Madness

Madness | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 22, 1993)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Geffen Records
• ASIN: B000000OMM
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #48,551 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #9 in Music > Alternative Rock > British Alternative > British Ska

Track Listings

1. Our House

2. Tomorrow's Just Another Day

3. It Must Be Love

4. Primrose Hill

5. Shut Up

6. House of Fun

7. Night Boat to Cairo

8. Rise and Fall

9. Blue Skinned Beast

10. Cardiac Arrest

11. Grey Day

12. Madness (Is All in the Mind)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Strong Compilation, January 19, 2000

By 

Marc Szeftel (Seattle, Washington) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Madness (Audio CD)

Madness's first two albums didn't sell well in the US, and the band was dropped by Sire. Their third and fourth albums were never released in the US. However, when "Our House" was issued as a single, and hit the US Top Ten, Geffen rushed out this compilation to re-introduce the group to American listeners.

Made up of tracks from the first, third, and fourth albums, plus two single tracks, this is a decent compilation. While not as definitive a one-disc overview as "Complete Madness", all the songs are good selections, and give you a good idea of this unique band's range and depth; and for American buyers, it's cheaper than the imports. A good place to start.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars America's reintroduction to nutty brilliance, January 14, 2007

By 

over and under - See all my reviews

This review is from: Madness (Audio CD)

Save for an underground movement of ska-loving kids, the U.S. was a bit slow to catch on to the two-tone explosion of the late seventies/early eighties. Sire initially released One Step Beyond and Absolutely, but as Madness failed to generate the big big numbers record companies crave, Sire scandalously ignored their 3rd and 4th albums, 7 and the Rise and Fall. That decision temporarily waylaid the spread of Madness in the U.S. In fact, if it hadn't been for my little brother bringing home Absolutely and One Step Beyond, I might have been one of many who had never heard of this band before 'Our House' hit the airwaves.

Because ska was still largely unknown to mainstream America in 1982, 'Our House' fell like an atomic bomb and sent people scurrying for anything Madness-related they could get their hands on. The success of this single cannot be overstated. Despite its pop-like qualities, it revitalized interest in ska overnight and Sire practically fell over themselves to release this eponymously-named recording, or as we affectionately called it, the 'Eight-Ball Album.'

In addition to tracks from their 1st, 3rd, and 4th records, this collection also contains the superb and hard to find 'House of Fun,' the brilliant cover of the sixties classic, 'It Must Be Love,' and of course, 'Our House.'

I remember seeing the vespa riding/trenchcoat wearing skinheads during my first year of high school, failing to connect them to the music I had been listening to for the last couple years. Such is the life of a pre-teen, I suppose, but it also goes to show that music is just that, music, and more than a lifestyle. Even a nerdy kid like myself, one without any sense of the lifestyle two-tone represented, could enjoy Madness.

And I did. Immensely.

This record represents the American attempt to reintroduce music that should have been a hit from the beginning, and on that note it succeeds... in spades. It also shows how clueless record companies were to the breadth of music the eighties had to offer.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Takes me back to the heady early days of MTV, May 19, 2000

By 

Alan R. Holyoak - See all my reviews

This review is from: Madness (Audio CD)

"Our House" is definitely the flagship song of this compilation of tunes from Madness. The music on this CD takes me back to the early, fun, days of MTV. That was how I first learned about Madness -- their videos of "Our House" and "One Step Beyond" made those songs instant hits in my book. But, alas, times change, groups break up, and the fun brand that MTV once was is no more the video music channel it used to be.

OK, OK, I'll get back to the CD. I enjoy the overt British influences in Madness, the up-beat tempo, and fun that exudes from the CD as it spins. It sounds like the group really enjoyed themselves as they worked.

Great fun. 5 stars!

Alan Holyoak