Dreaming (Blondie song)

"Dreaming"
Single by Blondie
from the album Eat to the Beat
B-side "Sound-A-Sleep"
"Living in the Real World"
Released September 14, 1979
Format 7" single
Genre Power pop,[1] new wave
Length 3:08
Label Chrysalis
Writer(s) Chris Stein, Debbie Harry
Producer(s) Mike Chapman
Certification Silver (UK)
Blondie singles chronology
"One Way or Another"
(1979)		 "Dreaming"
(1979)		 "Union City Blue"
(1979)
Music sample
Dreaming

"Dreaming" is a song by the American new wave band Blondie. Released in 1979, it was the lead single from their fourth album Eat to the Beat.[2] It peaked at #2 in the British singles chart and at #27 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States.

Background

The lyrics for "Dreaming" originated from the line, "dreaming is free," which band member Chris Stein thought of.[3] After hearing the music for the song that Stein wrote, Debbie Harry wrote the rest of the lyrics.[3] Musically, the song is a fast paced new wave song. Stein has since claimed that the song is "pretty much a copy" of "Dancing Queen" by ABBA.[3]

According to the band's keyboardist Jimmy Destri, the song, like many from the Eat to the Beat album, was recorded live in the studio.[4] The song also features a frantic drum performance by drummer Clem Burke. Burke said of his drumming on the song, "The reason why 'Dreaming' came out the way it did is because [producer Mike Chapman] really gave me free rein and it was really a surprise."[4]

"Dreaming" was released on September 14, 1979 as the first single from Eat to the Beat. Backed with its fellow Eat to the Beat tracks "Sound-A-Sleep" in the UK and "Living in the Real World" in the US, the song was a chart hit, reaching #2 in the Britain and at #27 in America, as well as #3 in Ireland and #4 in Canada. It has since been featured on multiple compilation albums, such as The Best of Blondie, The Complete Picture: The Very Best of Deborah Harry and Blondie, Atomic: The Very Best of Blondie, and Greatest Hits Deluxe Redux.

Music video

A music video was produced to promote the single featuring Debbie Harry wearing a solid blue unitard and matching sheer blouse designed by Stephen Sprouse.[5]

Release history


UK 7" (CHS 2359, September 1979)

  1. "Dreaming" (Deborah Harry, Chris Stein) — 3:08
  2. "Sound-A-Sleep" (Harry, Stein) — 4:18


US 7" (CHS 2379, September 1979)

  1. "Dreaming" (Deborah Harry, Chris Stein) — 3:08
  2. "Living in the Real World" (Jimmy Destri) — 2:53


US 12" Promo (CHS14-PDJ, September 1979)

  1. "Dreaming" (Deborah Harry, Chris Stein) — 3:08
  2. "Dreaming" (Deborah Harry, Chris Stein) — 3:08

Chart performance

Weekly singles charts

Chart (1979) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[6] 53
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[7] 18
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[8] 16
Belgium (VRT Top 30 Flanders)[9] 14
Canada (RPM 100 Singles)[10] 4
France (SNEP)[11] 33
Germany (Official German Charts)[12] 26
Ireland (IRMA)[13] 3
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[14] 18
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[15] 12
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[16] 9
Norway (VG-lista)[17] 6
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[18] 19
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[19] 2
US Billboard Hot 100[20] 27
US Cash Box Top 100[21] 20

Year-end charts

Chart (1979) Rank
Canadian RPM 1979 Top 100 Singles[22] 60
UK [23] 35

Sales and certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] Silver 200,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Cover versions and appearances in other media

References

  1. ↑ Danyel Smith, ed. (2002). "Billboard 14 december 2002". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. ISSN 0006-2510. "The near-capacity crowd (...) then went wild when they heard Burke 's unmistakable drum roll intro to "Dreaming," perhaps the band's definitive power-pop single."
  2. ↑ Rae Cohen, Debra (November 30, 1983). "Eat to the Beat". Rolling Stone.
  3. 1 2 3 "Dreaming". songfacts.com.
  4. 1 2 Porter, Dick; Needs, Kris. Blondie: Parallel Lines.
  5. ↑ Cathy Che (1999), 'Deborah Harry: Platinum Blonde', MPG Books Ltd, Cornwall, p.96
  6. ↑ bulion. "Forum - ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts - CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989". ARIA. Australian-charts.com. Archived from the original on October 20, 2013. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Blondie – Dreaming" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Blondie – Dreaming" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Dreaming - BLONDIE". VRT (in Dutch). Top30-2.radio2.be. Retrieved July 28, 2013. Hoogste notering in de top 30 : 14
  10. ↑ "Top Singles - Volume 32, No. 11, December 08 1979". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  11. ↑ "InfoDisc : Tous les Titres par Artiste". Dominic DURAND / InfoDisc (in French). InfoDisc.fr. June 28, 2013. Archived from the original on September 20, 2013. Retrieved June 28, 2013. You have to use the index at the top of the page and search "Blondie"
  12. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Blondie – Dreaming". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  13. ↑ "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". IRMA. Archived from the original on June 3, 2009. Retrieved July 28, 2013. 4th result when searching "Dreaming"
  14. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Blondie - Dreaming search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  15. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Blondie – Dreaming" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  16. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Blondie – Dreaming". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  17. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Blondie – Dreaming". VG-lista. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  18. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Blondie – Dreaming". Singles Top 100. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  19. ↑ "Archive Chart: 1979-10-06" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  20. ↑ "Eat to the Beat awards at Allmusic". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  21. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 21, 2015. Retrieved 2015-02-21.
  22. ↑ "Canadian 1979 Top 100 Singles". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  23. ↑ "Chart Archive – 1970s Singles". everyHit.com. Retrieved October 10, 2016.
  24. ↑ "British single certifications – Blondie – Dreaming". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 29 March 2012. Enter Dreaming in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Silver in the field By Award. Click Search
  25. ↑ Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "The Aeroplane Flies High review at Allmusic". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  26. ↑ Jason Damas. "At Least, At Last review at Allmusic". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  27. ↑ "Digital Release: Under the Covers Vol. 2 - Deluxe Edition". Second Hand Songs. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  28. ↑ "Katy Goodman / Greta Morgan: Take It, It's Yours Album Review | Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2016-11-15.

External links

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