(c’74- to date) Jean-Jacques Burnel (bass, voacals), Brian “Jet Black” Duffy (drums), Hans Warmling (keyboards/guitar), and Hugh Cornwell (guitar/vocals).
Many believe they started out as The Guildford Stranglers, and indeed on 11 September 1974 they officially registered their business name in Guildford as such – although none of the band were originally from Guildford. Black had been a semi-professional drummer in the late 50s / early 60s, but also went into business owning a fleet of ice cream vans, and later running “The Jackpot” off-license, at 61 Woodbridge Road, that would become the base for The Stranglers in the early days. Cornwell, who had played bass in a band called Emil & The Detectives with Richard Thompson, embarked on his post-grad in Sweden where he formed a band call Johnny Sox with Hans Warmling, Jan Knutsson, Gyrth Godwin and ‘Chicago Mike’ in late ’72.
Then in ’73, Cornwell decided to move back to London, persuading the other members of ‘Johnny Sox’ to move with him. Johnny Sox came to the UK, without guitarist, keyboardist and saxophonist Warmling. This group played in London’s pubs and clubs, like The Newlands Tavern, Peckham on 17 January ’74, The Brecknock Arms, Camden – which is now called The Unicorn – and The Lord Nelson. Black joined the band, after auditioning in a squat in Camden in the early summer 1974; to replace the original drummer ‘Chicago Mike’ who, thanks to the US announcing an amnesty on draft dodgers, went home. Burnel also joined the line-up after being given a lift by Godwin. On vacation from Sweden, at Cornwell’s request, Warmling joined the group in the latter half of ’74, and they dropped Johnny Sox in favor of The Guildford Stranglers, before settling on The Stranglers; but they’ve also gigged as Oil & The Slicks, The Chiddingfold Chokers & The Old Codgers.
In early ’74 they recorded “I Know It” for a demo, that included “Charlie Boy”, “Country Chaser (instrumental)”, “White Wedding” and “Make You Mine”. They played their first gig as The Stranglers at The Star, Guildford on 21 December 1974. The Quarry Street hostelry now carries a blue PRS for Music Heritage Award plaque. The band supported 50’s retro group Fumble on 28 Jan ’75 at the Technical College, Farnborough, playing a cover of Johnny B Goode among other covers. This was arranged by Guildford based teen impresarios, Mike and Richard Ashworth of Wax Promotions. The band continued to build a following within the mid-70s pub rock scene; including a short-lived lunchtime residency at The Royal, Guildford. They also played alternate Wednesdays at the North Camp Hotel’s Gaiety Bar.
Warmling was unhappy with The Stranglers’ musical direction and left the band, exiting the tour bus and the band itself suddenly while traveling to a gig in North London. Warmling and Cornwell did not meet again until ’94. Dave Greenfield (keyboards), who’d been in The Initials, The Blue Maxi, Rusty Butler, and Credo, replaced Warmling in July ’75 after answering an advert in Melody Maker; and played his first gig with The Stranglers on 24 August ’75. That same year, Black sold his businesses – 61 Woodbridge Road was scheduled for demolition anyway – and moved the Stranglers into a cottage at Lilian Place, Chiddingfold that they rented from a Mr Ruben.
The band rehearsed at Bramley Village Hall, Shalford Scout Hut and Brook cricket pavilion. It was at one of these that three schoolgirls left a note for them, reading: “To the group in the shed. We like your music and you. Why not go professional? You’re good enough.” In the Spring of that year, about the time the “The Stranglers are coming – they’re Strangtastic” graffiti appeared in the subway by the railway station and on a number of hoardings in the centre of Guildford, they recorded a demo of “Bitching” at Foel Studio, Llanfair Caereinion, Powys with Ian Gomm producing. Eric & Dave’s Christmas Party at The Nashville was held on the 18, 19 and 20 December ’75 with Albert Y Los Trios Paranoias supported by The Stranglers. A short-term recording deal with Safari Records scheduled the release The Stranglers first single in ’75, however Safari Records reneged on the deal to release “My Young Dreams” through a lack of cash. The track was finally released in ’82 by EMI to fulfill a contract. Strapped for cash Cornwell took a temporary job as a teacher, Burnel gave private French lessons, and Greenfield and Black became piano tuners/repairers.
In May ’76, The Stranglers opened for Patti Smith’s first UK appearances, playing The Roundhouse, London for two nights – 16 and 17 May – as part of the ‘Horses Tour’. Two months later, on 4 July, The Stranglers opened for the first British appearance of American punks The Ramones, also at The Roundhouse, a gig that was headlined by The Flamin’ Groovies; repeating the show the next night at Dingwalls, Camden. 1976 was spent playing about 350 gigs; including a week long residency at the Hope & Anchor, Islington on 13-17 July and a home turf appearance at ‘Rock At The Royal’ organized by Ray “Bonza” Bradman at The Royal, Guildford on 1 August 1976. Here they were billed as Punk Rock, but as any follower of the band will know this ‘Punk’ moniker is highly debated. NME’s Chas de Whalley referred to them having ‘all the punk poise of the Electric Prunes.’ in early ’76, while The News of the World, in April, named Cornwell as ‘the guru of punk’…the debate: Punk, New Wave or Pub Rock? goes on
They signed to United Artists for £40,000 in December ’76, resulting in debut album “Rattus Norvegicus”. Now, the rat pictured on “Rattus Norvegicus” was, like The Stranglers, also from Guildford. It belonged to Mark Taylor whose mother, Jane Burton, took the shot that would eventually become the album cover.
In January ’77, The Stranglers were featured in T. Moon’s Sideburns fanzine No.1, and Fox Leisure booked the band to play the Red Deer Croydon on 20 January, and the Toby Jug, Tolworth on 24 January ’77. They closed out the month supporting Climax Bles Band at the Rainbow Thearte, London on 30 January ’77. The next month, on 9 February, they played the Centre Halls, Woking. The band also appeared at the Rider Open Air Festival, Scheeßel, Germany on the 3 or 4 September ’77, along with two other local talents, namely Camel and Graham Parker, back by The Rumour. Prior to the release of “No More Heroes” on 23 September ’77; they released their third single, “Something Better Change” which was taken from the album. It made No.9 in the UK Singles Chart. It was also double A-sided with the song “Straighten Out”, a non-album track. Locally, the bands reception in Chiddingfold and Guildford could be best described as chilly. Guildford council had banned them from playing at the Civic Hall, even when they were No.1 in the album charts. According to Steve Baker, Hugh Cornwell said “we spent 2 hours moving all the chairs off the dance floor and someone has put them back, please be good boys and girls and put the chairs neatly against the walls please”. Two minutes later there was a pile of 400 broken chairs in the middle of the dance floor. Not really a riot, just people wanting to dance to the music. The London Borough Council also took issue with the band, banning them for wearing t-shirts emblazoned with “Fuck” in the form of the Ford logo at The Rainbow Theatre. In November ’77 there were more ‘issues’. On 12 November ’77 the band were to play at The Tivoli Theatre, Dublin. But they didn’t show, with the audience only seeing the support acts, The Radio Stars and The Vipers and a goodly dose of fighting. The previous night at Trinity College, Dublin was marred by violence and lots of gobbing, with the band deciding to give the Tivoli a miss – Not that those at Tivoli got an explanation at the time.
On the bands ‘return’ to Guildford for their 1978 appearance at the University of Surrey for the BBC TV programme Rock Goes to College, the group walked off stage because an agreement to make tickets available to non-university students had not been honoured. “Social Secs” was written after that BBC “Rock goes to College” debacle.
In February 1978 the Stranglers began a mini-tour, playing three secret pub gigs at the venues that supported them in the early days: The Duke of Lancaster, New Barnet; The Red Cow, Hammersmith; and The Nashville Rooms, West Kensington. They also return to the Civic Hall, Guildford, this time there was a heavy police presence and steel toe-capped boots, belts and anything dangerous looking was confiscated at the door. The band graced Brighton, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Stafford, Leeds, and London with their tour from late May to early June ’78. Over the coming years along with great gigs and music they brought strippers onstage at their open-air Battersea Park gig in September 1978; tied a female NME journalist up and left her in a Portuguese desert after a particularly vitriolic review in September ’79. On 7 October ’79 they appeared at the Apollo, Glasgow followed, on 14 October, by a gig at Top Rank, Sheffield. That same year they bound French TV journalist Antoine De Caunes halfway up the Eiffel Tower.
In June 1980 they were all jailed for inciting a university riot in Nice. On 2 March ’81 the band hit the Winter Gardens, Cleethorpes with Modern Eon in support, who also opened at the Pavilion, West Runton three days later, on 5 March ’81. French new wave band Taxi Girl, whose “Seppuku” LP was, produced by Burnel and featured percussion from Black, toured the UK in ’81, opening for The Stranglers on their La Folie tour; this included the Lyceum, Sheffield on 28 November ’81. “La folie” was the band’s sixth studio album, and was released on 9 November ’81, through the EMI record label Liberty. The Stranglers, supported by Boys in Darkness, played the Student Union at Sheffield City Polytechnic on 21 January ’82 and signed to Epic Records later that year. Jet Black was also regularly seen at The Kings Head, Guildford, along with The Jam‘s Bruce Foxton for House gigs.
Cornwell left in 1990 because he felt the band was spent and citing increasingly acrimonious relationships with his fellow band-members, particularly Burnel. He was replaced by John Ellis, who had opened for them in the 70s as a member of The Vibrators and had filled in for Cornwell during his time in prison for drug possession in 1980. On 25 February ’91, The Stranglers first UK gig without Cornwell was held at The Old Trout, Windsor.
Paul Roberts (lead vocals) joined in 1990. In 2000, Ellis left the band and a new guitarist and ex-bassist with Toy Dolls, Troubleshooters, Small Town Heroes (who had supported The Stranglers in ’95) and Sun Devils, Baz Warne, was recruited. In May 2006, Roberts left the band, and The Stranglers were now back to a four-piece line-up: Burnel, Black, Greenfield and Warne.
In 2007 it was announced that Black was suffering from atrial fibrillation, leading to several years of illnesses and absences from gigs where he was temporarily replaced by his full-time drum technician Ian Barnard. The bands 2013 annual tour kicked off in March with Drummer Jim “McDrum” Macaulay – who had history with Envy & Other Sins, Eliot Sumner, and Emmy the Great – playing the first half and Black the second. Black continued to appear sporadically, with Macaulay subbing, as his health deteriorated. Black last performed with the band at the Cambridge Corn Exchange on 20 March 2015 and officially retired in 2018 at the age of 79. On 6 December 2022, at the age of 84, Black passed. Roughly two an half years earlier Greenfield had passed, on 3rd May 2020, following a stay in hospital for heart problems where he tested positive for the Covid-19 and sadly lost the battle. Greenfield’s last appearance with the band was on 15 February 2020 at the Town Hall in Auckland, New Zealand. Toby Hounsham, who has previously played with Rialto, Mungo Jerry, Soft Watches and The Hype to name four; has been playing keyboards with The Stranglers since Greenfield’s untimely demise.
Warmling drowned in a boating accident on the 12 October ’95, aged 52, in Harryda, Gotenburg. Ellis started Chanoyu Records in 2009 to release his own music. Warne’s car was sent airbound and landed upside down in December 2005, a crash from which he emerged unharmed. He continues to write, record and perform.
Over the course of four plus decades the band have scored 23 UK top 40 singles and 17 UK top 40 albums. On 13 October 2000, Cornwell returned to Chiddingfold to play a gig at the Ex-Serviceman’s Club.
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