Madness

Madness are a pop/ska band formed in London in 1976. They were part of the late 70s ska revival in the UK, although their accent concentrated more on fun than their political stable-mates The Specials and The Beat.

From 1979 to 1985 the band had a string of chart success commencing with their debut album One Step Beyond, which spent over a year in the charts and, as a fan favourite, is considered their best work. Subsequent albums would make the top 10.

Although they had only one chart-topping single with "House of Fun", the band would be a regular feature in the Top 10. Their singles, including "Baggy Trousers", "Embarrassment" and "Our House" were helped into the charts by comic videos. By their third album, 7, their music had changed, as they toned down the ska sound and moved towards mainstream pop. After the release of Mad Not Mad in 1985, which by their standards performed disappointingly, the band began to disintegrate. A new version of Madness, with only four members, kept the name but split after releasing one album.

In 1992 the compilation album Divine Madness made it to No.1 and the band decided to hold a reunion concert in London, called Madstock. An estimated crowd of 75,000 attended, and enthusiastically moonstomped around to such an extent that the earth moved, registering 4.5 on the Richter Scale.

Their next studio album Wonderful was released in 1999 to positive reviews and made the Top 20 in the UK. The follow-up saw the band return to their ska roots with The Dangermen Sessions Vol. 1, an album of covers including early ska tunes by artists Prince Buster and Lord Tanamo.