Sad Farewell to Beloved Drummer Clem Burke
- Cheryl Alterman | The Music Soup Editor
- Apr 8
- 5 min read
Updated: 7 days ago
Heartbreaking news as the beat of the Blondie body of music lost his battle with cancer.
Clem Burke, was born Clement Anthony Bozewski on November 24, 1954 in New Jersey. We know him simply as Clem Burke, Blondies' drummer since 1975. His drumbeat has been the backbone of the Blondie sound for as long as Blondies' music has been popular. Through the years he has also played with countless of other legends such as Iggy Pop, Pete Townshend, Patti Smith, The Ramones, Nancy Sinatra, Wanda Jackson, The Eurythmics, Joan Jett, Bob Gelof, The GoGos and even Bob Dylan! (To name but a few).
Rolling Stone ranked Clem Burke as one of the 100 Greatest Drummers of all time. And with his partial "Keith Moon" style, he set Blondie apart from the rest. His favorite drummer was Keith Moon, (same as mine). And he also had a great admiration for Ringo Starr, his other favorite. I remember reading interviews with Burke talking about Moonie, saying that he has influenced his style greatly throughout the years. Maybe that's why I've always been drawn to his sound.
Through the years, Burke injected every groove possible into Blondies' music with beats from Reggae to Disco to Hip Hop and beyond, emerging in that New Wave music era.
When Burke moved to New York, he met Debbie Harry and Chris Stein at only 19 or 20 years old. And he was quickly recruited for the band in 1975. And within three short years, they were superstars in the New Wave music scene.
I have been a Blondie fan since they began. I remember hearing their music for the very first time. I knew in the first minute I was onboard the Blondie train! Deborah Harry was immediately my hero. I don't know how many times I've seen them live, but I know I saw them the first time they crossed the states and came to California. It was at The Whiskey a Go Go in Hollywood circa 1977. I was totally in! This has always been one of my favorite bands spanning my lifetime through the decades to present day.
I saw them perform numerous times in Los Angeles and in the UK. But in 2017 I had the honor of my life by being invited backstage after a performance in Northern California. I rarely get nervous meeting people,(like nearly never), but when I was invited to Debbie Harrys' dressing room after a show, I was trembling inside and I could see my nerves in the photo we took together below. In her dressing room that night post show it was only myself, and a guy friend of hers and Deborah Harry herself! Only the three of us! I was faced alone with my life long hero! Debbie Harry and I got to chat for about 15ish minutes without interruption. She was completely exhausted after the show, but cordial, chatty and kind. I however was a bag of nerves!
But somehow I pulled off a conversation with my her, in the flesh, alone in a room, one on one. We talked about the time I saw her play in Brighton (UK) and a bit about that show and about several of her shows I saw when I was a kid in Hollywood whilst I was growing up. During the conversation I mentioned Clem to her and how he is one of my favorite drummers of all time, (secretly hoping he'd come out of the next room) but he did not. As soon as I mentioned him, I could tell by her expression, she had nothing but love for him and his talent behind the drumkit. This time alone with her in her dressing room was my little slice of heaven. 'Twas 15 minutes I will never forget.
Wind forward to 2022 at Yoshi's in Oakland. I shoot a lot of shows there. They are very kind to me and put me at the same 4 top table in the venue each time. This time, my contact at Yoshi's said, he thinks I'll be very happy with whom I am seated with on this evening. (XTC was playing). He has said that before and sat me with Tommy Igoe (another great drummer that had a residency at Yoshi's). So I went to Yoshis this evening in March of 2022 to cover the XTC show and I sat at my table, and realized the person sharing my table was none other than Gina Schock, the GoGos drummer. We hit it off great and in the first couple minutes we were fast friends. She then invited me to her book tour happening soon after.
During the evening I mentioned that I would be seeing her again on the following night at the Bill Graham Civic in SF as I was shooting the GoGos show. She showed me her wrist, it was bandaged up and told me she had surgery recently and wouldn't be playing but Clem Burke would be filling in for her! OMG! My inside voice was screaming with excitement with the thought that I get to see Burke play with the GoGos! Serious elation went on inside of me, but of course I kept that under wraps as not to make her feel bad. I could see she was disappointed already by not being able to play with her band. She did tell me she'd be at the gig, just not playing the gig.
So the next night I went to see the GoGos in San Francisco. Sure enough Clem Burke was on the throne behind the drums and in complete darkness throughout the show. Only the GoGos were lighted. But the sound of the beat was unmistakably his. After the show he came out from behind the kit, and Gina came onstage. She hugged Clem and her bandmates and that was the show. In my opinion he gave a different spice to the GoGos music for sure. A fab dynamic boost. I heard a massive difference even though the music is the same, he was such a pro! That was the last time I saw Clem Burke play. Another superb music memory that I shall not forget.
Burke was battling cancer and he was 70 when he died just a couple days ago. He left behind his wife, Ellen. They were married for 23 years. He had no children. He and his talent behind the drumkit will never be forgotten. RIP Clem Burke (Nov 24, 1954-April 6, 2025)
A big thank you from me for all the joy he brought to my world with his drumming! 🥁❤️
❤️ I am dedicating this article to my dear lifelong friend, Elliot Katz who also recently passed away just last month. He adored Blondie and when we were kids his wall was adorned with a huge poster of Debbie Harry. He exposed me to their music and I will always be grateful to Elliot for all the great music he turned me onto when we were kids. ❤️
And with that said, as always: Life is so bloody short and gets shorter everyday...so please remember: "Break the rules, forgive quickly, have those difficult conversations (because they make life better), kiss slowly, love truly, laugh uncontrollably, be kind, love each other today because you may not get a tomorrow, and never regret anything that made you smile". And of course...see live music, and turn that volume up so you can feel it!
With peace, love, art and music,
Cheryl ☮ ❤️🎵
Here are a few videos of the last Blondie show I saw and shot. If you like these, there are more being posted daily on my You Tube channel...Please SUBSCRIBE:
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The following photos were shot at different shows from 2017 - 2022.
©Cheryl Alterman Photography 2025
