Special thanks to ThisDayinMusic.com.
One of the great singles bands of all time, Madness, who surfaced during the late ’70s U.K. ska revival, scored their first U.K. #1 album on this day in 1982. For a band so associated with singles, it was entirely appropriate that their debut # 1 album would be a compilation, the hits-crammed Complete Madness.
The musical madness stated in 1976, in London’s Camden town when some north London ska fans formed a band called The Invaders. The originals were Mike Barson on keyboards and vocals, Chris Foreman on guitar and Lee Thompson on saxophone and vocals. To this lineup was added John Hasler on drums, Chas Smash on bass and a short-lived singer Dikron. Dikron was replaced the next year by Suggs on vocals and with a few lineup exits and returns and another name change to Morris & The Minors, the band settled in and became Madness by the time of their first single.
Madness’s singles chart domination started in 1979 with Lee Thompson’s tribute to Jamaican ska legend Prince Buster. “The Prince” was released on The Specials’ Two Tone label. The song only made it to #16 but established Madness as part of the U.K’s ska revival scene and a touring spot with hipsters, The Specials and Selecter.
Picked up by Stiff Records, Madness issued their debut album, One Step Beyond in 1979. Featuring a re-worked “The Prince” and the group’s next two singles, “One Step Beyond” and “My Girl,” the album made it to #2 on the U.K. album chart.
With “My Girl” high in the top 10 at the start of 1980 (peaking at #3), Madness were about to find a fifth gear and pump out an incredible 13 Top 10 hits over the next few years.
In March, 1982 their string of Top 10 successes was briefly halted when “Cardiac Arrest” only climbed to #14. Undeterred, they followed up with probably their biggest single ever and the band’s first #1, “House of Fun.”
Like The Kinks before them and Blur after, much of Madness’ appeal was in their quintessential Englishness. It’s a factor that can make or break a band in the U.S. and while Madness scored one, huge MTV-driven hit with “Our House” [reaching #7 in 1983), they only managed two Top 40 entries Stateside.
In their homeland of the U.K., it was a different story. From 1980 to 1986 Madness spent a cool 214 weeks on the U.K. singles chart, sharing the record for most weeks spent by a group in the charts with UB40, who took longer to take up the same number of weeks.
But Madness were about more than numbers. Like no other U.K. band since The Beatles, they drew an audience from all generations and sectors of society while remaining the coolest of the cool within the critical circles that care about that kind of thing. They were always, “One Step Beyond.”
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