The Stranglers - Nice Numbers 'n' Sleazy Songs (1981)

The Stranglers were always the outsiders of the original punk movement - they were much older than all the other bands, and could actually play their instruments, and that included a keyboard player with a moustache!. Another thing which stood them apart was the amount of material they produced, so it's no surprise to find that they released a lot of non-album singles and b-sides. Enough, in fact, to put together a nice compilation of songs which never made it to album. It's a telling point that two of my favourites of theirs - 'Walk On By' and 'Five Minutes' - were never considered as album material, even though they would have enhanced any record they appeared on.

Track listing

01 Straighten Out (b-side to 'Something Better Change' 1977)
02 Go Buddy Go (b-side to 'Peaches' 1977)
03 Shut Up (b-side to 'Nice 'n' Sleazy' 1978)
04 Walk On By (free 7" with 'Black And White')
05 Mean To Me (b-side to 'Walk On By')
06 Tits (b-side to 'Walk On By')
07 Old Codger (b-side to commercial release of 'Walk On By')
08 Sverige (Jag Ar Insnoad Pa Ostfronten) ('Sweden' in Swedish 7" single 1978)
09 Five Minutes (7" single 1978)
10 Rok It To The Moon (b-side to 'Five Minutes')
11 Yellowcake UF6 (b-side to 'Nuclear Device' 1979)
12 Fools Rush Out (b-side to 'Duchess' 1979)
13 Tomorrow Was The Hereafter (7" single 1980)
14 Bear Cage (7" single 1980)
15 Choosey Susie (b-side to 'Peasant In The Big Shitty' 1980)
16 Top Secret (b-side to 'Thrown Away' 1981)
17 Maninwhite (b-side to 'Just Like Nothing On Earth' 1981)