Debravation

Debravation
Studio album by Deborah Harry
Released	July 19, 1993
Genre	Pop rock
Length	59:20 (UK: 53:56)
Label	Sire Records/ Reprise Records (U.S.) Chrysalis Records (UK)
Producer	Chris Stein Toni C. Arthur Baker Adam Yellin Anne Dudley Jon Astley Guy Pratt John Williams
Deborah Harry chronology
The Complete Picture: The Very Best of Deborah Harry and Blondie (1989) Debravation (1993) Deborah Harry Collection (1998)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Robert Christgau	[2]
Music Week	[3]
NME	5/10 [4]
Philadelphia Inquirer	[5]
Rolling Stone	[6]
Select	[7]

Debravation is the fourth solo album by American singer Deborah Harry, released in July 19, 1993. It was the final album Harry made whilst signed to the Chrysalis label, thus ending a successful partnership that began with her time as a member of Blondie and had endured for over 15 years. The album reached No. 24 in the UK Albums Chart.

The US version of the album contains two additional tracks, including "My Last Date (With You)", which features instrumental backing from R.E.M.

Debravation was re-issued in 2005 by Wounded Bird Records.

Background

Speaking of the album, Harry told Melody Maker in 1993, "The album I originally wanted to make was quite different from the one that came out in the end. There were lots of people involved in producing and arranging it and it became perhaps a bit too polished. It was supposed to be a lot more raw. It's come out kind of interesting, though." ^[8]

Single releases

The first single from the album was the dance track "I Can See Clearly", which reached No. 23 in the UK. ^[9] The second single, ballad "Strike Me Pink", had a controversial promotional video that was banned^{[ citation needed ]} for being too disturbing – it featured a man in a glass tank filled with water, as Harry sits and watches him drown.

Critical reception

In the UK, Chris Roberts of Melody Maker considered Debravation to be a "sensible attempt to consolidate fields ploughed" by Harry's previous album Def, Dumb & Blonde (1989), but also noted the lack of cohesion, calling it "something of a Jill of all trades – rock, pop, dance, rap etc". He felt the album's "great moments" were "as good as anything in the history of pop" and selected "Communion" as the album's "zenith", noting it boasts the "most irresistible chorus" since the Bee Gees' "Tragedy". He also praised "Stability", calling it the "Nineties kid sister" to Blondie's "Rapture", and "Strike Me Pink", with its "hovering 'Brite Side' haze". ^[10] Stephen Dalton of NME described the album as a "saddening affair" on which Harry "too often seems to be imitating her imitators". He felt it is "poorly stocked with effortless techno gliders" such as the "svelte" "Lip Service" and "top-heavy with rock-funk chuggers" like the "middling, could-do-better first single", "I Can See Clearly". He noted that the "sweet pop-rap confection" "Stability" recalls Blondie's "Rapture", but added that the song, along with "a handful of New Wave guitar gushers" are "all stamped with a desperate longing for past glory", and that "even potentially oddball experiments like the William Gibson collaboration ["Dog Star Girl"] sound graceless and mechanical". ^[4]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"I Can See Clearly"	Arthur Baker, Tony McIlwaine	Arthur Baker	3:52
2.	"Stability"	Deborah Harry, Chris Stein, Franne Golde, Allee Willis	Chris Stein	4:59
3.	"Strike Me Pink"	Harry, Anne Dudley, Johnathan Bernstein	Anne Dudley	4:02
4.	"Rain"	Leigh Foxx	Jon Astley, Stein	4:13
5.	"Communion"	Harry, Guy Pratt	Guy Pratt	6:35
6.	"Lip Service"	Harry, Toni C.	Toni C.	3:32
7.	"Mood Ring"	Harry, Stein	Dudley	4:30
8.	"Keep On Going"	Astley	Astley	4:16
9.	"Dancing Down the Moon"	Harry, Stein	Stein	3:10
10.	"Standing In My Way"	Harry, Foxx	John Williams	4:10
11.	"The Fugitive"	Harry, Stein	Stein	4:55
12.	"Dog Star Girl"	Stein, William Gibson	Stein	5:34

Additional tracks

The following tracks also appear on the US CD release

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
13.	"My Last Date (With You)"	Boudleaux Bryant, Floyd Cramer, Skeeter Davis	R.E.M., Andy Paley	2:57
14.	"Tear Drops"	Calhoun, Golden	Andy Paley	2:27

Personnel

• Deborah Harry – vocals
• Chris Stein – guitar, programming
• Guy Pratt – guitar, keyboards, drum programming
• Pete Min – guitar
• Tim Renwick – guitar
• Stuart Kimball – guitar
• Mike Hehir – guitar
• J.J. Belle – guitar
• Chester Kaymen – guitar
• Danny Wilensky – saxophone
• Phil Todd – saxophone
• Andy Paley – piano, drums, background vocals
• Steve Piggott – keyboards
• Danny Schogger – keyboards
• Anne Dudley – keyboards
• Jon Astley – keyboards
• Carrie Boothe – keyboards, background vocals
• Tony McIlwaine – keyboards, programming
• Arthur Baker – keyboards, programming
• Nikolai Vorkapich – keyboards, programming
• Lenny Dee – keyboards, programming
• Eric Kupper – keyboards, programming
• Steve Rimland – keyboards, programming
• Richard T. Norris – keyboards, programming
• Toni C. (Antoinette Colandero) – keyboards, programming
• Leigh Foxx – bass guitar
• Andy Pask – bass
• Steve Barnacle – bass
• Geoff Dugmore – drums
• Jeffery CJ Vanston – synthesizer drums
• Frank Ricotti – percussion
• Ian Wilson – background vocals
• Tessa Niles – background vocals
• Linda Taylor – background vocals
• Katie Kissoon – background vocals
• Andy Caine – background vocals
• John Williams – background vocals
• Jonathon Paley – background vocals
• R.E.M. – performance on "My Last Date with You"

Production

• Arthur Baker – producer on "I Can See Clearly"
• Chris Stein – producer on "Stability", "Rain", "Dancing Down the Moon", "The Fugitive" and "Dog Star Girl",
• Anne Dudley – producer on "Strike Me Pink" and "Mood Ring"
• Jon Astley – producer on "Rain" and "Keep On Going"
• Guy Pratt – producer on "Communion"
• Adam Yellin – producer/recording engineer/mixing engineer
• Toni C. – producer on "Lip Service"
• John Williams – producer on "Standing In My Way"
• R.E.M. – producers on "My Last Date With You"
• Andy Paley – producer on "My Last Date With You", "Tear Drops"
• Chris Lord-Alge – additional production and mixing on "Communion"
• Kennan Keating – sound engineer
• Louis Scalise – sound engineer
• Andy Cardenas – sound engineer
• Neil McLellan – sound engineer
• Mike O'Hora – sound engineer
• Roger Dudley – sound engineer
• Glenn Skinner – sound engineer
• Bill Esses – sound engineer
• Darrin Tidsey- sound engineer
• Geoff Foster – sound engineer
• Rich Travali – sound engineer
• Dean Chamberlain – art direction, photography
• Gary Kurfirst – art direction, management

Debravation Producer's Cut

In 1994, Harry released independently a different version of the album, entitled Debravation (8½) Producer's (Director's) Cut. ^[11] According to her official website, this was the original version of the album, which was presented to Sire and rejected. When they opted for a different track listing and different mixes, Harry had a limited number of copies of Debravation (8½) Producer's (Director's) Cut pressed and sold them at her concerts and through her website. It contained two identical tracks to the official release, but also included alternate versions, as well as tracks that were used as B-sides, and some previously unreleased material.

The musicians for the Producer's Cut were Chris Stein (guitar and programming), Pete Min (guitar), Leigh Foxx (bass) and Geoff Dugmore (drums). On the live version of "Black Dog", the musicians were Steve Barnacle (bass); Carrie Boothe (keyboards); Geoff Dugmore (drums); Karl Hyde (guitar); and Melissa Poole-Stein (backing vocals). This version was engineered and mixed by Adam Yellin and produced by Chris Stein.

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Notes	Length
1.	"8½ Rhumba"	Nino Rota	not included on Debravation, b-side to Strike me Pink
2.	"Rain"	Leigh Foxx	alternate version
3.	"Dog Star Girl"	Chris Stein, William Gibson
4.	"Stability"	Deborah Harry, Stein, Franne Golde, Allee Willis	alternate version
5.	"Standing in My Way"	Harry, Foxx	alternate version with additional vocals by Joey Ramone
6.	"Dancing Down the Moon"	Harry, Stein	alternate version
7.	"Black Dog"	Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones	recorded live at the Hammersmith Odeon, London on July 23, 1991; not included on Debravation
8.	"Mood Ring"	Harry, Stein	alternate version
9.	"The Fugitive"	Harry, Stein
10.	"The Date"	Harry, Stein	not included on Debravation
11.	"On a Breath"	Foxx	not included on Debravation, b-side to Strike me Pink

References

1. Debravation at AllMusic
2. "Robert Christgau: CG: Artist 332". www.robertchristgau.com.
3. Jones, Alan (July 24, 1993). "Market Preview: Mainstream - Albums" (PDF). Music Week . p. 7. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
4. Dalton, Stephen (24 July 1993). "Long Play". New Musical Express . p. 35.
5. Wood, Sam (September 7, 1993). "A Pale Shade of '70s Blondie; Orbital's Techno Beat; Flavored Blues". Philadelphia Inquirer .
6. "Rolling Stone review". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on November 19, 2008.
7. Higginbotham, Adam. "Deborah Harry: Debravation > Review".
8. Mathur, Paul (10 July 1993). "Platinum Brunette". Melody Maker . pp. 12–13.
9. "i can see clearly | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com.
10. Roberts, Chris (10 July 1993). "Albums". Melody Maker . p. 36.
11. "Deborah Harry Official Website - Debravation Producer's Cut". Archived from the original on 2011-09-10. Retrieved 2011-08-22.