"Love Is a Stranger" is a song by the British pop duo Eurythmics. It is the opening track off their second album, Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This). Originally released in late 1982, the single peaked outside the top 50 in the UK, but it was re-released in 1983, reaching the top 20 in several countries, including number six in the UK. The single was re-released again in 1991, to promote Eurythmics' Greatest Hits album. Both the 7-inch single and the 12-inch single were backed by "Monkey Monkey" as a B-side; the 12-inch single also included "Let's Just Close Our Eyes", a song that borrowed musical elements from "The Walk", which was the second single from Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This.

Background

"Love Is a Stranger" was created around nine months prior to its initial release as a single. During the song's first chart run, Dave Stewart began to receive requests from musicians such as Billy MacKenzie to produce their records. Lennox sought to encapsulate the dichotomy of love and hatred when writing the lyrics to "Love is a Stranger". She explained that her goal was to "put opposites together, because love and hate are so close to each other." The song's grunts were provided by a chef from a neighboring restaurant; his vocals were processed with a reverb effect. Some of the high vocal harmonies were sung by Kiki Dee, who was friends with Stewart at the time.

Commercial performance

Originally released in September 1982 in the United Kingdom, "Love Is a Stranger" debuted on the UK Singles Charts at number 70 for the week dated 20 November 1982. It peaked at number 54 two weeks later and spent five weeks in the top 75 during its initial chart run. Following the success of "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" the following year, the song was re-released and reached number six in April 1983. In the United States, the song was the second single from the Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) album. The single was released just as the album title track reached number one, entering the Billboard Hot 100 at number 81 in September 1983 and peaking at number 23 in November of that year. The song spent 13 weeks on the chart.

Music video

The single release was accompanied by a music video directed by Mike Brady, in which Stewart acts as chauffeur for Lennox, who plays the role of a high-class prostitute. Lennox removes a curly blonde wig to reveal much shorter red hair, though slicked back rather than the buzz cut seen in the subsequent music video for "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)". The video caused minor controversy in the USA, as some people mistakenly thought Lennox was a male cross-dresser. In one instance, MTV imposed a blackout during its transmission because they disapproved of the wig removal scene. MTV producers later telexed RCA Records for a copy of Lennox's birth certificate and accused her of being a transvestite.

Critical reception

Cash Box said that "the commanding vocals of Annie Lennox and hazy, electronically inflected backing combine to make 'Love Is a Stranger' a challenging yet already familiar sound." Smash Hits felt that "Love Is a Stranger" effectively integrated Lennox's "cultured" vocals into a modern musical arrangement. Stereogum and The Guardian both ranked the song number two on their lists of the greatest Annie Lennox songs.

Track listings

"Let's Just Close Our Eyes" is a newly recorded version of "The Walk" with a more synth-oriented instrumentation.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts