Clem Burke, whose versatile drumming propelled the iconic rock group Blondie during its decades performing everything from new-wave punk to disco-infused tunes, has died. He was 70.
The band said in a statement on its website Monday that he died from cancer but no additional details were provided.
“Clem was not just a drummer; he was the heartbeat of Blondie,” the band said in a statement. “His talent, energy, and passion for music were unmatched, and his contributions to our sound and success are immeasurable.”
The self-proclaimed “rock & roll survivalist” started playing the drums when he was 14 in his school orchestra but was kicked out for playing too loud, according to Blondie’s website. In the 1970’s, he answered a band’s ad in the Village Voice seeking a “freak energy” rock drummer, kicking off his decades-long career with lead singer Debbie Harry and the rest of his Blondie bandmates.
The band recorded its first album in 1976 and by the following year was touring with such icons as Iggy Pop and David Bowie. It became known as the most commercially successful band to emerge from a fertile New York rock scene that also produced Talking Heads and the Ramones.
In 2006 Burke and the other original members of Blondie were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame after selling more than 42 million records, according to Blondie’s website.
During the late 1970s and early ’80s, the band had eight Top 40 hits, including four No. 1s: “Heart of Glass,” “Call Me,” “The Tide Is High” and “Rapture,” which is regarded as the first No. 1 hit to feature rap. There’s also a five-track 1975 album demo that includes “Platinum Blonde,” a sort of band mission statement. But Burke’s mark was especially solidified with his rapid, powerful drumming at the start of “Dreaming” in 1979.
In 2022, after unearthing a New Wave treasure trove of reel-to-reel tapes, cassettes and records, the band created the box set “Blondie: Against the Odds, 1974-1982,” with 124 tracks and 36 previously unissued recordings, demos, outtakes and remixed versions of Blondie’s initial six studio albums.
Burke reflected on the discovery in an Associated Press article: “We never would have thought that we would still be here today. Looking back at our archives, it’s pretty amazing.”
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame described Burke in a post Monday on the social platform X as “a versatile and distinctive drummer who played exactly what each song required – and, when called for, let loose with blistering punk rock energy.”
