With their legacy established in pop-history as a catchy and highly successful New Wave band, it's hard to remember that Blondie started--as did many of the successful acts that would later thrive in the '80s--in the fertile punk scene of the '70s. In a time before mohawks and guitar thrash, the punk scene was more about providing an alternative to arena-rock and staid radioplay. Within that camp, Blondie was the perfect candidate for the mainstream, having always been a pop band first and foremost, though no one could ever accuse them of being a conventional one.

It didn't hurt, of course, to have an eye-catching, strong-willed female vocalist. Debbie Harry beat Madonna to the title of pop diva by a good decade, and her stage presence gave the band additional appeal. Playing gigs in many of the same venues that the Talking Heads, Television and The Ramones were playing, they were one of the first to take off and hit it big in the mainstream. They issued their self-titled debut album in 1976, and though it was a strong release, it took until their sophomore record before they got major airplay. When 1977's Plastic Letters came out, they scored some hits on the U.K. charts with "Denis" and "I'm Always Touched By Your Presence, Dear." Their third record, 1978's Parallel Lines, sent them to the top of the charts with hit singles like "Hanging on the Telephone," "One Way or the Other" and the disco-pop song "Heart of Glass."

They would find continued success on their fourth LP, Eat to the Beat, but interest began to flag, and by the early '80s the band had broken up. They reunited for a new record in 1999, No Exit, but mostly issued live albums, touring extensively and entertaining fans.