Jean-Jacques Burnel (born 21 February 1952) is an English musician, best known as the bass guitarist and co-lead vocalist with the

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band

the Stranglers The Stranglers are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1974. Scoring 23 UK top 40 singles and 20 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are one of the longest-surviving bands to have originated in the ...

. He is the only original member to remain in the band.

Life and career

Burnel performing on French TV in 1983 Jean-Jacques Burnel was born in

Notting Hill Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a wikt:cosmopolitan, cosmopolitan and multiculturalism, multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting ...

, London, to French parents. His family owned a restaurant where his father worked as a chef. As a child, as the son of French immigrants, he was often the victim of mockery from his schoolmates, which later led him to call himself John to disguise his French origins. This early encounter with

xenophobia Xenophobia (from (), 'strange, foreign, or alien', and (), 'fear') is the fear or dislike of anything that is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression that is based on the perception that a conflict exists between an in-gr ...

would also have an impact on his explosive temper in life and on stage as well as on the way he plays. He moved with his parents to

Godalming Godalming ( ) is a market town and civil parish in southwest Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, at the confluence of the Rivers Wey and Ock. The civil parish covers and includes the settl ...

, Surrey, when he was 12 years old and attended the

Royal Grammar School, Guildford The Royal Grammar School, Guildford (originally 'The Free School'), also known as the RGS, is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private selective day school for boys in Guildford, Surrey in England. The school dates its founding to the de ...

, subsequently reading history at the

University of Bradford The University of Bradford is a public research university located in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. A plate glass university, it received its royal charter in 1966, making it the 40th university to be created in Britain, but ...

and

Huddersfield Polytechnic The University of Huddersfield is a public research university located in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. It has been a University since 1992, but has its origins in a series of institutions dating back to the 19th century. It has made te ...

. Burnel originally trained as a classical guitarist, but adopted the bass guitar as his instrument within the Stranglers. He has provided lead vocals on nearly a third of the band's songs. Burnel later explained he often sang lyrics written by

Hugh Cornwell Hugh Alan Cornwell (born 28 August 1949) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and writer, best known for being the lead vocalist and lead guitarist for the punk rock and new wave band the Stranglers The Stranglers are an English ro ...

(or vice versa) depending on "who had the best voice for that particular song." Burnel has been a member of the Stranglers since the group's inception in 1974, but has also made two solo albums: '' Euroman Cometh'' in 1979, and '' Un Jour Parfait'' in 1988, as well as a collaborative album with fellow Stranglers member

Dave Greenfield David Paul Greenfield (29 March 1949 – 3 May 2020) was an English keyboardist, singer and songwriter who was a member of rock band the Stranglers. He joined the band in 1975, within a year of its formation, and played with them for 45 years ...

, '' Fire and Water (Ecoutez Vos Murs)'' in 1983. Burnel has also produced and appeared as a guest musician for a number of artists, such as Lizard and ARB from Japan,

Polyphonic Size Polyphonic Size is a Belgian new wave band founded in 1979 in Brussels by Roger-Marc Vande Voorde. Mixing electric guitars and synthesizers with French and English lyrics (and sometimes German or Japanese lyrics), most of Polyphonic Size record ...

(from Belgium) and Taxi Girl's album ''Seppuku'' in 1981, as well as Laurent Sinclair's "Devant le Miroir" maxi single. Burnel also formed a

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

covers band, the Purple Helmets, who played a number of concerts and released two albums in the late 1980s. As a holder of French citizenship, Burnel received his call-up papers for

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

in France. He succeeded in avoiding it with a novel defence, arguing that his absence would damage the Stranglers as a band, and therefore the careers of the other members. This was in accordance with Burnel's claim that only the "

bourgeois The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and Aristocracy (class), aristocracy. They are tradition ...

" would ever agree to serve their country's military. Burnel composed and performed music for the anime '' Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo'', including both the opening and ending themes, "We Were Lovers", and "You Won't See Me Coming" respectively. The-Stranglers-Palace-1979

Burnel is fluent in French and writes many of his songs in the language.

Equipment and sound

Shuker JJ Burnel signature bass headstock Burnel is noted for his distinctive bass guitar sound and melodic bass lines. These are particularly prominent on earlier Stranglers recordings produced by

Martin Rushent Martin Charles Rushent (11 July 1948 – 4 June 2011) was an English record producer, best known for his work with the Human League, the Stranglers and Buzzcocks. Early life Rushent was born on 11 July 1948 in Enfield, Middlesex. His fathe ...

, such as the hit singles " No More Heroes" and "

Peaches The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called nectarines. Peac ...

". In the early days, Burnel's distinctive aggressive sound was created using a

Fender Precision Bass The Fender Precision Bass (or "P-Bass") is a model of bass guitar, electric bass guitar manufactured by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. In its standard, post-1957 configuration, the Precision Bass is a solid body, four-stringed instrument ...

with RotoSound roundwound strings played with a

plectrum A plectrum is a small flat tool used for plucking or strumming of a stringed instrument. For hand-held instruments such as guitars and mandolins, the plectrum is often called a pick and is held as a separate tool in the player's hand. In harpsic ...

very close to the bridge, through

Hiwatt Hiwatt (stylized in all caps) is a British company that manufactures amplifiers for electric guitars and electric basses. Starting in the late 1960s, together with Marshall and Vox, Hiwatt contributed to the sonic image popularly termed "B ...

all-

valve A valve is a device or natural object that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid (gases, liquids, fluidized solids, or Slurry, slurries) by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically Pip ...

amplification. However, the defining factor was the use of a

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

4x12 speaker cabinet in which the speaker cones were ripped, creating a distorted sound. Later, he used a Yamaha BB2000 which he used on the Euroman Tour in 1979, he then used this full time between 1983 and 1985 before switching to a Steinberger L2 (headless) which he used from 1986 to 1989 and then reverted back to the Fender Precision bass for 10 Tour and continued using this until 2006. Since 2006, he has used Shuker JJ Burnel signature basses custom-built in England by Jon Shuker. He was one of the first bass guitarists to use Trace Elliot amplification when the company began production in 1980. He now uses amplification by Ashdown Engineering which has honoured him with his own JJ500 signature amps.

Personal life

As of 2015, Burnel was a seventh-degree black belt (nanadan) in Shidokan Karate and is head of Shidokan UK. He is also a

motorcyclist Motorcycling is the act of riding a motorcycle. For some people, motorcycling may be the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation, and small-displacement motorcycles are the most common motor vehicle in the most populous co ...

and has owned many Triumph motorbikes.Buckley 1997, p.18.

Discography

The Stranglers

Albums

* '' Euroman Cometh'' (1979) No. 40 (

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

) * '' Fire and Water (Ecoutez Vos Murs)'' (with

) (1983) No. 94 (UK Albums Chart) * '' Un Jour Parfait'' (1988) * '' Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo – Original Soundtrack'' (with Kasamatsu Kouji) (2005)

Singles

* "Freddie Laker (Concorde & Eurobus)" (1979), B-side "

Ozymandias "Ozymandias" ( ) is a sonnet written by the English Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. It was first published in the 11 January 1818 issue of '' The Examiner'' of London. The poem was included the following year in Shelley's collection '' Ros ...

" * "Girl from the Snow Country" (1981) deleted prior to release due to dispute with record label, but also released as a bootleg on "Karate Records". * "Rain & Dole and Tea"/"Consequences" (1984) (with

) * "Goebbels, Mosley, God & Ingrams" (1988) flexi-disc release of an outtake from '' Euroman Cometh'' sessions * "Le Whiskey"/"El Whiskey" (1988) * "Reves"/"Crazy (She Drives Me)" (1988)

Production and other appearances

Burnel has also produced and or appeared either as a member of the group (Mutations, Purple Helmets) or as a 'guest' musician on a number of recordings, as follows: * Celia and the Mutations – "Mony Mony / Mean to Me" single (1977) : bass and backing vocals * Celia and the Mutations – "You Better Believe Me" single (1978) : bass * Lizard – ''Lizard'' album (1979) : production, backing vocals * Lizard – ''TV Magic'' single (1980) : production * Polyphonic Size – "Nagasaki Mon Amour" single (1980) : production * Sirens – "It Doesn't Really Matter" single (1980) : production * Taxi Girl – "Les Armees de la Nuit" single (1981) : production & original theme * Taxi Girl – "Vivian Vog" single (1981) * Taxi Girl – "La Femme Ecarlate" single (1981) : production * Taxi Girl – "Les Armées de la Nuit"/"Musée Tong"/"La Femme Ếcarlate" single (1981) : production * Taxi Girl – ''Seppuku'' album (1981) : production, chorus vocals on UK bonus track "Find the Boy" *

– ''Live for Each Moment'' album (1982) : production, bass and backing vocals, lead vocals on two tracks, joint composer of one track * Polyphonic Size – "Winston & Julia"/"Je T'ai Toujours Aimée"/"Parties Dance" single (1982) : production, lead vocals on all tracks, bass on "Je T'ai Toujours Aimée" * Polyphonic Size – "Mother's Little Helper"/"Men and Construction"/"RDA RFA"/"Kyoto"/"Nagasaki Mon Amour" single (1982) : production * Polyphonic Size – Mother's Little Helper"/"Girlscout"/"Men and Construction"/"On the Way to Medora"/"Saison" single (1982) : production * Polyphonic Size – "Night is Coming On" single (1982) : production * Polyphonic Size – "Je T'ai Toujours Aimee" single (1982) : production, lead vocals and bass on A-side * Polyphonic Size – ''Walking Everywhere'' album (1983) : production, vocals on three tracks which he jointly composed, including lead vocals on Walking Class Hero. * Polyphonic Size – "Walking Class Hero" single (1983) : production, lead vocal, joint composer * ARB – ''Yellow Blood'' album (1984) : bass guitar on two tracks, "Yellow Blood" and "Fight it Out" * Beranek – ''Trigger'' album (1984) : production, bass and backing vocals on track "All Through the Night" * Beranek – "Some Boys Like Dolls"/"Why Don't You Wanna Dance" single (1984) : production * Play Group – ''Love Goes Round'' album (1984) : production * Laurent Sinclair – "Devant le Miroir" single (1985) : production and bass * Dave Howard Singers – "Rock On" single (1985) : production * Beranek – ''Daylight in the Dark'' album (1986) : production, bass and backing vocals * Beranek – "Dancing in the Wind"/"Teardrop" single (1986) : production, bass and backing vocals * Ping Pop – ''Just Another Lazy Day'' album (1986) : production and backing vocals *

Fools Dance Fools Dance were an English rock band active from 1983 to 1987, primarily known for their connections to The Cure. History In 1982, Simon Gallup was bassist for The Cure, and Gary Biddles was a member of the band's road crew who was occasional ...

– "They'll Never Know" single (1987) : bass *

Jacques Dutronc Jacques Dutronc (; born 28 April 1943) is a French singer, songwriter, guitarist, composer, and actor. Some of Dutronc's best-known hits include " Il est cinq heures, Paris s'éveille" (which AllMusic has called "his finest hour"), "Le Responsa ...

– ''CQFD'' album (1987) : bass on five of the tracks *

Mona Mur Sabine Bredy (born 29 July 1960), known professionally as Mona Mur, is a German vocalist, composer and audio designer. Early years Sabine Bredy was born in Hamburg to Polish people, Polish parents. In 1982 she collaborated with FM Einheit, M ...

– ''Mona Mur'' album (1987) : production, bass, guitars and percussion * Mona Mur – "Bastard" single (1987) : production, bass, guitars and percussion * Mona Mur – "Ritz" single (1987) : production, bass, guitars, percussion * Revenge – ''Sweet and Sour'' album (1987) : production, sound mixing and recording, backing vocals * Revenge – ''Wartime'' album (1987) : mixing * The Purple Helmets – ''Ride Again'' album (1988) : bass and vocals * The Purple Helmets – "We Gotta Get Out of This Place"/"I'm a Man" single (1989) : bass and vocals * The Purple Helmets – ''Rise Again'' album (1989) : bass and vocals * The Purple Helmets – "Brand New Cadillac"/"Under the Sun" single (1989) : bass and vocals * Dani – ''N Comme Never Again'' album (1993) : production, mixing, bass, vocals and guitars * Magic De Spell – ''Holiday in Sarajevo'' album (1993) : production * Magic De Spell – ''Nipsonanoimimata Mi Monan Opsin'' album (1995) : production *

Pat Dinizio Patrick Michael DiNizio (October 12, 1955 – December 12, 2017) was the lead singer, songwriter and founding member of the band The Smithereens, which he formed in 1980 with Jim Babjak, Dennis Diken and Mike Mesaros from Carteret, New Jersey. ...

– ''Songs and Sounds'' album (1997) : bass and vocals * Pat Dinizio – "124mph" single (1997) : bass and vocals * Pat Dinizio – "A World Apart" single (1997) : bass and vocals * Schindler – "Time" single (1999) : production, keyboards and backing vocals * Temple of Sound - "Dojo kun (jamais laisser tomber)" on the album ''First edition'' (2002) : vocals * 3 Men and Black – ''Acoustic'' album (2004) : bass and vocals * Teasing Lulu – "Infatuation"/"You Ain't My Baby" single (2006) : production * Teasing Lulu – "Waste of Time"/"The Ex Factor" (from the motion picture '

Reverb In acoustics, reverberation (commonly shortened to reverb) is a persistence of sound after it is produced. It is often created when a sound is reflected on surfaces, causing multiple reflections that build up and then decay as the sound is a ...

') single (2007) : production * Teasing Lulu – ''Black Summer'' album (2008) : production * Dani - "Me & you" on the album ''Le Paris de Dani'' (2010) : vocals, song written by JJ

References

;Bibliography * Buckley, David. ''No Mercy – The Authorised and Uncensored Biography of The Stranglers''. London. Hodder and Stoughton. 1997.

External links

Ode to Joy: Issue 4; The Burning Up Times PDF: free online publication devoted to JJ Burnel's 1979 debut album, ''Euroman Cometh''. 30 years on, JJ Burnel and John Ellis are interviewed, alongside fans' live Eurotour reviews and exclusive images

JJ Burnel & Stranglers interviews, news and reviews at www.strangled.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burnel, Jean-Jacques 1952 births Living people The Stranglers members People from Notting Hill People educated at Royal Grammar School, Guildford English bass guitarists English male bass guitarists English male songwriters English male singers English new wave musicians English record producers British male karateka English people of French descent Alumni of the University of Bradford