I'm going on the second day now with "Golden Brown" by The Stranglers stuck in my head. And while it's a great song, it's a highly unusual one. For starters, it's built around a harpsichord riff... AND it's in a really weird time signature: it's waltz-like, but with an extra beat so it ends up being 6/8 for one measure and then 7/8 for the next (which makes it impossible to dance to).
The song was released as a single in England in 1981, and it was a huge hit -- peaking at #2 (while The Jam's "A Town Called Malice" locked down the top spot.) It was tacked onto the Stranglers' 1982 album Feline in this country and I distinctly remember listening to it in my family's Cadillac Coupe De Ville (what a car) as we drove to look at colleges for my older brother. I'm quite sure we were the only ones on the entire length of Interstate 81 listening to Feline back in those days, or any days for that matter.
I went back and listened to some of the other tracks from Feline -- "Blue Sister" (which still holds up), "The European Female (In Celebration Of)" and "Midnight Summer Dream" (which don't). And I'm truly astounded at the change in direction the album represents for The Stranglers, who had a gritty edge with classic post-punk tracks like "No More Heroes" (which was later ripped off by Elastica's "Waking Up").
I cannot say I am familair with the Stranglers. I watched the video, and still could not recall ever hearing them.
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