Qualification to The Lucy Museum of Musicians who deserve entry to Lucy's Museum of Musicians is they must have a minimum of three songs which would make me turn up the radio if they came on. The Stranglers
Qualifying Songs: Get a Grip On Yourself, Golden Brown, No More Heroes
At their height The Stranglers were as notorious as the Sex Pistols, drug busts, jail time for possession of heroin, fighting with either journalists, themselves or the audience and on one occasion the entire band were incarcerated in France for inciting a riot.
In a career spanning four decades, The Stranglers are one of the longest-surviving bands to emerge from the heady days of punk which shows a nice evolution of their music.
Headed by the still angry Hugh Cornwell and equally punchy Bassist Jean-Jacques Buyrnel, both of who could start a fight in an empty room, the early Stranglers music was stroppy and the lyrics were almost spat at you as with 'Get a grip on Yourself' with it's keyboards running up and down the scales with great effect in the background.
More of the same on the 'No More Heroes' song which has lyrics sang in a gloriously irritable way referring to several infamous historical figures, including Leon Trotsky, Elmyr de Hory and Lenny Bruce although i'm not sure what William Shakespeare and fictional character Sancho Panza of Don Quixote fame did to be dragged into it.
'Golden Brown' was the big hit, a waltz if you please, and is the only song i can name which has a harpsichord in which isn't as bad as it sounds because it is a great song and constant rumours that it was about heroin were finally confirmed by Cornwell in 2011 but as everyone thought it was anyway it was like confirming what bears do in the woods and that the Pope's hat is indeed hilarious.
No comments:
Post a Comment