''The Madness'' is the only studio album by the British

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

/ pop band The Madness, a short-lived incarnation of Madness. It was originally released in mid-1988, on the label

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

. The album was produced by the Three Eyes, a pseudonym, whose identities remain a mystery (although they may very well be Madness themselves, or individual members of Madness). With the demise of Madness and the group's own label

Zarjazz Zarjazz was a record label and sub-label of Virgin Records. Zarjazz was formed in 1984 by Madness, a British ska band. The label's first release was Feargal Sharkey's hit single " Listen to Your Father", on which Madness (minus Suggs) perfo ...

, the Madness were directly recruited under Virgin Records. When the album was released in late April 1988, it received dismissive reviews and peaked at No. 66 in the UK, lasting within the Top 100 for only one week. Two singles, "I Pronounce You" and "What's That", were released from the album, although like the album these were less successful than the original band releases. "I Pronounce You" was the lead single, released in the UK and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

. Receiving lukewarm reception from the music press, it peaked at No. 44 in the UK, lasting on the charts for four weeks after originally debuting at No. 48. "What's That", the album's second and final single, was released in the UK only. It was the first release by Madness or any of its spin-off bands not to reach the Top 75 in the UK. It peaked at No. 92 and lasted two weeks on the chart, dropping to No. 98 the following week after its debut.

Background

After Madness' 1985 album '' Mad Not Mad'', the band attempted to record a new album, and eleven demo tracks were recorded. However, musical differences arose between band members, and in September 1986, the band announced that they were to split. Following the breakup of the original Madness, four of the original members (lead vocalist

Suggs Graham McPherson (born 13 January 1961), known primarily by his stage name Suggs, is an English singer-songwriter, musician, radio personality and actor from Hastings, England. In a music career spanning 40 years, he came to prominence in the ...

, saxophonist Lee Thompson, guitarist

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 ...

and vocalist Cathal Smyth) recreated the band, adding "The" to its name. When originally trying to find a new name for the group, such titles as the Wasp Factory, the One, More and the Earthmen were considered, and at one point

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

listeners were even invited to write in with suggestions. Eventually, the band settled on the title of The Madness.http://www.dangermen.net/MadnessStory/madness7.htm Since the new band did not include a bassist or drummer, guest musicians (mostly

Bruce Thomas Bruce Thomas (born 14 August 1948 in Stockton-on-Tees, England) is an English rock bass guitarist, best known as bassist for the Attractions; the band formed in 1977 to back Elvis Costello in concert and on record. In addition to his work ...

) played bass, while a drum machine was used in place of a live drummer on most tracks.

UB40 UB40 are an English reggae and pop band, formed in December 1978 in Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. They have been nominated for the ...

Earl Falconer UB40 are an English reggae and pop band, formed in December 1978 in Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. They have been nominated for the ...

contributed bass to three tracks, and then Bruce Thomas (bass) and

Steve Nieve Steve Nieve ( "naïve"; born Stephen John Nason, 21 February 1958) is an English musician and composer. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Nieve has been a member of Elvis Costello's backing bands the Attractions, the Imposters and Madnes ...

(keyboards) from Elvis Costello's

the Attractions The Attractions were an English backing band for the English new wave musician Elvis Costello between 1977 and 1986, and again from 1994 to 1996. They consisted of Steve Nieve (keyboards and ukulele), Bruce Thomas (bass guitar), and Pete Tho ...

were recruited. On "What's That" Simon Philips added some brushes to help capture a jazzy feel. Ex-

Special Special or specials may refer to: Policing * Specials, Ulster Special Constabulary, the Northern Ireland police force * Specials, Special Constable, an auxiliary, volunteer, or temporary; police worker or police officer Literature * ''Specia ...

Jerry Dammers Jeremy David Hounsell Dammers GCOT (born 22 May 1955) is a British musician who was a founder, keyboard player and primary songwriter of the Coventry-based ska band The Specials (also known as The Special A.K.A.) and later The Spatial AKA Orche ...

re-appeared to add keyboards to a couple of numbers and the ska connection was further strengthened by ska band the Potato 5 who supplied the horn section. The band recorded their only album ''The Madness'' at Liquidator Studios, whilst it was mixed at the

Townhouse studios The Town House (also known as Townhouse Studios) was a recording studio located at 150 Goldhawk Road, Shepherd's Bush in London, built in 1978 under the direction of Richard Branson for Virgin Records. The studios changed ownership and eventuall ...

in London. Liquidator Studios had been the band's own studio since circa 1985, located on Caledonian Road in North London, in what was once the premises of their fan club office. They built the 24-track professional studio in the basement, whilst the first floor has always been an office and chill out area, and a room upstairs for song mixing. Unlike any previous Madness album, the lead vocals on ''The Madness'' were almost evenly shared between Suggs and Smyth. Suggs performed lead vocals for "In Wonder", "Nightmare Nightmare", "Thunder & Lightning", "Beat the Bride", "11th Hour", "Be Good Boy" and "4.B.F." Smyth sang on "Nail Down the Days", "What's That", "Song in Red", "Gabriel's Horn" and "Flashings". Both Smyth and Suggs performed lead vocals on "I Pronounce You" and "Oh". The production was credited to "the Three Eyes". Some of the songs that appeared on the album were re-recorded from the demos of the 1986 Madness sessions. In "I Pronounce You" the lyrics concern a bride's feelings on the eve of her arranged marriage. To add a middle eastern feel to the song, Foreman played sitar on the song, an instrument he'd used on previous Madness albums. This was in addition to usual guitar, whilst the track also features tabla. The track "Song in Red" was reportedly written by Smyth about a cousin who died young. "Gabriel's Horn" was recorded in 1986 when the group were working on the never-completed ''Lost in the Museum'' album, and this demo version appeared as a track on the 1992 re-issue of the Madness single "

House of Fun "House of Fun" is a song by English ska/pop group Madness, credited to Mike Barson and Lee Thompson. Retrieved on 28 June 2007. It was released as a one-off single on 14 May 1982 and reached number one in the UK Singles Chart, spending nine we ...

". The band initially stressed that they were not "the Nutty Boys" the public knew and loved, as they attempted to become a more serious group. The band were pleased with the album upon completion as it took a long time to complete and for the first time in their career they worked without the

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 '' ...

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 ...

production team, choosing instead to produce it themselves. The band saw their debut album as only the start of a new beginning, with the members being very optimistic about the future. However, due to the lack of commercial success from the album and singles, the Madness disbanded by the beginning of 1989. Virgin Record's lack of faith in the band was confirmed when they opted not to renew their contract. The demise of the Madness left the members of the band in a state of confusion, not knowing quite what they were going to do next. Madness reformed with its original members for a reunion tour in 1992 and they have remained together since, playing live and recording new material. In an October 1988 interview for Guitarist & Scootering with Foreman and the band, Foreman described the new album as "brilliant". Foreman added "Some of it is very recognizably us and some of it isn't. Carl has doing a lot of singing. He's been doing a lot of writing as well, he's written well over half the album as well, which is good because he's always got loads of ideas for songs and it's good to get them out of him. When we were doing the album, Suggs and myself programmed all the drum machines. But it's sort of done me out of a job really, because I used to write the tunes and they'd write the lyrics, but now they're writing their own tunes and their own lyrics, so I'm redundant." Speaking of trying to become a more serious band, Foreman used the "I Pronounce You" video as an example, stating "We are what we are really. On the one video we've just done we tried to be serious, but Lee's got a Mohican haircut and in a bit of it we dyed his face red and things like that, so it hard to be... we don't want to be a serious, cheeks sucked-in arty farty band, but the subject matter of a lot of our songs has always been serious."

Cover artwork

The album's sleeve was designed by

Dave Gibbons David Chester Gibbons (born 14 April 1949) is an English comics artist, writer and sometimes letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries ''Watchmen'' and the Superman story "For the Man ...

and

Rian Hughes Rian Hughes is a British graphic designer, illustrator, type designer, comics artist and novelist. Overviews Hughes has written and drawn comics for '' 2000 AD'', Vertigo CMYK and Batman: Black and White, and designed for DC Comics and Marv ...

. On the back-sleeve each song listed was accompanied with a small drawing in similar style to the album's cover – resembling a face. Both "I Pronounce You" and "What's That" featured their own drawing as the main sleeve design when they were issued as singles. The album was respectfully dedicated to the memory of Roy Davies (1940–1987), who played keyboards on the ''Mad Not Mad'' album as well as ''The Madness'', on the song "I Pronounce You".

Release

The album was originally issued on CD and vinyl LP via Virgin Records in the UK and Europe, including France, Germany, Italy and Spain. On 21 July 1988 a CD edition was also issued in Japan. Since its initial release, the album has remained out-of-print on CD and today second-hand copies are often listed for sale for £50 or more. The vinyl version of the album featured ten tracks, however the CD edition added four other tracks; "11th Hour," "Be Good Boy," "Flashings" and "4.B.F." However, there was one remaining track released by the group that did not appear on the CD edition; an instrumental track titled "Patience". This was the B-Side to the "I Pronounce You" single. A vocal version of the song later appeared on the unofficial Madness release ''The Lost Album''. Also included on ''The Lost Album'' were demo versions of "What's That" and "Beat the Bride". Beginning in 2009, Madness albums were remastered and expanded via Union Square Music and Salvo. All of the band's original albums were released in this series by Union Square Music/Salvo, except for the '' Mad Not Mad'' album which was released by Virgin Records as a remastered and expanded edition in 2010. Each Union Square Music/Salvo release contained a page of Madness albums soon to be made available as part of the series. ''The Madness'' was listed as one of these upcoming releases, however as of 2017 this remains the only Madness album not to receive such a release. In late 2012, as part of the Ask Chris Foreman (Chrissy Boy) section on Madness' official website, one fan asked about the remastered version of the album and if it was due for release as promised. Foreman responded "I am not sure if we own the rights to that album."

Promotion

Upon release, the "I Pronounce You" single had a music video created to promote it. It later appeared as part of the 1992 VHS compilation '' Divine Madness'', which was later issued on DVD in 2002 and as a CD+DVD set in 2005. "What's That" had no video, as Virgin Records chose not to commission one. In promoting to the album and lead single, the one and only TV appearance of the Madness was on ''

Friday Night Live Friday Night Live may refer to: * ''Friday Night Live'' (''Big Brother Australia''), a television series aired on Network Ten as a part of ''Big Brother Australia'' * ''Friday Night Live'' (UK TV show), successor to ''Saturday Live'' * ''Friday L ...

'', a cult late-night comedy show hosted by

Ben Elton Benjamin Charles Elton (born 3 May 1959) is an English comedian, actor, author, playwright, lyricist and director. He was a part of London's alternative comedy movement of the 1980s and became a writer on the sitcoms '' The Young Ones'' and ''Bla ...

. On the show the band performed "I Pronounce You" and the album track "Beat the Bride". On the show, John Hasler, the ex-Madness drummer and manager, helped out on drums. He also appeared on the drums in the "I Pronounce You" music video.

Critical reception

Upon release, Graeme Kay of '' Smash Hits'' described the album as "something of a hit and miss affair". He highlighted the tracks "Nail Down the Days", "What's That" and "Beat the Bride", but felt "the rest of the LP tries too hard to be clever". He concluded: "Not a great LP by any means, but not bad". Max Bell of ''

Number One Number One most commonly refers to: * 1 (number) Number One, No. 1, or #1 may also refer to: Music Albums * ''Number 1'' (Big Bang album), and the title song * ''No. 1'' (BoA album), and the title song * ''No.1'' (EP), by CLC * ''n.1 ...

'' wrote: "Songwise, the Camden crooners continue to delve into sombre waters. The ewMadness usicis still reminiscent of a nightmare in a funfair on occasions but it's that very stylised sound which makes the Mad ones matter." Darryl Cater of

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 ...

retrospectively stated: "The tinny, muddled pop sound proves what a big contribution producers

and Alan Winstanley had made to the polished, resonant Madness records. There are flashes of trademark Madness melody, but too much of the album is an indistinguishable blur of drum machines, keyboards and '80s pop guitar. Exceptions include the reggae-flavoured "Beat the Bride" and the sitar-savvy single "I Pronounce You." These former British

skinhead A skinhead is a member of a subculture which originated among working class youths in London, England, in the 1960s and soon spread to other parts of the United Kingdom, with a second working class skinhead movement emerging worldwide in th ...

s have always been better at the wacky than the meaningful, and the lyrical emphasis on social issues feels strained."

Track listing

Chart performance

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. ;The Madness * Graham "Suggs" McPherson – lead vocals (3-5, 7-9, 11, 12, 14),

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

(1, 2, 7, 13),

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

(9, 13),

timbales Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfico ...

(9),

bongos Bongos ( es, bongó) are an Afro-Cuban percussion instrument consisting of a pair of small open bottomed hand drums of different sizes. They are struck with both hands, most commonly in an eight-stroke pattern called ''martillo'' (hammer). The ...

(14) * Cathal Smyth – lead vocals on (1-4, 6, 10, 13), backing vocals (7, 9, 11, 14), acoustic guitar (3), keyboards (1) *

–

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

(1-12, 14),

sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in medieval India, flourished in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form ...

(3), synthaxe (5), piano solo (9), synthesizer effects (14) * Lee Thompson –

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

s (1, 4-12, 14), flute (3), backing vocals (3) ;Additional musicians *

– keyboards (1, 2, 4, 5, 12, 14), piano (6, 8) *Roy Davies – keyboards (3) *Ian Prince – Hammond organ (7), piano solo (7), piano (10), synthesizer (10) *

– piano (7),

electronic organ An electric organ, also known as electronic organ, is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally designed to imitate their sound, or orchestral sounds, it has since developed ...

(7), Hammond organ (9), hi hat (9) *Seamus Beaghen – accordion (4), keyboards (8, 11), Hammond organ (6, 8) *

–

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

(1, 2, 4-6, 8, 13) *

– bass guitar (7, 9, 10) * Big George Webley – bass guitar (12, 14) *Scotty – bass guitar (3) * Simon Phillips – drums (2, 6) *Esmail Sheikh –

tabla A tabla, bn, তবলা, prs, طبلا, gu, તબલા, hi, तबला, kn, ತಬಲಾ, ml, തബല, mr, तबला, ne, तबला, or, ତବଲା, ps, طبله, pa, ਤਬਲਾ, ta, தபலா, te, తబల� ...

s (3) *

Dick Cuthell Dick Cuthell is a British musician and record producer. He plays flugelhorn, cornet, and trumpet, amongst a range of other brass instruments, including tenor horn and valve trombone. Cuthell is best known for his work with The SpecialsStrong, ...

–

horns Horns or The Horns may refer to: * Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells * The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain * ''Horns'' (novel), a dark fantasy novel written in 2010 by Joe Hill ...

(7, 9, 10),

cowbell A cowbell (or cow bell) is a bell worn around the neck of free-roaming livestock so herders can keep track of an animal via the sound of the bell when the animal is grazing out of view in hilly landscapes or vast plains. Although they are t ...

(9) *Rick Walker –

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

(1, 2, 13) *Andy Minnion – baritone saxophone (1, 2, 13) *Malcolm Buck – tenor saxophone (1, 2, 13) *Simon Driscoll –

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

(1, 2, 13) *Lorenzo Hall – backing vocals (8, 11, 12) *Anthony Lee Brian – backing vocals (8, 11, 12) *Robbie Ellington – backing vocals (8, 11, 12) ;Technical *The Three Eyes –

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

*Steve Chase – co-production;

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

, mixing *Nick Froome – engineer *

Hugh Padgham Hugh Charles Padgham (born 15 February 1955) is an English record producer and audio engineer. He has won four Grammy Awards, for Producer of the Year and Album of the Year for 1985, Record of the Year for 1990, and Engineer of the Year for 199 ...

– mixing * Michael H. Brauer – mixing *

–

sleeve A sleeve ( ang, slīef, a word allied to ''slip'', cf. Dutch ) is the part of a garment that covers the arm, or through which the arm passes or slips. The sleeve is a characteristic of fashion seen in almost every country and time period, acro ...

– sleeve

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Madness, The 1988 debut albums Madness (band) albums Virgin Records albums