RIFFS / HANGIN' ON THE TELEPHONE

When I was about eight, my dad had a friend who had this 13-year- old daughter, a skinhead. She was really naughty and used to tell me about snogging and willies, and Blondie were her favourite band. I think at the time I just wanted to be like her; I probably grew up much quicker than I should have done because of that, and then, of course, eventually I wanted to be Debbie Harry. My parents never minded even when I was coming home saying "I wanna be a skinhead" or "I wanna be a mod" - they were quite modern, playing The Specials and Bob Marley around the house.

I don't know why this song does it for me particularly - I was just really young and it was this fast, poppy thing, probably one of the most pop- friendly things they did. It paved the way for my next obsession: Madonna. But Blondie were important because they started it all off for me - from the moment I heard "Hangin' on the Telephone", I was off down the road of teenage naughtiness.