Norfolk Coast
Studio album by
the Stranglers
Released16 February 2004
StudioGood Luck Studios, London
GenreRock
Length40:03
LabelEMI Liberty
Producer
  • Mark Wallis
  • David Ruffy
  • Peter Glenister
The Stranglers chronology
Coup de Grace
(1998)		 Norfolk Coast
(2004)		 Suite XVI
(2006)
Singles from Norfolk Coast
  1. "Big Thing Coming"
    Released: February 2004
  2. "Long Black Veil"
    Released: April 2004
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
BBC Music(favourable)[2]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[3]
Uncut[4]

Norfolk Coast is the fifteenth studio album by the Stranglers, and was released on 16 February 2004 by EMI's Liberty Records label, making it their first new album recorded for the company in 23 years.[5] It was released six years after their last studio album Coup de Grace and was their first official studio album with new guitarist Baz Warne, and also the last album to feature Paul Roberts on lead vocals. Norfolk Coast peaked at No. 70 in the UK Albums Chart in February, for one week's duration in that listing.[6]

The album was well received by reviewers and fans alike, showing a return to form of the band.[4][7][8] It also spawned the band's first UK Top 40 hit single for more than a decade, "Big Thing Coming" (No. 31 in February 2004 in the UK Singles Chart), and a smaller Top 75 hit "Long Black Veil".[9]

Background

After four albums in the 1990s where the Stranglers struggled commercially,[10] and with a growing inter-band conflict that left bassist Jean-Jacques Burnel's enthusiasm for the band at an all time low,[11] Burnel decided to step up and regain control of the band.[12] On 1998's Coup de Grace, he had already had a greater writing input than on the previous albums.[13][14] "At one point we were a bit lost, direction wise, and musically," Burnel said in 2014. "I hadn't contributed much and suddenly I had this revival of interest."[15]

In 1999, Burnel retreated to the secluded Norfolk village of Holme-next-the-Sea, bringing along his guitars and recording equipment, looking for inspiration to write songs.[15] "My marriage was falling apart, the Stranglers were going around in ever-decreasing circles, I wasn’t quite sure what was happening in my life," he said.[16] Inspired by the beautiful coastline, the seclusion, and what was going on in his head at that time, "I just wrote a body of work which we used in the Norfolk Coast album."[17] The title track and "Big Thing Coming" were the first two songs he wrote for the album,[18] in what he described as a "creative frenzy".[15] Burnel spent just over three months in Norfolk, and has stated that it turned everything around for him and the Stranglers.[15]

Guitarist John Ellis left the band in 2000[14] and was replaced by Baz Warne in April the same year.[19] The songwriting partnership of Burnel and Warne started two months after Warne had joined the band. They kept writing and working on songs for the album until 2002-2003, and then the band started recording the album in Mark Wallis' Good Luck Studios in London.[20][21] The band made the decision to play every song live before recording it, which meant that they were in the studio for very little time, according to Burnel.[18] Although some songs were co-writes, many songs were mainly individual efforts. In addition to "Norfolk Coast" and "Big Thing Coming", Burnel also wrote "Lost Control",[22] and Warne contributed "Long Black Veil", "Dutch Moon", "Into the Fire" and "I've Been Wild",[20] the latter written specifically about Burnel, in the first person and from his point of view. Paul Roberts wrote "Mine All Mine" on his own, his sole songwriting contribution to the album.[22]

The album saw the re-emergence of some of the Stranglers' signature sounds, such as Dave Greenfield's swirling keyboards, in a contemporary setting. The hard-edged title track sets the direction for much of the album, while there are more contemplative moments, such as the atmospheric "Tucker's Grave", a West Country cider house named after local farm worker Edwin Tucker, who committed suicide in 1747. In 1999,[23] the band's manager Sil Willcox bought the farm house in which Tucker died, Charlton Farm,[24][25] which would house the band's rehearsal and recording studios.[26]

Norfolk Coast was also the name of a short film starring Jean Jacques Burnel, which premiered in March 2006.[27] It is available on the 2006 DVD On Stage on Screen and features rearranged music from the album. Directed by Robin Bextor and co-starring Susannah York, the film won a number of awards.

Album cover

The cover photograph was taken on Hunstanton Beach in Norfolk in the summer of 2003[28] by American music photographer Harrison Funk.[17][29]

Track listing

All tracks are written by the Stranglers, except where noted.

No.TitleLength
1."Norfolk Coast"3:44
2."Big Thing Coming"3:01
3."Long Black Veil"4:01
4."I've Been Wild"2:43
5."Dutch Moon"3:57
6."Lost Control"3:29
7."Into the Fire"4:12
8."Tucker's Grave"5:58
9."I Don't Agree"3:21
10."Sanfte Kuss"2:23
11."Mine All Mine"3:11
Canadian CD bonus track
Japanese CD bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
12."Cruel Garden" (Laid Black version)Cornwell, Burnel, Greenfield, Black2:01
  • "Peaches 2004" is taken from the "Big Thing Coming" single.[30] "Cruel Garden" is taken from Laid Black, an album of acoustic re-workings, which was issued by the band as a mail order-only release in 2001.[31][32]

Personnel

The Stranglers

Additional musicians

Technical

  • Mark Wallis – production, engineering, programming
  • David Ruffy – production (except track 1), engineering, programming
  • Peter Glenister – production (track 1)
  • Steve Proctor – additional programming
  • Louie Nicastro – pre-production engineering
  • Max Bisgrove – pre-production engineering
  • Harrison Funk – photography
  • Darren Evans – design

Bonus tracks

  • Mark Wallis – production, engineering ("Peaches 2004")[30]
  • Peter Glenister – production, engineering ("Peaches 2004")[30]
  • Max Bisgrove – production, engineering, mixing ("Cruel Garden")[32]

Charts

Chart performance for Norfolk Coast
Chart (2004) Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[33] 142
UK Albums (OCC)[34] 70

References

  1. ↑ Luerssen, John D. "The Stranglers: Norfolk Coast > Review" at AllMusic. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  2. ↑ Jones, Chris (26 February 2004). "The Stranglers: Norfolk Coast Review". BBC Music. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  3. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2011). "Stranglers". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  4. 1 2 "The Stranglers – Norfolk Coast Review". Uncut. 1 March 2004. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  5. ↑ "STRANGLERS | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com.
  6. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 535. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  7. ↑ Jermy, Miles (19 February 2011). "The Stranglers, uncovered". Great Yarmouth Mercury. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  8. ↑ Keefe, Michael (25 January 2007). "The Stranglers: Suite XVI". PopMatters. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  9. ↑ "Big Thing Coming". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  10. ↑ Buckley, David (1997). No Mercy: The Authorised and Uncensored Biography of The Stranglers. London: Hodder & Stoughton. p. 257. ISBN 978-0-340-68062-9.
  11. ↑ Robb, John (3 March 2011). "The ultimate Stranglers interview - JJ Burnel opens up". Louder Than War. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  12. ↑ Stork, Adrian (3 September 2021). "The Stranglers (July 05, 2021)". Music Waves. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  13. ↑ "'74-'14: Forty years in photos-part 2 (1998)". thestranglers.co.uk. 14 September 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  14. 1 2 "Never To Look Back - JJ interview". thestranglers.co.uk. 11 September 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Outten, Emma (July 2014). "Ruby Rockers". Places&Faces. p. 17. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  16. ↑ Garratt, Rob (20 November 2016). "Ahead of Irish Village gig, The Stranglers' JJ Burnel muses on the politics of punk". The National. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  17. 1 2 Garratt, Rob (14 July 2009). "Interview: The Stranglers". Norwich Evening News. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  18. 1 2 Popoff, Martin (13 December 2004). "The Stranglers – Norfolk Coast – Interview". Lollipop Magazine. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  19. ↑ "Interview with The Stranglers' Front Man Baz Warne". Aberrant Perspectives. 16 January 2018. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  20. 1 2 "Baz Warne - Pt3". Punk77. 2006. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  21. ↑ "Mark Wallis - Record producer video interview". Record Production. 2003. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  22. 1 2 Warne, Baz (6 October 2014). "Norfolk Coast - track by track". ratter. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  23. ↑ "Ooh-arr goes all ooh-la la". The Daily Telegraph. 20 September 2008. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  24. ↑ Warne, Baz (4 June 2011). "Tucker's Grave RIP". ratter. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  25. ↑ Davis, Mick; Lassman, David (March 2020). Somerset: Stone Age to WWII. Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen and Sword History. ISBN 9781526706188.
  26. ↑ McNair, James (12 January 2012). "The Stranglers stay in the game". The National. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  27. ↑ Welch, Jon (25 March 2006). "Satanism and gardening' in Norfolk". Eastern Daily Press. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  28. ↑ "Track By Track - Norfolk Coast / 2004". stranglers.skyrock.com. 7 October 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  29. ↑ Cooper-Fiske, Casey (11 January 2020). "From The Stranglers to The Streets: Five album covers shot in the region". Eastern Daily Press. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  30. 1 2 3 "Big Thing Coming". Discogs. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  31. ↑ Scott, Jason (1 September 2013). "The Stranglers - Compilation LP's Pt 3". Careful With That Wax Cylinder, Eugene. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  32. 1 2 "Laid Back". Discogs. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  33. ↑ "Lescharts.com – The Stranglers – Norfolk Coast". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  34. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
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