Not Fade Away

DAVE GREENFIELD

The Stranglers’ keyboard maestro (1949-2020)

Dave Greenfield, who died as a result of contracting Covid-19 in hospital, was one of the most distinctive musicians of the punk era. His elaborate, surging keyboard runs were a crucial component of The Stranglers’ music for five decades, providing a signature sound that set them apart from their ’70s contemporaries. “He was the difference between The Stranglers and every other punk band,” noted ex-bandmate Hugh Cornwell. “His musical skill and gentle nature gave an interesting twist.”

Raised in Brighton, Greenfield passed through various groups – The Initials, The Blue Maxi, Credo and prog-rockers Rusty Butler – prior to replacing Hans Wärmling in The Stranglers in 1975. He made his live debut at that summer’s Watchfield Free Festival in Wiltshire, announcing his presence on record with 1977 debut Rattus Norvegicus, particularly “(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)” and mini-epic “Down In The Sewer”. Greenfield’s winged arpeggios drew comparisons with The Doors’ Ray Manzarek, although he always maintained that his greatest influences were Jon Lord and Rick Wakeman. Just as The Stranglers were tricky to classify, Greenfield was a mutable proposition, veering between prog and ’60s garage-psych – and sometimes even jazz, as heard on the extemporised solo that drove the band’s digressive cover of “Walk On By”. Greenfield himself preferred to call it new wave.

His contributions were never less than distinctive, from “Threatened”’s malicious throb and the flurried urgency of “Duchess” to the drawing-room ambience of “Strange Little Girl” and baroque instrumental “Waltzinblack” (later adopted