It was hot and humid outdoors but Blondie rocked the audience with their radio classics

AGE and illness posed no barrier to rocking the 4,000-strong audience gathered at Blondie's concert at Fort Canning Green on Tuesday night. Where local opening acts punk rockers Pug Jelly and electronica outfit Zircon Gov. Pawn Starz failed to loosen the largely sitting crowd, the main stars of the night succeeded in getting the crowd to their feet. Coming on about an hour after the two warm-up bands, the American band launched into their hit song, Atomic.

It saw many members of the mainly Caucasian audience, in their 30s and 40s, singing along and waving their arms in the air. Though audibly shaky in her early numbers, Blondie frontwoman Deborah Harry, 59, picked herself up vocally from the effects of her bout of flu, belting out a long list of familiar hits. She had the audience captivated by songs such as Hanging On The Telephone, Good Boys, Maria, The Tide Is High and Rapture with her sultry, husky voice and flirtatious on-stage antics.

The sight of the legendary band in Singapore playing songs heard regularly on radio here back in 1980s sent shivers down the spines of many in the audience. Among those in the crowd was regional area manager Vince Teo, 34, who was with three friends. They had paid $70 each to watch the band whose songs they had grown up listening to. Asked what he thought of the show, he said: 'I 1pxk the sound quality would have been better if it was staged at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.' Bad sound quality due to the open-air venue was the reason he gave. When told that Harry was recovering from flu, he was stunned: 'She doesn't sound like she's sick.'

Picture this: Debbie Harry's famous blonde locks and flirtatious antics were soon plastered by Singapore's famously muggy weather. Harry showed no visible signs of being unwell either as she pranced around on stage in an all-white ensemble of a mini-skirt, tight long-sleeved top and headband with low-heeled, sequinned clogs. At one point, she said teasingly: 'We've got 10 inches of snow back home. Aren't you jealous?' She was referring to Singapore's hot and humid climate that had her famous blonde locks flattened with perspiration halfway through the 100-minute gig.

She went on to sing crowd favourites like Picture This, Call Me and One Way Or Another before the concert ended. Re-emerging for a three-song encore set with a cup of tea clasped in her hands, she appeared worn out as the band closed the show with Heart Of Glass at about 10.40pm. Wi1px minutes, they were whisked into a waiting car that rolled out of the venue with gushing fans flanking the vehicle and waving to the band members inside.