Strangers By Nature

Album: 30 (2021)
Charted: 41
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • I'll be taking flowers to the cemetery of my heart
    For all of my lovers in the present and in the dark
    Every anniversary, I'll pay respects and say I'm sorry


    "Strangers By Nature" is the opening track of Adele's fourth album, 30, a record inspired by her divorce from Simon Konecki. Over solemn, funereal chords, the Brit sets the tone for the album as she sings reflectively of mourning the marital breakdown with metaphorical flowers.

  • Adele co-wrote the song with Childish Gambino's longtime collaborator Ludwig Göransson. After meeting the Swedish composer at a party, the English star was drawn to his dry European humor. They worked on "Strangers" after she watched the Garland biopic, Judy.

    Göransson's other credits include composing the Oscar-winning score for Marvel's Black Panther and co-penning Justin Timberlake and SZA's "The Other Side."
  • Adele penned the song with Göransson after wondering why no one writes songs anymore like the ones Judy Garland used to sing. "I remember thinking, Why did everyone stop writing such incredible melodies and cadences and harmonies?" she told Apple Music.
  • As this is shorter than most of Adele's other songs, she considered giving it to someone else to sing or sample. "You know in the old movies when someone's having a flashback or a memory to something else, and it's almost like they'll shoot a river or a pond and the water goes all ripply?" Adele asked Rolling Stone. "It reminds me of that."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Dan Reed

Dan ReedSongwriter Interviews

Dan cracked the Top 40 with "Ritual," then went to India and spent 2 hours with the Dalai Lama.

Sam Hollander

Sam HollanderSongwriter Interviews

The hitmaking songwriter/producer Sam Hollander with stories about songs for Weezer, Panic! At The Disco, Train, Pentatonix, and Fitz And The Tantrums.

Mac Powell of Third Day

Mac Powell of Third DaySongwriter Interviews

The Third Day frontman talks about some of the classic songs he wrote with the band, and what changed for his solo country album.

How "A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss" Became Rock's Top Proverb

How "A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss" Became Rock's Top ProverbSong Writing

How a country weeper and a blues number made "rolling stone" the most popular phrase in rock.

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine Band

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine BandSongwriter Interviews

Harry Wayne Casey tells the stories behind KC and The Sunshine Band hits like "Get Down Tonight," "That's The Way (I Like It)," and "Give It Up."

Chris Tomlin

Chris TomlinSongwriter Interviews

The king of Christian worship music explains talks about writing songs for troubled times.