"Do the Strand" is the first song from English rock band

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry—who became the band's lead vocalist and principal songwriter—and bassist Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson. The other longtime members are Phil Manzanera ...

's second album, ''

For Your Pleasure ''For Your Pleasure'' is the second album by English rock band Roxy Music, released by Island Records in 1973. It was their last to feature synthesiser and sound specialist Brian Eno. Production The group was able to spend more studio time on ...

''. In contrast to the songs from Roxy Music's eponymous debut album, this song starts suddenly without any instrumental

fanfare A fanfare (or fanfarade or flourish) is a short musical flourish which is typically played by trumpets, French horns or other brass instruments, often accompanied by percussion. It is a "brief improvised introduction to an instrumental perfo ...

. Like the rest of the album, the song was recorded at

AIR Studios Associated Independent Recording (AIR) is an independent recording company founded in London in 1965 by record producer Sir George Martin and his business partner John Burgess, after their departure from Parlophone. The studio complex was founded ...

, Oxford Street, London.

Lyric

''Do the Strand'' was written by Roxy Music frontman

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established a distinctive image and sartorial style: according to ' ...

. Ferry said of the song's origins, "I had long been a fan of

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

and other songwriters from his era. ''Do the Strand'' was an attempt to emulate that style of writing, with a lot of cultural references that I found interesting." In the mode of early-1960s 'dance craze' songs such as ''The Twist'', the song tries to convince the listener to dance the Strand, which takes its name from a

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

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Strand Strand may refer to: Topography *The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a: ** Beach ** Shoreline * Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida Places Africa * Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa * Strand Street ...

cigarettes. The lyric includes, as is typical for early Roxy Music, references to notable art, including

The Sphinx The Great Sphinx of Giza is a limestone statue of a reclining sphinx, a legendary creature, mythical creature with the head of a human, and the body of a lion. Facing directly from west to east, it stands on the Giza Plateau on the west bank of ...

, the ''

Mona Lisa The ''Mona Lisa'' ( ; it, Gioconda or ; french: Joconde ) is a half-length portrait painting by Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. Considered an archetypal masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance, it has been described as "the best known ...

'', ''

Lolita ''Lolita'' is a 1955 novel written by Russian-American novelist Vladimir Nabokov. The novel is notable for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator, a middle-aged literature professor under the pseudonym Humbert Humber ...

'' and Picasso's ''

Guernica Guernica (, ), official name (reflecting the Basque language) Gernika (), is a town in the province of Biscay, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, Spain. The town of Guernica is one part (along with neighbouring Lumo) of the mu ...

''. Bryan Ferry described his idea for ''The Strand'' as "the 'dance of life' – thus bringing to mind earlier dance phenomena, such as the avant-garde passion and exuberance of both The

Ballets Russes The Ballets Russes () was an itinerant ballet company begun in Paris that performed between 1909 and 1929 throughout Europe and on tours to North and South America. The company never performed in Russia, where the Revolution disrupted society. A ...

and the controversial Jazz Age dance craze the Charleston." The song gives no instructions on how the Strand should be danced. Simon Puxley, writing in 1973, suggested the dance was "indefinable" and best thought of as "where it's at, whatever turns you on. The buzz, the action, the centre, the quintessence, the energy."

Single

"Do the Strand" was released as a single in 1973 in some countries but not in the UK. That same year, however, the band performed the song on the UK television music show ''

The Old Grey Whistle Test ''The Old Grey Whistle Test'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''Whistle Test'' or ''OGWT'') is a British television music show. The show was devised by BBC producer Rowan Ayers, commissioned by David Attenborough and aired on BBC2 from 1971 to 1988. ...

''. It was released as a single in the UK in 1978 to promote Roxy Music's ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' album, but it failed to chart. Despite this, the song remains one of the most popular amongst the band's fans, especially at live concerts.

Covers

The German synthpop band Alphaville recorded a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of "Do the Strand" for their 2003 album ''

CrazyShow ''CrazyShow'' is a limited-edition (2500 copies) four-CD album by Alphaville, composed of new material as well as rare and remixed tracks, and three cover versions ("Do the Strand" by Roxy Music, "Something" by George Harrison", and "Diamonds Are ...

''. The American pop band

Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters were an American pop rock band formed in 2001. Its members include Jake Shears and Ana Matronic as vocalists, Babydaddy as multi-instrumentalist, Del Marquis as lead guitar/bassist, and Randy Real (who replaced Paddy Boom) as dr ...

recorded another cover version for the War Child charity's 2009 charity album ''

War Child Presents Heroes ''War Child Presents Heroes'' is a 2009 charity album devoted to the War Child charity's aid efforts in war-stricken areas, such as Iraq, Uganda, Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. With a theme of "placing faith in the next genera ...

''.

Musicians

Andy Mackay Andrew Mackay (born 23 July 1946) is an English multi-instrumentalist, best known as a founding member (playing oboe and saxophone) of the art rock group Roxy Music. In addition, he has taught music and provided scores for television, while his ...

: oboe and saxophone *

: voice and keyboards *

Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...

: synthesizer and tapes * Paul Thompson: drums *

Phil Manzanera Phillip Geoffrey Targett-Adams (born 31 January 1951), known professionally as Phil Manzanera, is an English guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is the lead guitarist with Roxy Music, and was the lead guitarist with 801, and Quiet Sun. ...

: guitar *

John Porter John Porter may refer to: Politicians * John Porter (portreeve), 1390–94, Member of Parliament (MP) for Taunton * John Porter (Illinois politician) (1935–2022), Illinois politician, U.S. Representative * John Porter (MP for Bramber) (died 1599 ...

: bass

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Do The Strand Roxy Music songs Songs written by Bryan Ferry 1973 songs Song recordings produced by Chris Thomas (record producer) Song recordings produced by John Anthony (record producer) Island Records singles Warner Records singles Polydor Records singles