Original personnel were singer/guitarist Hugh Cornwell (from Kentish Town, London), keyboardist/guitarist Hans Wärmling (from Sweden, replaced within two years by Brighton-born keyboardist Dave Greenfield), London-born bass guitarist Jean-Jacques Burnel and drummer Jet Black (real name Brian Duffy), a native of Ilford, Essex.
They began as a sinister sounding, hard-edged pub rock group, but eventually branched out to explore other styles of music. The Stranglers were, beginning in 1976, tangentially associated with punk rock, due in part to their opening for The Ramones' first British tour. The Stranglers were also associated with new wave music as well as gothic rock, but their idiosyncratic approach never fit completely within a musical genre.
In August 1990, founding member Cornwell left the band to pursue a solo career. In his autobiography, Cornwell states that he felt the band was a spent force creatively, and cited various examples of his increasingly acrimonious relationship with his fellow band-members, particularly Burnel. The remaining members recruited two replacements, including John Ellis, who had opened for the band in the 1970s as a member of The Vibrators, and singer Paul Roberts.
Interest in The Stranglers resurfaced when, in 2001, singer Tori Amos covered their song "Strange Little Girl" and titled the album it was featured on Strange Little Girls. "Golden Brown" was also used in the hit film Snatch by film director Guy Ritchie and extensively in the Australian film He Died With A Felafel In His Hand. Their hit "No More Heroes" was covered by Violent Femmes and used for the film Mystery Men. "Peaches", finally, also appears prominently in another British movie, Sexy Beast by director Jonathan Glazer.
The Stranglers had a critical and popular renaissance in 2004 (together with their first top 40 hit for 14 years - "Big Thing Coming") with the acclaimed Norfolk Coast album and a subsequent sell-out tour. The follow-up album, Suite XVI, was released in September 2006 (the title is a pun on "Sweet 16" and also a reference to the fact that it is the band's 16th studio album).
During the recording of Suite XVI Paul Roberts left the band to pursue his solocareer. Guitarist Baz Warne, who replaced John Ellis in 2000, became the main vocalist.
A quite rare Hugh Cornwell audio interview may be listened to on http://www.jasonwrightonline.com/
In Heaven She Walks
The Stranglers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In scenes that drift togethter with some strange attraction
Your style is always painted on a world of faces
I'll always look for you in unexpected places
I can't deny the perfect kind
And we'll always be bound to be lost
In heaven she walks
In heaven she walks
In heaven she walks
I always dreamed to meet you in such unexpected places
We seem to shift together with some strange reaction
Your smile is almost wasted on a world of basics
I'll always look for you in unexpected places
Who can deny the perfect find
Cause I'll always be chained to her tracks
These virtual lines disturb my eyes
But I'll always be lost in her thoughts
In heaven she walks
In heaven she walks
Thank heaven she walks
In heaven she walks
In heaven she walks
In heaven she walks.
The Stranglers' song In Heaven She Walks seems to be about the intense attraction towards someone that you keep running into unexpectedly. The singer sings about how they keep meeting this person in unexpected places and how there is some strange attraction between them. They describe this person's "style" which is painted on a "world of faces," suggesting that they stand out from the crowd. Even though the singer keeps meeting this person unexpectedly, it seems like they are always looking for them in these unexpected places.
The chorus talks about how this person walks in heaven, suggesting how much the singer idolizes them. They describe this person as perfect, and they feel bound to be lost in their thoughts. It's almost like this attraction is a heavenly experience for them, and they can't help but feel like they're in a different world when they're around this person.
The lyrics suggest that the singer has always dreamed of meeting this person, and they seem to shift together in a strange reaction. The person's smile is almost wasted on a world of basics, which suggests that they are too special to be surrounded by ordinary people. The singer feels chained to this person's tracks and can't help but be lost in their thoughts, even though it disturbs them.
Overall, the song has a dreamy and intense quality to it, with the singer seeming almost obsessed with this person they keep meeting in unexpected places. The imagery is otherworldly and suggests that this person is almost too perfect to exist in the real world.
Line by Line Meaning
I always seem to meet you in such unexpected places
I never expect to see you but somehow, we always run into each other in random locations
In scenes that drift together with some strange attraction
When we do meet, it feels like fate brought us together because of some unexplainable pull towards each other
Your style is always painted on a world of faces
You have a unique personality that stands out in a sea of people
I'll always look for you in unexpected places
Even though I never know where to find you, I will always search for you
I can't deny the perfect kind
I cannot deny the fact that you are perfect in every way
And we'll always be bound to be lost
We will always be lost in each other's company, unable to resist being together
In heaven she walks
You are like an angel, walking on earth
In heaven she walks
You are so perfect that it feels like you are walking on clouds, in heaven
In heaven she walks
You are truly special, like someone who belongs in heaven
In heaven she walks
You have a divine presence that makes you seem as if you are walking in heaven itself
I always dreamed to meet you in such unexpected places
Even before I met you, I always imagined running into you in the most random locations
We seem to shift together with some strange reaction
When we are together, it feels like we are in sync with each other, as if we were meant to be together
Your smile is almost wasted on a world of basics
Your beautiful smile is almost too good for this world, which can be filled with ordinary things
Who can deny the perfect find
There is no one who can deny that you are the perfect match for me
Cause I'll always be chained to her tracks
I am forever bound to you, following your every move
These virtual lines disturb my eyes
The image of you is burned into my mind and it's hard to look away
But I'll always be lost in her thoughts
Even when I am not with you, I will always be thinking of you
Contributed by Xavier M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Imogen Imeson
LOL watched the first minute and a half - which was more than enough!.The Sweden video it ain't!how I long to see JJ in his operating theatre gown.
George Smith
The 90s: definitely an odd time, Stranglers-wise.
Ellen Mentor
Love it...!!!
sea wolf
Brilliant video and song fantastic band
Imogen Imeson
Nah it's utter shite.The lurid Nice n Sleazy Battersea dogs incident is watchable compared to this bollocks.I'd rather see JJ's crotch on a motorbike than some tarty over-dressed 90's slapper straddling it.
Jeffery Molnar
Paul Roberts rules!!!
Imogen Imeson
lol
Jeffery Molnar
Paul Roberts rules!!!