I Want to Drag You Around

Last updated
"I Want to Drag You Around"
Blondie - I Want to Drag You Around.png
Single by Blondie
from the album Ghosts of Download
ReleasedApril 3, 2014 (UK radio)
April 22, 2014 (worldwide)
Recorded2012/2013
Genre Electronica, Pop Rock
Length3:24
Label
Songwriter(s)
  • Matt Barus
  • Lauren Mitchell [1] (uncredited)
Producer(s)
  • Chris Stein
  • Jeff Saltzman
Blondie singles chronology
"Sugar On the Side"
(2013)		"I Want to Drag You Around"
(2014)		"Fun"
(2017)

"I Want to Drag You Around" is the third single from the band Blondie's tenth studio album Ghosts of Download . [2] It was released officially along with the rest of the album in May 2014, [3] although it was released before that as a free digital download with tickets to the 2013 North American No Principals Tour under the title "Drag You Around". It was announced in March 2014 as the third single from Ghosts of Download, and was BBC Radio 2's Record of the Week from 19 April 2014.

Contents

Background and release

The song was first announced in May 2013 during a UK newspaper interview where singer Debbie Harry sung a verse of the song, which was described as a toe-tapper. It was first performed live in June 2013 and appeared on the setlists of both of Blondie's tours that year, the Blast Off Tour and the No Principals Tour, although it was only featured during selected shows.

It was written by Matt Barus, frontman of Christchurch band The Dukes, who supported Blondie on a small 2010 New Zealand tour, and Barus has named his wife Lauren Mitchell as a contributor to the song, although Mitchell is uncredited in the album booklet. Chris Stein, guitarist for Blondie, asked if Barus wrote songs for other artists. Barus responded that he didn't, but he'd have a go. He described the process as: "I said sure, thinking 'yeah, cool, lots of people say nice things to you in the music industry'. But I went off and wrote a couple of songs and emailed them to him anyway, really rough demo versions, and I didn't hear from him for about a year. And then he started emailing back saying, 'we're starting to record some new tracks, and we're interested in using one of your songs'." Barus also wrote a second song entitled “Hollow Man” which he preferred, but learned that Blondie were already working on “Drag You Around”. [4]

Describing the album to GQ in May 2014, Stein, who also produced the song along with Jeff Saltzman, commented:

"A guy called Matt Barus wrote this one, from a New Zealand band called The Dukes. They opened for us in New Zealand and I thought they were a great combination of modern worldbeat sounds and what they do as a band is really interesting. We kept in touch and they sent this demo of a song and we kept developing it. It's not that they thought the song was perfect for Blondie, just one we would like as people. And we did. They sent an acoustic demo and it took us a while to come up with an arrangement. The sitar is played by a guy Matt knew in high school, they used to be in a band together and hadn't seen each other in years." [5]

The song was released to UK radio on April 3, 2014, and was featured as a free download with purchase of the iTunes edition of Ghosts of Download. On April 23, 2014, a lyric video was made available on YouTube. The video features additional artwork by J. H. Williams III who did the artwork and design for the Ghosts of Download album, and animation by Jay Holmes. Some early promotional CDs advertising the single announced it as having a May 19, 2014, release, a week after the release of "Ghosts of Download", although no public launch for the single occurred. [6]

Composition

The song is a gentle pop-rock song including synthesizers and some oriental instruments such as sitars. It includes percussion complementing the synthesizer melody. It was produced by The Killers producer Jeff Saltzman, who produced the rest of the album, and Blondie's co-founder Chris Stein, although it was initially announced erroneously as being produced by Steve Lillywhite. Lyrically the song describes a man in a relationship who isn't always there, and the singer (Debbie Harry) wants to keep in control of him: “I wanna drag you around”.

Reception

Popmatters.com reviewed the song in May 2014: "World music is a fitting descriptor for much of the album. “I Want to Drag You Around” is a dreamy low-key, but still danceable, reggae-inspired track that sounds like a summer day on the beach with drink in hand."

Related Research Articles

Blondie (band) American rock band

Blondie is an American rock band co-founded by singer Debbie Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. The band was a pioneer in the American new wave scene of the mid-1970s in New York. Their first two albums contained strong elements of these genres, and although highly successful in the United Kingdom and Australia, Blondie was regarded as an underground band in the United States until the release of Parallel Lines in 1978. Over the next five years, the band achieved several hit singles including "Heart of Glass", "Call Me", "Atomic", "The Tide Is High", and “Rapture”. The band became noted for its eclectic mix of musical styles, incorporating elements of disco, pop, reggae, and early rap music.

Emery (band) American post-hardcore band

Emery is an American post-hardcore band from Seattle, Washington currently signed to BadChristian Music. Emery was founded in Rock Hill, South Carolina by Toby Morrell, Devin Shelton, Matt Carter, Josh Head, Joel Green and Seth Studley, and moved to Seattle in order to reach a more music centered scene.

The Sounds Swedish indie rock band

The Sounds are a Swedish indie rock band. Formed in Helsingborg in 1998, the group's musical style has been compared to new wave acts such as Blondie, The Cars, the Epoxies and Missing Persons.

From First to Last American rock band

From First to Last is an American post-hardcore band based in the Los Angeles Area and Tampa, Florida. Formed by Matt Good, Scott Oord, and Parker Nelms in November 1999, the current line-up consists of Matt Good, Sonny Moore, Travis Richter, and Derek Bloom (drums).

Wednesday 13 American singer and musician (born 1976)

Joseph Michael Poole, better known by his stage name Wednesday 13, is an American singer and musician. Apart from his solo career, he is the frontman of the Murderdolls and has also played in several other bands, including Maniac Spider Trash, Frankenstein Drag Queens from Planet 13, Bourbon Crow and Gunfire 76.

Reuben (band) English band

Reuben were an English three-piece musical group from Camberley, Surrey. Their music is a fusion of alternative rock and heavy metal, as their songs cover a variety of styles, ranging from heavy and upbeat, such as their 2005 single "Blamethrower" to slower, more melodic songs such as their 2004 single "Moving to Blackwater". The former style of song often featured vocalist Jamie Lenman switching between shouting and whispering, a technique often used in heavy metal and post-hardcore music. The band performed in the UK underground music scene. Although they attracted a significant fanbase, Reuben never achieved mainstream success, but did chart four songs in the UK Singles Chart. Their highest charting single was 2004's "Freddy Kreuger", that reached UK No. 53.

(Im Always Touched by Your) Presence, Dear 1978 single by Blondie

"(I'm Always Touched by Your) Presence, Dear" is a song by the American band Blondie, from their 1978 album Plastic Letters. Written by recently departed Blondie bassist Gary Valentine, the song was based on the telepathic connections that Valentine believed he experienced with his girlfriend, journalist Lisa Jane Persky, while on tour. Though Valentine had left the band, drummer Clem Burke convinced the band to record the song for Plastic Letters.

Heart of Glass (song) 1979 song by Blondie

"Heart of Glass" is a song by the American new wave band Blondie, written by singer Debbie Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. It was featured on the band's third studio album, Parallel Lines (1978), and was released as the album's third single in January 1979 and reached number one on the charts in several countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom.

Sunday Girl 1979 single by Blondie

"Sunday Girl" is a song recorded by the American new wave band Blondie, from the band's 1978 album Parallel Lines. Written by guitarist Chris Stein, the song was inspired by Debbie Harry's cat, who was named Sunday Man—the cat had recently run away, inspiring the song's "plaintive" nature.

This is the discography of American new wave band Blondie. Since 1976 they have released 11 studio albums, 4 live albums, 14 compilation albums, 3 remix albums, 3 EP's and 38 singles. The band has sold an estimated 40 million albums.

Debbie Harry American singer-songwriter and actress

Deborah Ann Harry is an American singer, songwriter and actress, known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Her recordings with the band reached No. 1 in the US and UK charts on many occasions from 1979 to 2017.

The Amity Affliction Australian post-hardcore band

The Amity Affliction is an Australian metalcore band from Gympie, Queensland, formed in 2003. The band's current line-up consists of Ahren Stringer, Joel Birch, Dan Brown (guitar) and Joe Longobardi (drums). The Amity Affliction has released seven studio albums including Severed Ties (2008), Youngbloods (2010), Chasing Ghosts (2012), Let the Ocean Take Me (2014), This Could Be Heartbreak (2016) and Misery (2018), the latter four debuting at number one on the ARIA charts. They are known for their highly personal songs, often dealing with depression, anxiety, death, substance abuse, and suicide, many lyrics stemming from vocalist Joel Birch's past struggles.

Deaf Havana English alternative rock band

Deaf Havana are an English alternative rock band from Hunstanton and King's Lynn, Norfolk, England. The band was formed in 2005 at the King's Lynn campus of The College of West Anglia.

<i>Panic of Girls</i> 2011 studio album by Blondie

Panic of Girls is the ninth studio album by the American rock band Blondie. It was the band's first album of new material in nearly 8 years, since 2003's The Curse of Blondie. The album was first released digitally on May 30, 2011, followed by physical releases in various formats later.

A Rose by Any Name 2013 single by Blondie and Beth Ditto

"A Rose by Any Name" is a 2013 song by the American new wave band Blondie. It was the lead single from the band's tenth studio album Ghosts of Download, released as a digital download in Europe on June 21, 2013, though it was never released in the U.S. The song features The Gossip's frontwoman Beth Ditto on lead vocals with Debbie Harry.

<i>Blondie 4(0) Ever</i>

Blondie 4(0) Ever is a double album by American rock band Blondie. It was released on May 12, 2014, by Noble ID in celebration of the band's 40th anniversary. The two-disc package consists of Greatest Hits Deluxe Redux, a collection of re-recordings of Blondie's past singles, and the band's tenth studio album, Ghosts of Download. The latter spawned three singles: "A Rose by Any Name", "Sugar on the Side", and "I Want to Drag You Around".

"Make a Way" is a song from the band Blondie's tenth studio album Ghosts of Download. It was released officially along with the rest of the album in May 2014, although it was released before that as a free digital download with tickets to the band's 2013 North American tour.

Sugar on the Side 2013 single by Blondie and Systema Solar

"Sugar on the Side" is the opening track on, and second single from, Blondie's tenth studio album Ghosts of Download. It was released as a digital download on December 17, 2013, in the US and Canada, but has not been released in any other countries. The song features the Colombian hip-hop/cumbia band Systema Solar.

Matt Katz-Bohen Musical artist

Matthew Jeremy "Matt" Katz-Bohen is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer. Since 2008, he has been the keyboardist for the rock band Blondie.

<i>Pollinator</i> (album) 2017 studio album by Blondie

Pollinator is the eleventh studio album by the American rock band Blondie, released on May 5, 2017 by BMG Rights Management.

References

  1. ↑ "Blondie singles out a Christchurch song". Stuff. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  2. ↑ "Ghosts Of Download/track listing and previews on Pandora". Deborah-harry.com. Archived from the original on 20 July 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  3. ↑ "Blondie performs at El Paso's Plaza Theatre Tuesday". El Paso Times.com. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  4. ↑ "Blondie gone-die - Brilliant!". Stuff. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  5. ↑ "Chris Stein talks Blondie's new album Ghosts of Download - GQ.COM (UK)". GQ. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  6. ↑ "Paul Miller - Photos from Paul Miller's post - Facebook". Facebook.com. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.