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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderfully nostalgic, April 5, 2004
This review is from: Wonderful (Audio CD)
We have waited a great deal of time for this release, a long wait. And, yes, it is a wonderful album. Madness' avid fans would surely recognize the Madness sound. Moreover, it seems that this album was composed with a nostalgic end, a hidden tribute to Madness' earlier albums. Johnny the Horse may remind you of Michael Caine; Elysium has the Give Me a Reason sound, 4am has something of Victoria Gardens and Turning Blue, and If I Didn't Care also joins the predominant Keep on Moving theme. A tribute to Madness' Rise and Fall can be easily detected in Lovestruck and The Wizard. Fans would surely recognize Benny Bullfrog of Madness 7 in Going to the Top. However, the one and only song that keeps to the real sound and beat of British two tone ska is The Communicator; a hit that could have been easily performed by, for instance, Bad Manners. Bitter nostalgia is also the theme of Saturday night... that faces the death of the 80s when the world had less time for war and global terrorism and more time for great music, discos at the weekends and incredible video clips.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Return of the Los Palmas 7, January 24, 2007
This review is from: Wonderful (Audio CD)
Comeback albums are tricky things. They sound either too much like a grab for former glory or they try too hard to emulate the current flavor of the day. Whatever the case, the group in question rarely pulls it off and the effort leaves fans discontented. Fortunately, Madness is another story. Here's a band that was always on the verge of disappearing but never quite succeeded. Barson's departure after Keep Moving heralded the first ending of Madness, but then we got Mad not Mad, a lackluster album with a great Lear quote that yielded but two average singles. Then came 'The Madness,' which, not entirely true to form, served as another attempt to keep the band going. Then Madstock, a live, richter-scale revival that found its way to Cd, but again, revealed little that was new from the old masters. Again and again, Madness seemed doomed to slog along without a solid comeback worthy of their nutty fame. But all of that changed. Rumors of the group's demise were finally laid to rest with the release of this beautiful recording. Wonderful is what every fan hopes for when their favorite group decides to have another go at it: it echoes former glory without retreading the tires; it covers new ground without selling out to current fads; it looks back as much as it does forward. It is aptly named and oh so enjoyable.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Madness is Wonderful, January 9, 2002
This review is from: Wonderful (Audio CD)
An aptly titled album, Madness's "Wonderful" is wonderful. The music style continues to be the fine quality of madness that all fans love and adore. If you love Madness, you'll love this album, that's all that's to it. If you don't love Madness, you soon will. It's upbeat music with catchy lyrics, but without being canned drivel of too many bands.
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