The most melodic song in celebration of heroin ever. They rode in on the back of the British Punk movement of the mid 70s, despite being older and more musically gifted than most. One of those bands that always brings more to a song than they have to.
Fans of all genres agree: STRANGLERS are one of the cooooolest bands ever. They are like the puzzle piece that doesn't fit anywhere, but everyone wants to grab for their own. One of a kind band. Cheers 🍺
The Stranglers were the coolest band on the planet. They could play anything and didn't give a f about critics, or record companies or frauds. No band comes close to The Stranglers
*****"No More Hero's"***** The energy and pace of the song, pure all time classic. Vocals, guitars & keyboards are fantastic. Two seconds in and your hooked.
Not really a punk band. They were around during that first era, but they were close to post-punk in their sound. Not exactly The Buzzcocks, The Germs, or Stiff Little Fingers.
If this is by a punk band, then this is the most punk song, just like Good Riddance by Green Day, both don't give a fuck, which is kinda the essence of punk.
Oh YESSSSS! I lost an awful lot of sweat to WOB back in the 80s. You get through the world's longest / best instrumental break and then get to scream WALK ON BYYYY! Ah, good fun.
Golden Brown and European Female are the two songs I first heard from this band. I love them so much I added to my playlist. But most of their early stuff was just crass punk rock stuff (which explains the name) which I never got into. I wish they always did music the Golden Brown sound cuz his voice was so good and the group were great musicians. Will always love Golden Brown.
Yes it's a harpsichord, well done ! Fun fact : unlike the forte-piano, the harpsichord plucks the strings, therefor it's classified as a string instrumant (like a guitar) and not a purcussion instrument (as is the piano). This classic is gold, pun intended 👌
A song from my formative years, i love the way the music in the background works alongside the thought that someone has just 'used' and this is how their mind/body is feeling the affects of the heroin.
The Stranglers are my favourite band. Their early work is the thickest, grimiest punk of the 70s, and their late work, like Always The Sun, is beautiful synth driven melodic pop.
The Stranglers have never made a bad song. No More Heroes, Skin Deep, Peaches and their cover of The Kinks, All Day and All of the Night really showcases their diverse catalogue.
He is playing a "clavicembalo" = "original name and Italian" = the first part of the name "clavi" stands for "keys" and the 2nd part of the name "cembalo" for "cymbal" which is a harp/lyra like instrument but it also called "harpsichord" in English ... It is the instrumental ancester of a piano and was around from the 16th century till end of the 18th century. The first piano appeared in the early 19th century and replaced the clavicembalo for the most part in music...simply because clavicembalos are filling just an intimate room with sound but pianos can also fill an entire hall with sound.. The technical difference though is that with hitting the keys the chords inside are picked (as like a harp/lyra with the fingers) while piano keys are hitting the chords inside with a hammer that´s why the sound is so different besides that the resonating body of the instrument has a slightly different shape as well especially in size&volume which also plays a role in behalf of the sound and also loudness The song itself is about "Heroin" which was also called "Golden Brown" besides many other "slang nick names"...the Strangler´s bassist Hugh Burnel and Singer Hugh Cornwell took Heroin for a year or so on a daily basis which was during that time period when they released that song in 1981...actually 2 albums they made in that particular "drug period" = "The Gospel according to the Meninblack" (= their 5th album) + "La folie" (= 6th album including Golden Brown). But my personal favourite Stranglers songs are from the 4 albums before released between 1977-79 during their Punk music phase...and as Punks they wanted a band name shocking people so they chose "Guildford Stranglers" (Guildford is the town in Southeast England they are from) as their band name as long as they played just Gigs in Pubs which got just shortened into "The Stranglers" when they got their record deal.
People state that the stranglers started as a punk band, the didn't. People used to say they were a punk band who could play their instruments. They are a rock(ISH) band who grew and changed. However listen to down in the sewer, on of my favourite tracks ever. This is maybe a shock but I'm a massive Queen fan. Music is music no matter. Thank you for your reaction. Enjoy. Ps there is much wonderful stuff out there.
The Stranglers were one of the bands at the forefront of the UK punk scene in the 1970s. Their debut album Rattus Norvegicus was a masterpiece. Check out Grip, Hanging Around and London Lady.😮. Golden Brown was a complete departure from this. The album La Folie was a fabulous creation.
When I first heard this song I was starting to date this girl with beautifully tanned skin and so the song stuck in my head as a love song about her and that she was like magic. And we would waltz to this song and on a beautiful summers day, if time could stand still, we would live in that moment forever.
One of my favourite ever reactions for loads of reasons.... one, it's always been one of my favourite songs from my youth as it's always somehow been on in the background. Another is because of the absolutely brilliant songwriting. The song seems to continuously lift and they've used the greatest melodies. And your reaction is so beautiful to watch as it's so genuine. You can see this as you hear the song unfold. Brilliant.
Coincidence. They were basically a prog rock band with balls and attitude. Rattus Norvegicus was practically a concept album. Don't get me wrong I dislike prog rock and love The Stranglers but it is what it is.
More avant-garde than punk, the punk thing just opened people (and radio stations) up to new music, I play side 2 of Rattus Norvegicus (Peaches through to Down in the Sewer)at least twice a month, 20 minutes of brilliance
Hey Maddy, so glad you've discovered The Stranglers! As some have mentioned, a punk band but these guys were/are serious musicians, IMO whatever the music fashion of the day, they'd have jumped on the coat-tails of and made a success of it. A band I first saw live in 1978, most recently in 2022 (many times in between). This song was a real gem and I love how dressed up but dirty they look, like imposters. I'd suggest Hanging Around, Nice n'Sleazy, (Get a) Grip (on Yourself), for starters. Although, their most recent album released in 2021 was a real banger, This Song is worthy of review (different lead singer but he's been with them 30+ years).
In my opinion "Get a grip (on yourself)" is one of the coolest songs in rock history. Think you'd enjoy listening to it. Totally different. But so great and artistic and tough and fun. And a very cool video.
No More Heroes was constantly on the jukebox when it came out and I was a college. The same person would put it on and on and on. I still like the track though
Originally formed in 1974 in Guildford, Surrey, England. The Stranglers were originally known as The Guildford Stranglers, and were a "pub rock" band who ended up in 76/77 being (by no fault of their own) part of the British "punk" scene.
It's the second song in "Sneaker Pimps - ICA Home Taping 2000" on youtube, in case you want to check it out. The original is better (hard to beat), but I liked that version.
Hanging Around Who Wants The World Sometimes 5 Minutes North Winds Blowing or try Waltzin Black for something a bit different. There are many great Stranglers songs to check out.
Always liked that one, right at the start of me exploring their catalog. But the one, that got the ball rolling, I have to say, was their beautiful melody: "European Female". Enjoy!
Another song you'll probably like by the Stranglers is "Always the Sun". It's another dreamy pop song, recorded a few years after Golden Brown. The Stranglers had a very different sound from one album to the next after the first two. The Raven is my favorite, but Black and White comes in a close second. They were linked to punk rock, though they were older than the typical punk rockers when they started parading their non-conformist badboy style.
What's going on here is idea from Alto player Paul Desmond's hit Take 5 in 5/4 actually they write Golden brown in 12/8 riff 13/8 different very simple but to inspire the hit it is really the great Dave Brubeck's band
Listen to their fantastic cover of Walk On By. The were originally called the Guildford Stranglers I think? Guildford being a town on the outskirts of London.
Maddy has a nice bit of golden brown going herself. Apart from that observation, brilliant lyrics in the song like 'on her ship, tied to the mast' referencing the tales of Odysseus and the siren's song, beautiful and dangerous at the same time.
"The Man They Love to Hate" is another great track by The Stranglers. The 80's were a magical time in music. So many bands with different sounds contributing to the overall landscape. No one takes chances like this anymore. Everything is so formulaic or hip hoppified. I love hip hop, but from a production standpoint, its very simple and there isnt a ton of range. A far cry from where we were 40 years ago.
The keyboard is an electronic version of a harpsichord. I agree with the previous comment that it’s reminiscent of the great Dave Brubeck but I think both musicians were heavily influenced/inspired by the music of Frédéric Chopin.
I love The Stranglers and remember when this song was released. The Stranglers were originally thought of as a punk band and No More Heroes, an earlier song, was by far the “punkiest” (not a real word!) single they released. In the end everyone agreed that they played many genres of music.
They were “punk” as in they did whatever they wanted, they weren’t faux punk like the Sex Pistols, it was their attitude, not their sound, but they could indeed mix it up in every respect.
Golden Brown is just a variation of the music played by The Stranglers. Hunt out Go Buddy Go, Straighten Out, Five Minutes, Down In The Sewers, Goodbye Toulouse, Dagenham Dave, Longships and Waltzinblack to see what I mean.
I absolutely adore this track - the harpsichord melody & bassline are so satisfying. I can see what you mean about the influence on Melody's Echo Chamber's self-titled debut ( big fan of hers), especially on a track like Quand Vas Tu Rentrer - hadn't thought of that before :) I think the influence of this track gets everywhere. Cheers!
The Stranglers the best band to come out with Punk Rock even though they weren't actually Punk. Start of with Peaches and the other side of the single Go buddy go I had 17 of their albums. A great rabbit hole to go down.
As big and complex a social problem that heroin is, it certainly inspired some great music throughout the years: Heroin, I'm Waiting for the Man, Golden Brown, Never Let Me Down, There She Goes. The Needle and the Damage Done...
They are amazing live. Only J-J left now! Sadly Jet & Dave are no longer with us , and Hugh left the band years ago but Baz does a good job on vocals and Lead Check out their other stuff!
I was very interested in your comment about exploring their back catalogue... This is an absolute masterpiece, but I think it's fair to say that this song isn't exactly typical of The Stranglers! I'd love to see what you think of some of their other songs
Stranglers were awesome and hard as nails. They were classed as a punk band. Their attitude was very Punk but their sound was unique and were all accomplished musicians. Try Their version of Walk On By . Or from their own songs No More Heroes Something Better Change, Grip Hanging Around Goodbye Toulouse
One of the unwritten rules of punk rock in its early days was NO KEYBOARDS. Another was NO TECHNICAL SKILLS. The Stranglers murdered both stereotypes by being punk originals (or proto-punk if you like) with legit musical skills, and with Greenfield's mind-blowing keyboards front and centre. He's so fast! And Burnel's bass... listen to how he introduces himself into "Hanging Around". Cracks me up every time. Killer bass tone.
What was unique about this song was that they didn't use conventional Keyboards but instead they used a Harpsicord. The strings are Plucked as opposed to struck and that what gives it that different sound.
There is just something about those harpsichord/piano organs that sends tingles down the spine. The pipe organ was commonly used during the 1960’s with rock bands and sort of gave the same effect. There is just something special about a rock band using an unorthodox instrument that I absolutely love. A classic example is the Animals House of the Rising Sun.
The ultimate rock / punk bands the had great crossover appeal - one of the most influential bands to come from the 70's UK According to bassist Jean-Jacques Burnel, the song's atypical style for the group was intended to defy expectations: "The whole thing about that song is it really represented us sticking our fingers up to our detractors" Hugh Cornwell(song writer) states: "'Golden Brown' works on two levels. It's about heroin and also about a girl... both provided me with pleasurable times." The group that eventually formed between 1974 and 1975 was originally named The Guildford Stranglers, but they soon dropped the geographical prefix and the name, The Strangers.
