Face It audiobook

Your enjoyment of this book will increase with each one of the following criteria you can answer “Yes”:- You are a fan of Debbie Harry- You enjoy stories – fiction or non-fiction – set in New York during the tumultuous 60s, 70s, and 80s- You like punk/new wave music- You enjoy the music of Blondie- You enjoy autobiographies – no matter who they are aboutIf you can answer all of these yes – then this book is a must read. If you can’t answer any of them yes, then there is no reason to even try this one. If you can answer one or some of them yes, you may enjoy this book, but you may find some parts uninteresting.I enjoyed this a lot because I can answer yes to all of these questions. I was pretty young in the 1980s so I did not get into that scene during its heyday. But, in the 90s, my friends and I were all about late 70s and 80s alternative music. I listened to a lot of Blondie and many of the other acts she talks about in this book. I regret that I never got to see CBGBs or witness the late 70s music scene in New York – even though it sounds like it was not an “if” but a “when” I would have been mugged or beaten up! It is amazing how harrowing and interesting day to day life was for Harry as she spent her formative years in New Jersey and New York City – and she mentions several times that this was before they cleaned it all up.I can guarantee you that if you read this, you will spend your free time looking for old footage of Harry and Blondie on YouTube. You might download an album or two or ask Alexa to play The Tide Is High. It is a great way to extend the experience of this book beyond the pages.It sounds like Debbie Harry and Blondie have still been going strong in recent years. She is 74 as I write this review, but maybe she has enough of that old punk energy left that I might get a chance to see her in concert someday.

A true page turner for me. Hard to put it down. I have always been a fan of Blondie and never realized that she was in so many other bands. Quite a fascinating tale from one of rock and roll's living legends.

Debbie Harry: the most badass and effortlessly cool person to ever exist.This woman has lived a hell of a crazy life. My favourite kind of memoirs are the kind that feel as though you’re just sitting down with a friend and having them tell you a story, this is that kind of memoir.A fantastic read from one of the greatest music and film icons of our time!

I always liked Debbie Harry.But now I LOVE Debbie Harry! She's so honest and forthright. This book is like listening to someone as they sit and tell you spontaneously about their life. And I really love her voice: she's so in-the-moment. I love the sense of momentum she imparts, you get the feeling she's constantly in motion. Whatever setbacks she encounters--whether it be an abusive stalker boyfriend who could've killed her (and who inspired One Way or Another!) or a violent attack by a robber in NYC--she keeps moving forward. She doesn't let the bad things that happen to her define her. She is the quintessential artist: sublimely creative, yet self-conscious and insecure at times, but determined to GO FOR IT because she simply has no choice: she must perform, write, create, sing, act, express herself--because, for the artist, to create is to breathe, and the non-creative life is death.She also has a bit of an ego, and I love that. Good artists must have a strong ego in order to see their creative vision to fruition.

Loved hearing the story of a female artist finding her voice. A large portion of the book covers the late 60s and 70s in NYC, which is always a draw for me. Lots of names, places, and people are mentioned rounding out the picture of the NYC punk scene. Highly recommend.

I was utterly charmed by this memoir. Debbie read the audiobook herself and it came off as slightly stilted but it was worth it to hear her periodic hearty interjections of, “Hah!” I like Blondie but I’m not a super fan by any stretch. I loved hearing Debbie’s stories of New York in the 70’s and beyond. I definitely recommend the audiobook.

Rising out of the New York downtown Punk scene in the 1970's, Blondie, fronted by Debbie Harry and Chris Stein, were one of the last bands to be signed as things were becoming New Wave. In this memoir, Debbie Harry writes openly about the excitement, insanity, and sometimes drugged out lifestyle of the times and the many characters that populated the New York scene from Andy Warhol, to William Burroughs, Iggy Pop to Devine, The Ramones to Television, the scene around CBGBs and much more. In the course of her career, there have been hit records, Chris Stein's near-fatal illness in the 1980's, the IRS confiscating all their property, several near-fatal close calls, parts in many classic independent films, and always music. One of the few survivors of the scene, she tells it all with frankness and quirky humour. An entertaining read illustrated with photographs and fan art which she believes reveal as much about the artist as about her own face. A great artifact of an interesting era. - BH.

I really loved it, because I have loved Debbie Harry since 1977. I listened to it non stop over 2 days.As you can expect a lot of it is about sex, drugs and rock'n'roll which to me made interesting reading. Compared to her, you have led a boring life. Safer, but boring.I always wanted to know about the period when Chris Stein got sick and that was a heartbreaking account. Also, the part when they were penniless due to the tax issues they got into. With so much potential wealth possible, it seem pointless that the tax authorities should drive people into the ground. Surely some arrangement would be better to pay off the bill? Tour for the tax man?What made it for me was that it was in her own voice. I enjoyed that so much.