Interview: Jon Fratelli's Son Didn't Think He Should Sing "Strangers in the Street"
The band's lates single features legendary singer PP Arnold.
Over a decade has passed since The Fratellis released their iconic debut Costello Music.
A quirky collection of brash post-Libertines Brit-rock, the Scottish band soared to chart-topping success in the UK and garnered international fame after "Flathead" was featured in one of Apple's epochal early-2000s iPod commercials. Four albums later, the band has slowly pivoted away from the brash and thrash guitars of their debut in favor of more polished pop sensibilities. "I really liked [In Our Own Sweet Time,]" frontman Jon Fratelli told Popdust. "But I think in the end it veered off somewhere else. It's always hard for the people who create anything to have perspective!" He stopped himself. "Actually, we're really the last people you should ask!"
"Strangers in the Street," The Fratellis' latest single, barely features any of the band at all, with vocals mainly handled by soulful balladeer P.P. Arnold. The song is a slow-burn R&B offering, with The Fratellis' signature guitar loops swapped out for sweeping strings and piano. "When my son first heard it he said it was a shame that I was singing it instead of a real singer!" Fratelli said. "I knew where he was coming from."
How did PP Arnold get involved after your son's comment?
"I knew where he was coming from! So when it was suggested that PP Arnold might be interested in singing this, I was definitely open to that. I've known her work for years. I was pretty excited to hear what she did with it. Her performance was beautiful, and we can't thank her enough. The real high point for me was getting to hear her vocal constantly during the recording and mixing. She sang the song in a way that completely changed the feel of the narrative."
Tell me in more detail about how the editing process came together for this song. It must have been complicated because of quarantine.
"I'm not sure these days I'd ever say things are complicated. Technology has probably taken that word out of the recording vocabulary. It took some time, but I don't remember it ever being tricky or complex. In the end we were just trying to strike a balance between the arrangement and Arnold's vocals."
It really sounds like her vocals were the focal point of this song.
"The band needed to be anonymous enough in such a way that the vocals could grab the attention of the listener, but we also needed to compliment her performance. I just hope we got that balance right."
The new album has been in the works for a while.
"We recorded it in 2019 with our producer Tony Hoffer in Los Angeles. I felt while writing these songs that the record would be a continuation in some ways of our previous album. What I will say is that having worked on the whole thing for longer than any other record, there was a day when I could say, 'Ok..I think it's finished,' which always means that you can't think of a single other thing to add that would make you any happier with what you're hearing...I guess there's a clue in that."
A lot of time has passed since Costello Music. What has changed since then, both good and bad? How have The Fratellis evolved in all this time?
"It's all a matter of opinion isn't it? If you mean from the perspective of The Fratellis, then as far as I'm concerned everything has changed for the better, we've lost some things, gained others. I like where we're at. Change is one of the only things you can count on and of course we as a band have changed. Mince had hair when we started out and...now he doesn't! I had a sense of humor when we began and now....."
How have you been handling the changes that come with quarantine?
"To be honest my way of life really hasn't changed. My days are pretty much the same. I get up, read for a while, spend the day working on bits of music and pottering around the house trying my best not to do any housework! I'm very lucky that I haven't had to deal with any of the darker side of this things. I'm pretty damn grateful."
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The Fratellis new single "Strangers in the Street" was released in collaboration with Vuse Vapor. As part of a broader global sponsorship, the Vuse brand will be a headline sponsor for the U.S. portion of The Fratellis' upcoming international concert tour.Additionally, Vuse and the Fratellis will be donating funds to MusiCares through the Spotify COVID-19 Relief Fund. The Fratellis will be donating 100% of their proceeds from sales to help the music community.
Strangers in the Street