Punk Royalty: When Debbie Harry rolled out the classics with the Ramones
Here’s a deep bond between musicians who become successful at the same time, even if it’s not always immediately obvious. Debbie Harry and Joey Ramone were kindred flames in the New York scene, both disrupting with their distinctive flavours of defiance and rebellion.
The crossover with Blondie and the Ramones always made it seem like a collaboration was some sort of destiny. Though not entirely similar, of course, their spaces weren’t too distant from one another, with Harry adopting a similar punkish attitude when it came to the band’s rawness on stage. So, when they shared the same spotlight in 1988, it’s hard to tell whether the accompanying smoke cloud wasn’t entirely visceral.
The intimate show took place at the Trash Glitter Ball and Extravaganza at the Ritz in New York City, when Harry was brought up on stage towards the end of the Ramones’ set. An explosive performance ensued as though she hadn’t been on hiatus with Blondie for six years already. Because that’s the thing, too – it wasn’t special because it made sense, it was because it proved Harry wasn’t going away any time soon.
The moment they launched into ‘Lil Camaro Go’, their little tiff with Clem Burke the previous year dissolved into nothing. In that moment, it was simply two punk forces joining together, Harry in her leather jacket and pink suit, giving as good as she got before a chaotic audience, many of whom attempted to haul themselves on stage for a bit of the action. It was everything you’d expect of an audience, with people stage diving, yelling and generally kicking up a fuss through ‘Camaro’ and ‘I Wanna Be Sedated’.
But it seems even the security’s attempts at reinstating some kind of order did little to affect the performers, as is shown during a brief after-set interview backstage at the end of the clip. Harry and Ramone answer the interviewer’s questions as though they’ve experienced such raucous crowds a thousand times, Harry especially coming across with a demeanour so calm it’s like she’d just awoken from a nap. But the set itself was anything but docile, the clash of such a shift proving once again that these were true punk rock pioneers who weren’t ever afraid of a little chaos.
Perhaps it was the irony of ‘I Wanna Be Sedated’ that made it all come together in the end, especially when you look at the energy in the room. Initially written about being bored out of your mind in hotel rooms, ‘I Wanna Be Sedated’ felt entirely suited to end the set, addressing the pull of going out and getting drunk and a little wild instead of staying in doing nothing.
For one night among many, this was the exact message. This wasn’t a moment for contemplative downtime; this was raw energy, pure feeling. And with Harry also at the helm, it was surely a night to remember and one of the greatest special guest appearances of the entire decade.
