Songfacts®:

• "London Lady" is one of The Stranglers' earliest and most controversial songs, serving as the B-side to their debut single "(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)," released in January 1977. The track exemplifies the band's provocative approach that would make them one of punk's most divisive acts.
• The song became infamous for its supposed inspiration: a thoroughly forgettable fling with Melody Maker journalist Caroline Coon, one of the punk movement's key chroniclers. But bassist Jean Jacques Burnel told Mojo magazine the song is about "a few women, not one particular woman," before slyly noting that Coon was "an aficionado of the Pistols" anyway, and therefore firmly on the enemy side.
• "London Lady" helped cement The Stranglers' reputation for misogynistic lyrics, with feminist activists calling them out even as the band's popularity surged. It wouldn't be the last time their songs sparked outrage; see also the cheerfully sleazy "Peaches" or the downright sinister "Sometimes."
• Where "Grip" strutted along with a certain swagger, "London Lady" charged ahead at a faster clip, all built on Jean-Jacques Burnel's bass lines and Dave Greenfield's keyboards. This wasn't just shouting over three chords: The Stranglers actually understood things like tuning and keys, which in the 1977 punk scene was practically showing off.
• "London Lady" was recorded in December 1976 at T.W. Studios in Fulham and produced by Martin Rushent. It was later included on their debut album, Rattus Norvegicus, which became one of the highest-selling albums of the punk era in Britain, eventually achieving Platinum status.