R.I.P. Blondie drummer Clem Burke, 1954-2025

Sadly, Clem Burke – longtime Blondie drummer who played with Pete Townshend, Iggy Pop, Empty Hearts and others has passed away after a battle with cancer. 

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Rolling Stone Clem Burke, Blondie drummer dead at 70

Watch Blondie live in Tokyo, 1978 and other classic early performances

Celebrating Debbie Harry's birthday with a few fab early Blondie performances including a Tokyo appearance in January 1978. 

Full Time Men go digital with Part Time Job retrospective

The Full Time Men's Keith Streng gets a vocal assist from Dave Faulkner on the Hoodoo Gurus-esque "We Were Using"

Here's the scoop from Yep Roc HQ...

On October 27, Yep Roc Records will release Full Time Men’s Part Time Job. Available on CD, Digital, and Limited Edition LP formats, Part Time Job marks the first time the band’s illustrious catalog is finally available on CD or digital platforms. 

In the mid-to-late ’80s, Full Time Men was a part time venture of Fleshtone Keith Streng (guitar and lead vocals) that featured Gordon Spaeth (sax, harp), Robert Warren (bass, vocals). and Bill Milhizer (drums), all full time members of New York’s Fleshtones, along with Rich Thomas (lead guitar, vocals) from LESR (Lower East Side Rockers). This compilation of the band’s material includes special guests Peter Zaremba (Fleshtones), Pat DiNizio (Smithereens), Dave Faulkner (Hoodoo Gurus), Stiv Bators, Jeff Connolly, Scott McCaughey, and Peter Buck.

The 20-track Part Time Job (CD/Digital) set collects the band’s entire recorded catalog. It features four previously unreleased songs, “We Were Using,” “Reinvented,” “Pink Cloud,” and “TOT (Toilet of Time),” plus songs from the band’s 1984 self-titled debut EP, Full Time Men, 1988’s Your Face My Fist, and 1999’s The Fabulous Sounds Of Coney Island ‎EP. The Fab Sounds Of Coney Island featured Ken Fox of the Fleshtones on bass and Andy York, of John Mellencamp fame, on lead guitar.

The Part Time Job 12-track LP, limited edition to 500 units and pressed on translucent emerald green vinyl, includes all three songs from the Full Time Men EP, select songs from Your Face My Fist LP, and the four previously unreleased songs, “We Were Using,” “Reinvented,” “Pink Cloud,” and “TOT (Toilet of Time).” You can pre-order a copy of the CD or LP via Yep Roc right here. 

Check out an audio clip of "We Were Using" featuring Dave Faulkner, Peter Buck and Clem Burke following the tracklisting below. 

Full Time Men – Part Time Job 

We Were Using*

Reinvented*

Pink Cloud*

TOT (Toilet of Time)*

I Got Wheels (EP Version)^

One More Time^

Way Down South^

Nothing’s Gonna Stop Our Train+

One More Time (Encore)+

Southern Twitch+

I Got Wheels (LP Version)+

Four Day Creep+

Full Time Men+

Critical List+

Wrecking Ball+

Making Time+

High On Drugs+

Baby Don’t Do It+

I’m Gonna Have Fun#

Did You See Her Eyes#

* previously unreleased 

^ from Full Time Men EP

+ from Your Face My Fist LP

# from The Fabulous Sounds Of Coney Island ‎EP

Before They Were Famous: Robert Vickers

Prior to joining the Go-Betweens, bassist Robert Vickers cut an album with The Colors produced by Clem Burke!   Photo: Vinny Zuflante 

Robert Vickers recalls his time with The Colors...

"In early 1979 I arrived in New York City on my way to Europe from my home in Brisbane, Australia and accidently got myself into a band with a couple of guys I met the first time I went to CBGBs. I decided to stay. Rent was cheap; CBs and Max’s Kansas City were within walking distance and they had the best new bands playing every night. We played a kind of punk pop heavily influenced by ‘60s and ‘70s pop bands. In about a year we were being managed by the owner of CBGBs, Hilly Kristal and the drummer from Blondie, Clem Burke offered to produce us. A local indie label which was a rare thing in those times put up the money and we went into Electric Lady Studios and recorded an EP with Clem also playing drums. It came out on colored vinyl in a faux Japanese import cover. We were happening.

"Even though we weren’t on a major label or touring the world it still seemed like with were going somewhere fast. The New York music scene then was a world unto itself. Headlining a weekend at CBGBs, the coolest club in the coolest city in this, or any world felt like a pinnacle. Especially for someone like me who had been watching this historic explosion of creativity from afar in the pages of magazines and on the backs of record sleeves. The first wave of CBs bands had now moved on to bigger things and it seemed likely we would too. 

"The major labels passed on us but undeterred we recorded an album with Clem again producing and this track, “Popstar” is one of my songs from it. We kept playing till the end of 1982 but the fire had gone out and by the time the album was released the band was over. I went to London to join some friends from Australia, The Go-Betweens and took some invaluable lessons on life and music with me." – Robert Vickers

Listen to "Popstar" by The Colors along with the rippin' "Rave It Up" below. 

 

That time Iggy Pop played Kitchener's Bingeman Park in 1981

Here's Iggy crooning about his former bandmates on "Dum Dum Boys" backed by Carlos Alomar and Blondie's Clem Burke.

Cabbage 'n' Mash vs. The Small Faces

Cabbage 'N Mash (feat. Dale Crover, Clem Burke & Glen Matlock) took a crack at the Small Faces' "Song Of A Baker"

The Split Squad – America's least famous supergroup – issue 2nd album!

The Fleshtones Keith Streng & Blondie's Clem Burke have issued a second Split Squad album, Another Cinderella. Hear "Hey DJ"

Happy Birthday Clem Burke!

Celebrating the birthday of drummer extraordinaire Clem Burke with a tour of his LPs and a short interview with Tom Green. 

Reckless Drifters cover "Love Will Tear Us Apart" country-style

The Reckless Drifters, feat. Blondie's Clem Burke & Frank Infante, are releasing their two-steppin' Joy Division cover digitally today via iTunes. 

Here's the scoop...
Just in time for Valentine's Day, The Reckless Drifters are back with their second release, "Love Will Tear Us Apart" backed with "Drivin' Nails in My Coffin," arriving today, February 14th, via iTunes. You can get it right here after listening to their cover of the Joy Division classic below.

The Reckless Drifters features a rotating mix of experienced musical talents from acts like Blondie, The Bangles, Dramarama and Miss Derringer in an ongoing country/punk covers project with a twist - classic country songs get punked up while punk and alternative classics get the country treatment.

This latest pair of genre-bending tracks, a revved-up version of Ernest Tubb's "Drivin' Nails in My Coffin" and a country-tinged version of Joy Division's "Love Will Tear Us Apart," features a trio of returning Reckless Drifters from the group's debut release - singer John Easdale and guitarist Mark Englert, both from Dramarama, along with bassist Sylvain de Muizon from Miss Derringer. And this time around, the gang is joined by drummer Clem Burke and guitarist Frank Infante of Blondie fame, Annette Zilinskas from The Bangles and Blood On The Saddle, and popular L.A. songstress Beck Black to form a truly impressive array of talents.

Though many folks may already be familiar with Ernest Tubb's original version of "Drivin' Nails in My Coffin" and Joy Division's original version of "Love Will Tear Us Apart," it's safe to assume that no one's ever heard them quite like this before. And both songs take on a surprisingly fresh life when presented in a whole new context!

On "Drivin' Nails in My Coffin," Easdale's and Zilinskas's lively, dueling vocals make for a desperate and delirious duet, while Infante's and Englert's propulsive guitar-playing fuels the turbo-charged track to a frantic finish. On "Love Will Tear Us Apart," Easdale's and Black's regret-drenched vocals offer a perfect counterpoint to each other, while Infante's moody guitars really set the tone, and Englert's slide guitar, lap steel, banjo and mandolin provide the perfect accompaniment. Meanwhile, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame drummer Burke and bassist de Muizon combine to provide the driving rhythm for "Drivin' Nails in My Coffin" while delivering a suitable shuffle to "Love Will Tear Us Apart."  A music video for "Drivin' Nails in My Coffin," which offers a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the making of the song, is on the way.

Happy Birthday Clem Burke!

Celebrating the birthday of drummer deluxe Clem Burke with a few vintage Blondie performance clips from 1977 and 1979.