein.

“Heart Of Glass” came after Blondie had already released several singles, including some that became moderate hits. Prior to “Heart Of Glass”, Blondie had songs that were successful in other countries, including “In The Flesh”,  “Denis”, and “Hanging On The Telephone”, among others. But it’s “Heart Of Glass” that became Blondie’s first song to hit No. 1 in the United States.

A song about the pain that often accompanies love, “Heart Of Glass” says, “Once I had a love and it was a gas / Soon turned out had a heart of glass / Seemed like the real thing, only to find / Mucho mistrust, love’s gone behind.”

“Heart Of Glass” is Blondie’s first No. 1 single, but it isn’t their only one. In 1980, they reached the top of the charts with “Call Me”, one of their most successful singles. Later that year, Blondie also released “The Tide Is High”, which reached the top of the charts. In 1981, Blondie had their final No.1 single in the United States, with “Rapture”.

The Story Behind “Heart Of Glass” by Blondie

“Heart Of Glass” might be on Blondie’s third studio album, but it dates back to the beginning of Blondie.

“’Heart Of Glass’ was one of the first songs Blondie wrote,” Harry reveals. “But it was years before we recorded it properly. We’d tried it as a ballad, as reggae, but it never quite worked. At that point, it had no title. We just called it ‘The Disco Song’.”

Although the angst seems almost palpable in “Heart Of Glass”, Harry insists the song isn’t at all autobiographical.

“The lyrics weren’t about anyone,” Harry maintains. “They were just a plaintive moan about lost love. At first, the song kept saying, ‘Once I had a love, it was a gas. Soon turned out, it was a pain in the ass.’ We couldn’t keep saying that, so we came up with, ‘Soon turned out, had a heart of glass.’”

Blondie might have had a hit with “Heart Of Glass”, but it also came with a downside. Part of the popular new wave and punk sound, Harry recalls receiving some criticism in their inner circle because of the song.

“When we did ‘Heart Of Glass’, it wasn’t cool in our social set to play disco,” Harry admits. “But we did it because we wanted to be uncool. A lot of people we’d hung out and been close friends with on the scene for years said we’d sold out by doing a disco song.”

Photo by Pete Still/Redferns