Foreigner Showed Their Pop Smarts Early With “Cold As Ice”

Foreigner easily could have gone barreling down a hard-rock lane without much deviation. They boasted the kind of pedigreed lineup that would have assured them of major success in that genre right from the start.

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But they managed to deviate from the obvious pretty early in the game, in large part because their chief songwriters couldn’t help but show their pop smarts. Their diversity manifested itself in their massive 1977 hit single “Cold As Ice”.

Jones Meets Gramm

When Foreigner formed, their lineup included three Brits and three Americans. That’s why they chose the name, since one group or the other would be foreign to whatever country they toured. Mick Jones started up the group, and he picked the members one by one as they all assembled in New York in 1976

The key piece of the puzzle was vocalist Lou Gramm. Gramm had once passed a tape of his band Black Sheep to Jones. Jones remembered it when forming his new band, and, luckily, couldn’t have timed it any better. Black Sheep had recently folded, leaving Gramm looking for a gig.

The band put together a demo that they shopped around, and it took a while for it to find a home. One of the songs on that demo was “Feels Like The First Time”, which the band had earmarked for their first single. That sound brought the rock guitars. But the second single went in a much different direction.

“Ice” Flow

Mick Jones ostensibly played the role of lead guitarist for Foreigner. But he was willing to try different instruments while writing songs. “Cold As Ice” came when he was noodling on the piano and stumbled into an indelible instrumental hook. With the music in place, he and Gramm set about writing the lyrics.

With the piano taking center stage, cool vocal harmonies supporting, and some synthetic strings adding color, “Cold As Ice” felt more pop than rock. But it kept Foreigner’s early hot streak intact. It became the second straight song from their 1977 self-titled debut album to go to the Top 10.

Behind the Lyrics of “Cold As Ice”

“Cold As Ice” gains much of its power from the fact that Gramm and Jones don’t mess around with complexities in the lyrics. The narrator is directly calling out this girl’s behavior. “You’re as cold as ice,” Gramm barks. “You’re willing to sacrifice our love.” No need to equivocate. The force of the music backs up that statement.

Priorities are clearly out of whack here. “You’re digging for gold, you’re throwing away,” the narrator accuses. “A fortune in feelings but someday, you’ll pay.” “You want paradise,” he exclaims before once again promising that a comeuppance is arriving soon.

“Cold As Ice” doesn’t do too much more than that in a lyrical sense. The potency of the music carries a lot of the load. Foreigner proved with it that they could win the day with something other than a crunching rock arrangement. And they would continue to display that versatility throughout their marvelous career.

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