Wonderful (Madness album)
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Wonderful is the seventh studio album by the British band Madness, released on 1 November 1999. It was the band's first studio album in fourteen years since Mad Not Mad in 1985, and also the first to feature their classic seven-piece line-up since 1984's Keep Moving. The album saw Madness reunite with their original production team, Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, who had produced all of the band's previous work.[1][2]
Reception
Template:Album ratings The BBC's Chris Charles said "... Wonderful finds the boys in their best form since 1981's Madness 7."[3] Allmusic's Evan Cater gave the album 4 out of 5 stars and said "On the whole, it's a pretty successful return."[4] In a review of the 2010 re-release, Terry Staunton of Record Collector stated that although "All the essential components are in place...something doesn’t quite gel…". Staunton thought the opening single "Lovestruck" was well done but "elsewhere there’s a niggling feeling that the band are trying too hard to replicate the sound of yore, studiously ignoring the fact that times – and the players themselves – have changed."[5]
Track listing
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2010 reissue
- Disc 1 - the original album
-
- Contains the full album plus three promo videos
- The promo videos
- "Lovestruck"
- "Johnny the Horse"
- "Drip Fed Fred"
- Disc 2 - the bonus tracks
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Chart performance
| Chart (1999) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart[6] | 17 |
Personnel
- Madness
- Graham "Suggs" McPherson – lead vocals
- Mike Barson – keyboards
- Chris Foreman – guitar
- Mark Bedford – bass
- Lee Thompson – saxophones, guest vocals on track 6
- Daniel Woodgate – drums
- Cathal Smyth – backing vocals, lead vocals on track 3
- Additional personnel
- Jason Bruer – saxophone
- Terry Edwards – saxophone, brass arrangements
- Michael Kearsey – trombone
- Jason McDermid – trumpet
- Pablo Cook – percussion
- The London Session Orchestra – strings
- Gavyn Wright – orchestral and strings leader
- Simon Hale – string arrangements, conductor
- Ian Dury – guest vocals on track 6
- Steve Donnelley – dobro guitar on track 5
- Mitch – backing vocals on track 4
- Sarah Cracknell – backing vocals on track 8
- Technical
- Clive Langer – production
- Alan Winstanley – production
- Mark Bishop – assistant engineer
- Martin Parr – front cover photography
- Mark Bedford – design
- Robert Stimpson – design
- Dani Golfieri – design assistant
- Neil Evans – design assistant
- 2010 reissue
- Tim Turan – remastering
- Martin "Cally" Callomon – art direction, design
- Nik Rose – artwork ("re-jigging and fettling")
- Robert Elms – liner notes
Notes
- "4 am" is a re-recorded version of the song that appeared on Suggs' solo album The Lone Ranger in 1995.
- "If I Didn't Care" is a cover of a song originally recorded by the Ink Spots.
- Providing the vocals to "Drip Fed Fred" would be Ian Dury's last chart single release and final TV appearance on The National Lottery Show before his death in March 2000.
- Despite being the title of the album, "You're Wonderful" only made it as a b-side on one of the editions of the "Johnny the Horse" single. However, it is included on the Japanese version of the album, along with another song which was a b-side in the UK: "Round and Round".
References
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External links
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