Denis (Denee)

"Denis" a.k.a. "Denee Denee" is track 2 from the 1977 album Plastic Letters by Blondie, and was the second UK single release from the band for Chrysalis Records. A genderswapping cover of the 1963 hit "Denise" by Randy & the Rainbows, this song first broke Blondie into the international market. The released version of the song contains a verse with partly improvised lyrics in French by Deborah Harry. Chrysalis Records insisted on the band re-recording the song with the proper, grammatically correct translation of the lyrics, as used in Frank Alamo's French language "Denise" cover "Sylvie". Both the band and producer Richard Gottehrer however preferred the first take and thanks to Debbie Harry standing her ground, the version released was the one with the "pidgin French" lyrics—and it became a worldwide hit. The second, re-recorded version had its debut as a bonus track on EMI UK's 1994 re-issue of Plastic Letters.

"Denis" was released in February 1978 and reached number 2 in the UK and was also a Top 20 hit in most other European countries.

Just like "Rip Her to Shreds" the single was issued both as a 7" & 12" single in the UK, and both formats with two songs on the B-side, "Contact in Red Square" from Plastic Letters and "Kung-Fu Girls" from the debut album Blondie.

"Denis" was the only single release from Plastic Letters in the US, with "I'm on E" as the B-side—but it never charted.

The song was included on the international version of Blondie's first 'greatest hits' compilation The Best of Blondie, issued in October 1981, but not the U.S. and Canadian release.

In 1988, a remixed version of the track was issued as the lead single for Blondie/Debbie Harry remix compilation Once More into the Bleach.

Release history

UK 7" Chrysalis Records CHS 2204, February 1978
UK 12" Chrysalis Records CHS 12 2204, February 1978

Side A:

"Denis" (Levenson) – 2:18

Side B:

"Contact in Red Square" (Destri) – 2:01
"Kung-Fu Girls" (Destri, Harry, Valentine) – 2:33
- From 1976 album Blondie

US 7" Chrysalis Records CHS 2220, May 1978

Side A:

"Denis" (Levenson) – 2:18

Side B:

"I'm on E" (Harry, Stein) – 2:13

Chart peaks

Netherlands: #1
UK: #2
Germany: #6
Austria: #10
Sweden: #19
Australia: #12

Image:Blondie - Denis - Rapture '88.jpg

"Denis" '88

v • d • e Blondie
Debbie Harry · Clem Burke · Jimmy Destri · Chris Stein Leigh Foxx · Paul Carbonara · Kevin Patrick · Gary Valentine · Frank Infante · Nigel Harrison
Studio albums	Blondie (1976) · Plastic Letters (1977) · Parallel Lines (1978) · Eat to the Beat (1979) · Autoamerican (1980) · The Hunter (1982) · No Exit (1998) · The Curse of Blondie (2003)
Main compilations	The Best of Blondie (1981) · The Complete Picture: The Very Best of Deborah Harry and Blondie (1991) · Blonde and Beyond (1993) · The Platinum Collection (1994) · Denis (album) (1996) · Atomic - The Very Best of Blondie (1998) · Greatest Hits (2002) · Greatest Hits: Sight + Sound (2005) · Greatest Hits: Sound & Vision (2006)
Live albums	Picture This Live (Capitol Anniversary Series) (1998) · Livid (Live) (2000) · Live By Request (2004)
Singles	"X-Offender" (1976) · "In the Flesh" (1977) · "Rip Her to Shreds" (1977) · "Denis" (1978) · "(I'm Always Touched by Your) Presence, Dear" (1978) · "Picture This" (1978) · "I'm Gonna Love You Too" (1978) · "Hanging on the Telephone" (1978) · "Heart of Glass" (1979) · "Sunday Girl" (1979) · "One Way or Another" (1979) · "Dreaming" (1979) · "Union City Blue" (1979) · "The Hardest Part" (1980) · "Atomic" (1980) · "Call Me" (1980) · "The Tide Is High" (1980) · "Rapture" (1981) · "Island of Lost Souls" (1982) · "War Child" (1982) · "Maria" (1999) · "Nothing Is Real but the Girl" (1999) · "No Exit" (1999) · "Good Boys" (2003)
Remixes	Once More into the Bleach (1988) · Beautiful - The Remix Album (1995) · Remixed Remade Remodeled - The Remix Project (1995)
Related articles	Discography