The New Wave Heartbeat: Clem Burke’s 10 greatest drumming performances

‘Hanging on the Telephone’ – Blondie

It might not be known to many people, but ‘Hanging on the Telephone’ is actually a cover of a little-known band called The Nerves. In truth, Burke’s beat is pretty like-for-like. So, you might rightly ask why it features on this list. Well, it is one of his great strengths that he knows a good fill when he hears one and is happy to play along.

In more recent years, he has celebrated his love for music by playing frequently in a covers band. In that mould, it is his enthusiasm that comes through like a smile assagai of rhythm. That same attitude gave his band a much-needed mega-hit, and it was all thanks to Burke having the wherewithal not to play around too much.

‘Pile Up’ – The Plimsouls

Burke always had his ear to the scene, and he liked what he heard from the emerging band The Plimsouls. So, when the chance to join them in 1996 as they reunited came his way, he figured he could throw himself happily into their new wave mix. His presence resulted in an edgier sound for the band.

The Californian group reflected on how he added a dynamic edge to their renewed ways. On ‘Pile Up’, the band take an old-school rock ‘n’ roll approach, and Burke has never sounded closer to Ringo with some gorgeous fills thrown into an otherwise beat-keeping performance. It’s refined, it’s classy, and it throws its punch when you least expect it.

‘Would I Lie to You’ – Eurythmics

As a rule of thumb, if you could kick it with the Eurythmics, you could kick it with anyone. The level of musicianship in the pop band is known to anyone worth their salt in the industry. So, when they called up Clem Burke to play on a few tracks, he took it as a badge of honour.

He plays on the beat with the riff, adding a bit of nostalgic rockabilly swagger to the track. In fact, his performance is so steady that even the great Annie Lennox adopts a touch of a percussive singing style. It’s simple stuff, but his timing and charm are impeccable. Dave Stewart knew perfectly well that only Burke could make the track work this well.

‘Rapture’ – Blondie

When Debbie Harry rapped on ‘Rapture,’ it opened the mainstream up to hip hop. This imbues the track with monumental importance, and once again, Burke’s classy nature shines through. He honours the emerging genre that blondie were honouring without ever parodying it. He keeps it simple and groovy but retains some of his own punk drum sound rather than appropriating the synthetic ways of what the group were inspired by.

This gives the drum on this track a profound sense of personality. But once again, the way he handles the artistry showcases how he knew the song might be an important note in cultural history.

‘I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll’ – Joan Jett & The Blackhearts

Above all else, ‘I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll’ was a monumentally big hit. Burke had a handy knack of being part of such triumphs. With this iconic offering, it is easy to see why. True to the Johnny Thunder quote, which Burke may very well have kept at hand, “Rock and roll is all about attitude and energy,” he delivers both in spades here.

Beyond the instantly recognisable beat that he offers, his involvement also proves how much of a pivotal figure he was within the scene. The very fact that Joan Jett called him to be part of the Bad Reputation recordings is testimony to his attributes when he wasn’t perched behind a kit. As his suited and booted outfits suggest, he was the Godfather who made good things happen.

‘Atomic’ – Blondie

“We was trying to do something like ‘Heart of Glass’, and then somehow or another we gave it the spaghetti western treatment,” said Debbie Harry when discussing making Blondie’s song ‘Atomic’, “Before that, it was just lying there like a lox. The lyrics, well, a lot of the time I would write while the band were just playing the song and trying to figure it out.”

If you ever needed any more proof that Clem Burke was one of the greatest, then look no further than ‘Atomic’. While Blondie was on the lookout for another hit, they stumbled upon something completely out of the band’s wheelhouse. While this was a surprise, Burke was able to take the track and work wonders with it, giving it a groove that means it lives on as one of the band’s very best.

‘The Villagers’ – Iggy Pop

While the majority of Burke’s biggest hits come from his time working with Blondie, he was also responsible for providing percussion for a huge range of different artists throughout his life. One of the most notorious was Iggy Pop, with whom he had a long history, as Blondie had supported Pop on one of his first nationwide tours of America.

Burke’s understanding of Pop is clear on the album Zombie Birdhouse, a gritty and punk-infused record that may not be considered Pop’s best but certainly showcases his power as an artist. ‘The Villagers’ is a more aggressive song than Burke was used to playing in Blondie, but he made it work perfectly, giving it the edge that is so required for an Iggy Pop song and perfectly highlighting his adaptability as a drummer.

‘Call Me’ – Blondie

This is probably Blondie’s biggest track, and it’s easy to see why. Every single member was at the top of their game for this one, and in working so hard, they were able to create a song that was packed with energy, fun to listen to, infectious, and unrelenting. They straddle the line between pop and rock, and they make doing so look easy.

Drumming on a song like this is incredibly hard. When you’re a band straddling that line between two genres, one push in either direction, and the whole thing can fall flat. If Burke had drummed too aggressively, the song would be considered too rock-heavy. If he went softer, it wouldn’t have the much-needed kick. Burke makes lingering in this grey area look seamless.

‘One Way or Another’ – Blondie

There are very few dancefloors that aren’t filled seconds into the classic track ‘One Way or Another’. The Blondie song about a stalker is filled to the brim with pop-punk energy, the effect of which you can still hear rippling in the work of many modern bands.

One of the most important aspects of the song, which gives it a much-needed and infectious bounce, is Clem Burke’s drumming. Every band member turns up on this track, the lyrics are hard-hitting, and the guitar is exciting, but without Burke’s driven and dynamic drums, the track wouldn’t be renowned as the catchy classic it is today.

‘Heart of Glass’ – Blondie

In every band, there is a turning point, a moment that members can look back on and pinpoint as quintessential. For Blondie, this was ‘Heart of Glass’. While the band had seen mild success as one of the hottest bands on the underground circuit beforehand, this funk-driven pop-punk song saw them skyrocket to fame.

There is so much of this song to love, but those bouncy drums courtesy of Burke deliver the much-needed punch that gets this track moving. You hear it immediately, the light tapping on the high hat, dancing beautifully behind the driving bass and guitar lines. Ears prick from the word go, and thanks to Burke’s upbeat drumming style paired with Blondie’s unique nature as a band, they were cemented as icons.