Hugh Cornwell: The Stranglers, New Songs & His Final Solo Acoustic Tour
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Nearly fifty years after Rattus Norvegicus, Hugh Cornwell is still writing new songs—and still asking what a song can become when he takes it onstage.
He’s preparing Succubus, revisiting a lifetime of music on All the Fun of the Fair, and calling his forthcoming solo acoustic tour Never Say Goodbye. So what is he saying goodbye to, and what is he moving towards?
Hugh declined to appear on camera for this interview, so this time, listen in as we talk about the music he made with The Stranglers, his solo work, and the songs he has yet to write. He also discusses the possibility of Stranglers-only shows for the fiftieth anniversary of Rattus Norvegicus, and a film about his life that he says is being made.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:50 Why Never Say Goodbye is his final solo acoustic tour
02:49 What makes a song work with just a guitar
05:55 Revisiting his solo catalogue on All the Fun of the Fair
08:11 The dream and mythology behind Succubus
11:40 Writing the new album and creating its artwork
13:35 New songs, audience questions and the acoustic shows
15:04 Could he play Stranglers-only anniversary shows?
17:22 The Stranglers’ tenth album and his solo career
18:42 Nosferatu in a cave and a film about his life
20:40 The search for a perfect song
22:37 Why his songs are a diary of his life
25:00 What he wants audiences to take away
Never Say Goodbye — final solo acoustic tour, November 2026
4 November — Sheffield Green, East Sussex — Trading Boundaries
6 November — Newport — Riverfront Theatre
8 November — Milton Keynes — The Stables
11 November — Worcester — Huntingdon Hall
12 November — New Brighton — Floral Pavilion
13 November — Leeds — City Varieties
14 November — Dunfermline — Carnegie Hall
15 November — Glasgow — St Luke’s
16 November — Sale — Waterside Arts Centre
18 November — Southport — The Atkinson
19 November — Cambridge — The Junction
20 November — Harpenden — Eric Morecambe Centre
21 November — Poole — St Peter’s
23 November — Bath — Komedia
24 November — London — Cecil Sharp House
25 November — Basingstoke — The Haymarket
26 November — Stamford — Corn Exchange
27 November — Whitley Bay — Playhouse
28 November — Lytham — Lowther Pavilion
Australia, December 2026
4 December — Sydney — Manning Bar
5 December — Brisbane — Crowbar
6 December — Adelaide — The Gov
9 December — Perth — The Rosemount
11 December — Castlemaine — Theatre Royal
12 December — Melbourne — Northcote Social Club
Tour dates and tickets:
https://www.hughcornwell.com/live/
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