Hugh Cornwell

I'm Nick Coffer, and coming up today, two artists whose voices have been part of the soundtrack of British music for more than half a century.

Hugh Cornwell was the voice, guitarist, and principal songwriter of The Stranglers, one of the most distinctive bands to emerge from the punk era.

We'll talk about those early years, the stories behind some of the band's best-known songs, and why more than 50 years into his career, he's still making new music and finding new things to say.

And we'll meet the wonderful PP Arnold.

From singing with icon Tina Turner to being discovered by Mick Jagger and making a new life in London in the swinging '60s, hers is quite a story.

We'll hear about the people, the music, and the twists and turns of a career that's taken her from American soul to the very heart of British rock and pop.

First, let's hear from Hugh Cornwell.

As frontman of The Stranglers, Hugh helped create some of the most memorable records of the late '70s and '80s, from Peaches and No More Heroes to Golden Brown and Always the Sun.

They came back after a long time of silence two years ago with a new album, and they performed at Sound Edit, and now they're coming back with a new album, which is going to be released, uh, I think in two weeks.

And then we have Saturday, uh, Sunday with, uh, Hugh Cornwell; Dezerter, the legendary Polish punk band; uh, Lech Janerka, very, very, very legendary Polish, uh, post-punk artist, one of the greatest lyricists ever in my country, and he's playing the farewell tour now, so it's going to be his last show in Lodz.

And what else? We have the, the small Golden Ear ceremony presenting the awards.

And that's it from the shows.

Well, I feel as well, like, you know, if you're gonna have something like this that's in your country, you-

But there, there are some Q&A.

Definitely there'll be a Q&A with Hugh Cornwell.

Uh, I don't know about co- uh, uh, uh, about Wolfgang Flür now because so- sometimes, as I told you, they coming with big no, and some they say big yes, so.

But yeah, that's, that's easily a 10 out of 10 for me, 100% it w- it was.

And also, as well, like Hugh Cornwell's left, they had a fallout.

Um, there's only JJ left in the band now, um, the bassist.

Um-

Unfortunately, he's out, he's, he's a Mackem.

But I don't know how many bands you know when the replacement's better than the original, and I know it's sacrilege to some people, but he brings out the guitar more, he pushes it out more.

Hugh Cornwell, when he was playing solos, especially Golden Brown and, and stuff, and he always looked awkward.

Awkward.

But then after that, I think The Stranglers had it.

And I remember there just being sort of a fairly rusty two-door Range Rover, which I think was Hugh Cornwell's.

I suppose it didn't take a lot for a two-door Range Rover in white to look rusty.

Didn't take long either.

yeah

because punk can't just be about one band so you know i'm friends with vanian from the dam so i got david to do a bit and um i i didn't really know gay advert before and she's got a really lovely sort of women's perspective of punk and um I wanted to just, and Hugh Cornwell, who's a great friend of mine, he never does like TV or interviews.

And I really wanted to hear it from him because he was like the oldest statesman of punk.

I mean, they're already like a fully formed sort of like rocking blues band.

Oh, interesting.

A good example, Hugh Cornwell, the vocalist.

Yeah, of The Stranglers, yeah.

Whatever happened to Liam Trotsky? He got an ice pick.