How The Cranberries Wrote Their Legendary Hit “Linger”

Whether you’re a 90s kid or recently heard the song on TikTok, The Cranberries‘ 1993 hit “Linger” has graced the airwaves for more than three decades. Recently, the song has seen a mass resurgence thanks to it flooding social media on every single possible platform. However, what younger fans who heard “Linger” on social platforms might not realize is the magnitude of both The Cranberries and one of their most popular songs.

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Born and raised in Limerick, Ireland, The Cranberries are one of the most decorated bands to come out of the country. That being said, they could not have done it without their songs “Zombie”, “Dreams”, and “Sunday” as well. However, the song that has seemingly done them the most due diligence is “Linger”. And the story behind it makes the track all the more rewarding, for both fans and the remaining members of the band.

The Cranberries First Made It Big With “Linger”

In a 2018 interview with The Irish Times, the late Dolores O’Riordan and Noel Hogan spoke about the band’s humble Limerick beginnings and the formation of their first-ever song.

“Bands in Limerick just did cover versions,” O’Riordan divulged. “So when I met this group called The Cranberry Saw Us, I was immediately impressed.”

Contrary to O’Riordan’s relatively upbeat response, Hogan stated that the original iteration of The Cranberries was “terrible” when they started.

“I knew about five chords and four of them are probably in ‘Linger’,” he admitted.

It seems The Cranberries were less equipped than most bands. Thus, their success seems to be a culmination of “Irish luck” and raw, untamed talent. As a matter of fact, the song consisted of no real chords or music theory. “

Noel Hogan […] used to make up his own chords,” said O’Riordan. “‘Linger’ was the first song we wrote.”

Hogan created the music, but O’Riordan took it upon herself to craft the melody and the lyrics.

The Cranberries Wrote “Linger” as an Anthem for the Rejected

“It was inspired by a night I had at a club called Madonna’s,” O’Riordan continued. “This guy asked me to dance and I thought he was lovely. Until then, I’d always thought that putting tongues in mouths was disgusting, but when he gave me my first proper kiss I did indeed ‘have to let it linger.’”

This formative romantic experience for O’Riordan was fleeting, as the next time she saw the man he rejected her.

“Everything’s so dramatic when you’re seventeen, so I poured it into the song.”

Between the band’s unreadiness and O’Riordan’s rejection, it seems The Cranberries’ success was inevitable thanks to the 90s alt-rock scene’s tendency to attract the rejected and unwanted. Regardless of having an incidental thumb on public trends, the story behind “Linger” by The Cranberries is a true underdog tale.

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