''A Guided Tour of Madness'' is a 3-CD/1-DVD anthology box set by English band Madness, released in 2011 on Union Square Music's collector's label Salvo. It features 70 singles and album tracks (from 1979’s '' One Step Beyond...'' to 2009’s ''

The Liberty of Norton Folgate ''The Liberty of Norton Folgate'' is the ninth studio album by the British band Madness, released on 18 May 2009. The band worked on the album for close to three years and it was their first album of new material since 1999's '' Wonderful''. C ...

'') and an exclusive DVD of the band's comeback concert at the Madstock festival in August 1992. It also includes a booklet with interviews with the band, photos, the cartoon ''Nutty Comic'' (1981) and the ''Madness Map of Camden'', the band's historic stomping ground. With the exception of "

Sweetest Girl Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, keto ...

," " Sorry," and "

The Harder They Come ''The Harder They Come'' is a 1972 Jamaican crime film directed by Perry Henzell and co-written by Trevor D. Rhone, and starring Jimmy Cliff. The film is most famous for its reggae soundtrack that is said to have "brought reggae to the world". ...

," every one of the band's 34 singles to date is represented. The compilation is notable as containing the only official physical release of the track "Le Grand Pantalon", which closes the collection. This slower, waltz version of "

Baggy Trousers "Baggy Trousers" is a song by English ska/pop band Madness from their 1980 album '' Absolutely''. It was written by lead singer Graham "Suggs" McPherson and guitarist Chris Foreman,Woodstra, Chris. Retrieved on 1 July 2007. and reminisces abou ...

", complete with accordion and double bass, as well as French lyrics, was originally created as part of Madness' participation in

Kronenbourg Brewery Kronenbourg Brewery (french: Brasseries Kronenbourg, German: ''Kronenbourg Brauerei'', ) is a brewery founded in 1664 by Geronimus Hatt in the Free Imperial City of Straßburg, Holy Roman Empire (today Strasbourg, France). The name comes from th ...

's 'Slow the Pace' ad campaign. However, its popularity led to the band recording a full version, initially available only as a free download.

Critical reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

rated the box set 4 stars out of 5, saying, "A cut above most hastily assembled retrospectives, ''A Guided Tour of Madness'' is a cleverly selected affair which should satisfy anyone wishing to investigate more than their more ubiquitous commercial hits." The Super Deluxe Edition website wrote, "The care and attention in the included booklet, combined with the overall quality of the packaging, makes this an easy box set to recommend, even for the casual listener."

Track listing

Certifications and sales

Personnel

See individual albums for full personnel credits. ;Madness * Graham "Suggs" McPherson – vocals *

Cathal Smyth Cathal Joseph "Carl" Smyth (born 14 January 1959), also known as Chas Smash, is an English singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His career spans more than 40 years. Smash came to prominence in the late 1970s as secondary vocalist, trump ...

– vocals, trumpet *

Mike Barson Michael Barson (born 21 April 1958) is a Scottish-born multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and composer. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Barson came to prominence in the late 1970s as the keyboard player for the band Madness. Early y ...

- piano, keyboards *

Chris Foreman Christopher John Foreman (born 8 August 1956), nicknamed Chrissy Boy, is an English musician, singer-songwriter, and composer. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Foreman came to prominence in the late 1970s as the guitarist for the Engli ...

– guitar * Mark Bedford – bass * Lee Thompson – saxophone, vocals *

Daniel Woodgate Daniel Mark (Woody) Woodgate (born 19 October 1960) is an English musician, songwriter, composer and record producer. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Woodgate came to prominence in the late 1970s as the drummer for the English ska band ...

– drums ;Additional musicians on bonus track "Le Grand Pantalon" * Rachael Lander – strings * Kirsty Mangan – strings *

Natalie Holt Natalie Ann Holt is a British composer who has worked on numerous film and television projects. She is primarily recognised for her work on several notable productions, including ''Paddington'' (2014) and '' Loki'' (2021). She trained at the R ...

– strings * Stephanie Benedetti – strings * Louis Vause – accordion * Lester Allen – banjo ;Technical *

Clive Langer Clive Langer (born 19 June 1954 in Hampstead, London, England) is an English record producer and songwriter, active from the mid-1970s onwards. He usually works with Alan Winstanley. He composed the music for the films '' Still Crazy'' and '' ...

– producer (disc 1: 1-27 / disc 2: 1-22 / disc 3: 1-9, 15-21) *

Alan Winstanley Alan Kenneth Winstanley (born 2 November 1952) is an English record producer and songwriter, active from the mid-1970s onwards. He usually works with Clive Langer. His early career during the mid-1970s was as an audio engineer, working on albu ...

– producer (disc 1: 3-27 / disc 2: 1-22 / disc 3: 1-9, 15-20), DVD sound mix * Steve Dub – producer (disc 3: 10-14) * John "Segs" Jennings – producer (disc 3: 10-14) *

Charlie Andrew Charles Andrew, (born 1980) is a British record producer, mixer and songwriter. He is best known for his work with indie band Alt-J. In 2013 he was awarded 'Breakthrough Producer of the Year' by his peers at Music Producers Guild awards, in ...

– producer (disc 3: 21) * Tim Turan – mastering * Mark Brennan – compilation * Daryl Smith – compilation * Martin "Cally" Callomon – box theme, art direction, design * Eric Watson – front cover photograph * Clare Muller – black and white band photographs * Paul Rider – band photographs * Gavin Martin – booklet interviews ;DVD * Meedja – DVD authoring * Juliet De Valero-Wills – executive producer * Malcolm Gerrie – executive producer * Dione Orram – producer * Rocky Oldham – producer *

Gavin Taylor Gavin Taylor (c. 1942 – 12 June 2013) was a British film and television director. He was known for directing the broadcasts of major concerts and other televised events. Taylor's credits included '' The Tube'' television series, '' U2 Live a ...

– director

References

External links

A Guided Tour of Madness
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guided Tour Of Madness Madness (band) compilation albums 2011 compilation albums Albums produced by Clive Langer Albums produced by Alan Winstanley