B-A-N-A-N-A-S!

So, I'm listening to iTunes as I wrap up this week's police blotter and the only streaming station that seems to work on my computer is a Z100-like station called Club 977. Before I talk too much smack about it, I have to say it's a good way for me to keep my finger on the pulse of "popular" music. Which finger, however, depends on the song.

While "What You Waiting For" was playing on the headphones, I thought about a recent Garbage concert, where Shirley Manson gave props to Blondie's Debbie Harry, who was in attendance that evening. Although the Shirley-Debbie comparisons are legit to a degree, I think Gwen Stefani's similarities to Debbie are striking. Both blondes broke ground in various distinctive genres and appealed to fans of all of them; for Debbie, it ranged from punk ("One Way Or Another") to disco ("Heart of Glass") to rap ("Rapture") to reggae ("The Tide Is High"). Although Debbie's the trendsetter in this case, Gwen's resume is even more impressive: ska (the entire self-titled No Doubt album), pop ("Just A Girl"), power ballads ("Don't Speak"), rap ("Hollaback Girl"/"Let Me Blow Your Mind"), reggae ("Underneath It All"), alternative ("Hella Good"), etc.

So yes, Gwen Stefani is a modern-day Debbie Harry. But in many ways, Gwen's surpassed her.

Yes, it's bananas. B-A-N-A-N-A-S.