Hanging On The Telephone

Can’t Get Enough Of This Power Pop Classic? We've Got You Covered

“Hanging on the Telephone” epitomizes the kind of high-energy and hooky power pop I love.

Like many early ‘80s tweens, I first discovered the song thanks to Blondie’s slicker 1978 version. That Parallel Lines single later became my gateway to The Nerves, a punk-tinged pop trio that briefly haunted the Hollywood music scene in the mid-‘70s.

The line up—originally formed in San Francisco before relocating to LA to seek their musical fortunes—featured Jack Lee (guitar/vocals), Peter Case (bass/vocals), and Paul Collins (drums/vocals). They only released one four-song EP in 1976 before falling apart in obscurity, but Blondie’s cover helped reshape their legacy leading to re-releases, inclusion on compilations, and rarities collections like One Way Ticket.

Almost 50 years later, The Nerves have rightfully secured their place in the power pop pantheon alongside other ‘70s legends like Big Star, Flamin’ Groovies, and 20/20.

It all happened because Jeffrey Lee Pierce—president of Blondie’s West Coast fan club and later lead singer of LA punk legends The Gun Club—sent Debbie Harry and Chris Stein a cassette .

“We played it in the back of a cab in Tokyo and the driver, who didn’t speak English, started tapping the steering wheel. Chris and I looked at each other and thought, ‘Ok this guy is going with it and he hasn’t got a clue what it’s about, he’s just responding to the song,’ which we took as a sign that we had to do it,” Harry has said.

That snap decision presented a life-changing opportunity for Lee who penned the track. In a 2010 Mojo interview, Lee recalled the desperate financial situation he was in when Blondie called to ask if they could record his song: “It was a Friday. They were going to cut off our electricity at six o'clock, the phone too."

Lee, who died in 2023, went on to have a successful songwriting career, while Collins and Case briefly teamed up as The Breakaways. Case later formed The Plimsouls (best known for “A Million Miles Away”) before transforming into a songwriting troubadour. Collins created The Beat (of “Rock N Roll Girl” fame) and became a prolific international solo artist.

“If there was any definitive ‘end of The Nerves’ moment, it was actually a few months after the formation of The Breakaways, right after Blondie released their LP Parallel Lines on September 23rd, 1978,” Collins wrote in his autobiography, I Don’t Fit In.

“I was driving down Sunset Boulevard and for the first time, I heard Blondie’s cover of ‘Hanging on the Telephone’ come on the radio. I literally almost wrecked the car. …Jack was a big time guy now. Jack was in the VIP winner’s circle. He was gone and there we were…down in the street.”

As The Nerves legend grew over the decades, so too did the number of “Hanging in the Telephone” covers.

Beyond Blondie, the incredible list of artists who have paid homage ranges from L7 and Def Leppard to Sinergy and Lucy Peach—among many others. The stylistic diversity encompasses bluegrass, folk, and metal, in addition to many punk and power pop versions that are more faithful to The Nerves recording.

In my little corner of the guitar pop universe, Kurt Baker’s take on the track is considered a classic, while The Girls made an impressive entry last year by combining elements of both Blondie and The Nerves. For the biggest departures, seek out the stripped down rendition from Bronski Beat’s Jimmy Somerville, or the interesting electro-pop spin from Bogotá, Colombia’s ((Barakus)).

One of the most popular covers is by Puerto Rican garage rockers Davilla 666 who lean into The Nerves’ edgy, mid-tempo energy and sing in Spanish. Other international acts who have put their twist on the track include Hungary’s Mayberian Sanskülotts, Dutch punks Antillectual, and British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud.

These endless interpretations are a true testament to the song’s universal appeal.

In the end, that’s what makes great guitar pop so timeless. The simple, evocative lyrics capture all the temptation, infatuation and frustration of young love in a way that is as relatable now as it was in 1976 and no doubt will be in 2176.

"Even people who hated me—and there were plenty—had to admit it was great,” Lee told Mojo.

I’d go a step further and say it’s still one the greatest rock songs of all time.

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What’s Your Favorite Version Of “Hanging On The Telephone”?

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Here Are A Few More…

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Interview: Paul Collins

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