Supertramp Goodbye Stranger

The song Goodbye Stranger is about the freedom of one-night-stands: “Just the thought of those sweet ladies sends a shiver through my veins.“ The subject matter and pop sound of the song was a huge departure from Supertramp’s previous work; their previous three albums, Crime Of The Century, Crisis? What Crisis? and Even In The Quietest Moments, were pretty heavy. With this track and others on the Breakfast In America album (1979), they showed a lighter side of the band and found more commercial success. There is a good chance some of the lyrics refer to marijuana. This is indicated by the lines, “Goodbye Mary, Goodbye Jane,“ as marijuana is often called “Mary Jane.“ In this context, the singer is giving up pot. Rick Davies sang lead on this track; Roger Hodgson sang backup and played guitar. Davies and Hodgson did all the songwriting for Supertramp, but almost always wrote separately. This one was written by Davies. Goodbye Stranger was used in the movies Magnolia (199