The way old radio --- real radio --- rotation went, you could be a fan of an artist without actually owning the record; they were all over the airways. Consequently, there are tons of artists in my past that I'm a big fan of, without owning a record. I never owned any Blondie, but I loved the band. I loved Pat Benatar, too. But now that I think about it, I had her first two records. She even turned me onto Kate Bush (but that's another story). People make fun of the 80's, or treat its music as a guilty pleasure, but it was the last gasp for rock music as pop. Go ahead, bring up the 90's, but at that point our attention span had been significantly trimmed, thanks in part to the 80's. You could have looked at last night's triple bill at CMAC as a throwback, and listening to Blondie you'd be right. Not Benatar, though; the night belonged to her.

Strutting out to the feedback and fanfare of her hipster hubby's guitar, the 56-year-old pop pixie looked and sounded amazing. Her pipes are a little seasoned, and frankly that made 'em even sexier. People were on their feet and on their seats waving and singing along, many in tears, not just because they were in the presence of an icon and idol, but because the songs still hold strong today mixed with all their déjà vu. "You Better Run" (the second song ever played on MTV), "Hell Is For Children" (which Benatar absolutely nailed), "Hit Me With Your Best Shot," and the encore "Heartbreaker" sounded fantastic. Sure, Benatar is front and center in all of this, but a great deal of credit has to go to her guitarist/husband Neil Geraldo, whose riffs and solos on all those songs are as integral as the little wife's big voice. And man, was he sportin' a clean haircut or what? Benatar's whole set was amazingly urgent, timeless, and consequently, still relevant. This weren't no rehash reunion.

And then there was Blondie. The band wasn't bad, but seemed a little stiff. Debbie Harry can still hit the high notes, and seemed to have fun in her flowing red taffeta. But she had to perform in Benatar's jet wash. It occurred to me that Blondie, though spawned from CBGB-era New York, is essentially a clever disco band. Virtually all the hits have that snare and high-hat snap coupled with Harry's femme fatale. The fatale is still intact, and still really quite sexy. The performance just lacked luster and never really got off the ground.

If you blinked you missed show openers The Donnas, a phenomenal West Coast all-lady rock 'n' roll outfit. I saw them tear up the Showplace stage years ago with The Mooney Suzuki when they were loud and sloppy little punk rockers. Now the gals have got chops and are more of a tight hard rock --- bordering on metal --- ensemble. They sounded great, and I really like them, but gimme slop 'n' sleaze any day and I'm a happy guy. Or better yet, a whole night of Pat Benatar.