Punk Rock Countdown: No. 34 "Rip Her to Shreds," by Blondie Blondie was one of the seminal punk bands to come out of the New York CBGB's scene in the mid-70s. "Rip Her to Shreds" is a song about teen-girl envy and jealousy. Debbie Harry's sultry and oh-so-catty vocal qualities perfectly fit the acerbic lyrics. Oh you know her/Would ya look at that hair...Yeah you know her/Check out those shoes... You can feel the underlying tension as she sings about her rival:
She looks like she don't know better
A case of partial extreme
Dressed in a Robert Hall sweater
Acting like a soap opera queen
Underscored by a new-wavy keyboard and rhythm, this song is not so much punk in style as it is in substance. At its essence, "Rip Her to Shreds" deals with self-image and the deadly sins of envy and pride. Spiritual stuff indeed.