"Goodbye Toulouse" is a song by The Stranglers, appearing as the second song on their 1977 debut album Rattus Norvegicus. The lyrics were written by Jean-Jacques Burnel and the music by Hugh Cornwell, although it was credited to the band as a whole.

Overview

The song tells of Nostradamus' predictions on the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

town of

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

, with the song acting as a 'goodbye' to the town. Cornwell refers to the song as 'very unpunk'.

Writing and composition

The music was written by Cornwell and the lyrics were later written by Burnel. Initially, Burnel wanted to sing, but because his bass line was so frenetic that Hugh agreed to sing. At the time, this was an oddity, as the pair usually sang their own individual lyrics. Burnel's lyrics were inspired by Nostradamus' predictions that there was going to be a cataclysmic event on Toulouse, and he wrote the song as a 'goodbye' to the town. The song begins with Dave Greenfield's signature organ effect, shifting up and down in tone until the drums, bass, guitar, and keyboards all eventually come in throughout the song. The song's guitar solo features heavy amounts of

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and multitracking, giving the effect of two guitar solos in unison. The explosion sound effect at the end is meant to represent an atomic meltdown of the town.

Personnel

* Hugh Cornwell –

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

and

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

* Jean-Jacques Burnel –

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

* Dave Greenfield – backing vocals,

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...

* Jet Black –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

{{authority control The Stranglers songs 1977 songs Songs written by Hugh Cornwell Songs written by Jean-Jacques Burnel Songs written by Jet Black Songs written by Dave Greenfield Song recordings produced by Martin Rushent