"Hanging Around" is a song by English rock band

the Stranglers The Stranglers are an English rock band who emerged via the punk rock scene. Scoring 23 UK top 40 singles and 19 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are one of the longest-surviving bands to have origina ...

, released on their debut album ''

Rattus Norvegicus ''Rattus'' is a genus of muroid rodents, all typically called rats. However, the term rat can also be applied to rodent species outside of this genus. Species and description The best-known ''Rattus'' species are the black rat (''R. rattus'') ...

''.

Composition and release

The song grew out of a bass line by

Jean-Jacques Burnel Jean-Jacques Burnel (born 21 February 1952) is an English musician, producer and songwriter, best known as the bass guitarist and co-lead vocalist with the English rock band The Stranglers. He is the last founding member to remain in the band. ...

to which

Hugh Cornwell Hugh Alan Cornwell (born 28 August 1949) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and writer, best known for being the lead vocalist and lead guitarist for the punk rock and new wave band the Stranglers from 1974 to 1990. Since leaving the ...

added lyrics. The lyrics were inspired by people who used to 'hang around' the London clubs, particularly the Nashville, where the band used to perform. The first verse focuses on "a woman in red who was always there getting drunk and passing out, which ccording to Cornwellused to make us laugh". The second verse makes reference to Earl's Court Road near the Nashville where drug hustlers hung about. The third verse refers to "a friend of ours called Garry Coward-Williams, who was always smiling, and a friend of his we called Duncan Doughnuts, who was 20 going on 40. I could never believe how old he looked. His whole manner and appearance was of a middle-aged man". For the fourth verse, Cornwell had run out of ideas, so Burnel provided the lyrics for it, which refer to the Coleherne, a gay pub that he used to frequent. The chorus mentions

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

, about which Cornwell has said: There was a possibility that "Hanging Around" could have been released as the band's third single. However, their second album, '' No More Heroes'', was released five months after ''Rattus Norvegicus'' in September 1977 and "it wouldn't have made marketing sense to release a single from one album, when a new album was coming out immediately afterwards". Instead, "

Something Better Change ''Something Better Change'' is the debut album by Canadian punk rock band D.O.A. The album was recorded between 1977 and 1980 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and was released in 1980 on the label Can. Friends. (See 1980 in music). For n ...

" was released in July 1977 as their third single and first from ''No More Heroes''.

Personnel

–

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 ...

–

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 David Paul Greenfield (29 March 1949 – 3 May 2020) was an English keyboardist, singer and songwriter who was a member of rock band The Stranglers. He joined the band in 1975, within a year of its formation, and played with them for 45 years ...

–

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 ...

, Hohner electric piano *

Jet Black Brian John Duffy (26 August 1938 – 6 December 2022), professionally known as Jet Black, was an English drummer and founding member of punk rock/ new wave band The Stranglers. He last performed with the band in 2015, and officially retired in ...

–

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 ...

Hazel O'Connor version

In September 1981, British singer

Hazel O'Connor Hazel Thereasa O'Connor (born 16 May 1954) is a British singer-songwriter and actress. She became famous in the early 1980s with hit singles " Eighth Day", " D-Days" and " Will You?" She also starred in the 1980 film '' Breaking Glass''. Caree ...

released a cover of the song as a single from her second studio album ''

Cover Plus ''Cover Plus'' is the third album by English singer Hazel O'Connor, released in August 1981 by Albion Records. The album charted at number 32 on the UK Albums Chart. It was reissued on CD with bonus tracks on 17 November 2017 by Cherry Red Recor ...

''. It peaked at number 45 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

Reception

Reviewing for ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand fo ...

'', Ian Birch wrote "Hazel always treats her songs like showbiz productions. You might almost see the stage set here (city streets and distant neon). The orchestra bound into a fat rhythm. There's some sweaty sax for atmosphere and some synthesiser for modernity. Hazel performs a show-stopper while a male chorus sellotape on back-up vocals". When reviewing ''Cover Plus'' for ''

Record Mirror ''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper between 1954 and 1991 for pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after the ''NME'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK album chart was published in ''Re ...

'', Simon Tebbutt described "Hanging Around" as "a curiously watered down version with little of the raunch of the original".

Track listings

7" (UK) # "Hanging Around" – 3:05 # "Hold On" – 4:26 # "Not for You" (German Version) – 2:44 7" (Europe & Australia) # "Hanging Around" – 3:05 # "Hold On" – 4:26

Personnel

– vocals * Neil O'Connor – guitar, backing vocals * Andy 'Roots' Qunta – keyboards, backing vocals * Steve Kinch – bass guitar, backing vocals * Wesley Magoogan – saxophone,

lyricon The Lyricon is an electronic wind instrument, the first wind controller to be constructed. Invented by Bill Bernardi (and co-engineered by Roger Noble and with the late Lyricon performer Chuck GreenbergIngham (1998) p.184), filed for patent on ...

, backing vocals * Eddie Case – drums, backing vocals

Charts

References

{{authority control 1977 songs The Stranglers songs Songs written by Hugh Cornwell Songs written by Jean-Jacques Burnel Songs written by Dave Greenfield Songs written by Jet Black Song recordings produced by Martin Rushent 1981 singles Hazel O'Connor songs Song recordings produced by Tony Visconti