The Rise & Fall

Unlistenable. Just awful. Music for uncool dads trying to prove they didn’t bit brexit, even though they did. 1/5

Madness are massively underrated (on this side of the pond). Our House is a perfect song and the whole album is wonderful. Was tempted to give it a 5, but the guy in brown-face on the album cover kept it a 4.

Just love Suggs and the Nutty Boys, their cheeky cockney music hall inspired Ska is just typically English,(Small Faces/Kinks/Blurlike) not taking themselves too seriously whilst producing some great music. Not sure this would be my choice of a Madness album for this list (I prefer their debut for it's rawness) but some great tunes on here. "Tomorrows (Just Another Day)" "Our House" "Blue Skinned Beast" and "Primrose Hill" my favourites on this one.

is that mf in the album cover in black face????? wtf dont know if ishould listen to it osea es ska nambre ya me enteré nunca se disculparon de esto ni nada y los han acusado de racismo por cosas diferentes eran muy populares entre los skinheads en uk so...

I've always liked Madness but only really as a passing thing for their hits and what not but as a full album this was ruddy good.

Just ok. Our House, obviously a terrific song. The rest of it? What am I even listening to. Just okay.

The Rise and Fall is not on spotify, so I listened to the greatest htis. I heard... SKA, pianos, horns a different sound from everything else in the 80's. At times I feel like I hear wallflowers. Did i just find an 80's band to dive deeper into, or am I becoming brain washed.

Tout le monde parlera bien sûr d'Our House, mais le tube de cet album est bien sûr Mr. Speaker, qui sera utilisé comme générique de l'animé Inspecteur Gadget. Gadget au chapeau, Gadget au point, Elastico-gadget... tout y passe. Madness réussit avec ce titre son enregistrement le plus iconique.

I don't like Ska. Madness are a gimmick band. Every song is like a theme tune for a slapstick villain.

Another record where I have to go to YouTube to listen, because it’s not widely available for streaming in the US, which brings up a question: Does anyone know why sometimes you can play YouTube videos in the background on iPhone and other times you can’t? I’m not paying $18.99/month for YouTube premium to have that feature. As for the record, I found “the Rise and Fall” to be cloyingly upbeat, with gauzy 80’s production and a hefty debt to British Music Hall. 481 records down, a little over 600 to go.

Noch schlimmer als blur

What a delight. I’ve never heard of this band, other than knowing Our House (didn’t know who sang that). But the music is fun and lively. I like the blend of new wave, pop, and wacky. Our House is so great, and this is such a refreshing collection of songs in general. Love so many of them. This album made me feel good, and that’s a good way to feel. Had to find the album on YouTube, it was mostly missing from Spotify.

wtf this was so fun

I vaguely remember ska kids liking madness back in HS. Not sure I ever heard a song. This reminds me of The Jam, another brit band that I didn't really hear until way too late.

Really like the experimentation with sounds in this album, didn't know this is what ska music was like

This album wasn't available in full on Spotify, so I listened to 'Madness', which shares most of the tracks. It was an interesting listen! Very creative and smoothly crafted, with insightful lyrics and complex arrangements.

Was surprised when Our House played. Was not aware it was on this album. The rest of the album stayed interesting throughout

So that's where the coffee commercial got it. Anyway, this was a pretty cool album. I enjoyed every single song and would re-visit.

3.5/5. Dope British concept album, feels like a soundtrack to a musical. Standout Track: Tomorrow's Just Another Day, Mr Speaker Gets The Word, Our House, New Delhi

The Rise & Fall I used to love my cassette copy of the best of Madness when I was about 12. I have memories of playing Super Kick Off on my Game Gear while listening to it on my Sanyo walkman in the back of the car driving through France on holiday. They are definitely one of the best greatest hits bands, loads of excellent (and some not so excellent) singles, but I’ve never listened to one of their ‘proper’ albums. I know Suggs can divide opinion, and he’s not the greatest vocalist, but he is quite distinctive, he does give the songs some character and he does have some good lines and lyrics. It may be through familiarity but Tomorrow’s Just Another Day and Our House are the standouts, both excellent bits of pop music, with Tomorrow's Just Another Day’s sombre lyrics contrasting nicely with the upbeat chorus. But there are other decent songs too, Rise and Fall, Blue Skinned Beast, Sunday Morning, Tiptoes, That Face, Calling Cards. There’s a definite sense of maturity on many of the songs that falls outside the House of Fun Nutty Boys persona, and more influences on top of their core ska foundation, a fair bit of jazz and music hall in the piano in particular. The playing is good as well, the keys and piano underpin a lot of it and they can still create a nice lilting ska-style groove on most tracks, Tiptoe for example is great on this count. Not everything works though. I do not care for Madness (Is All in the Mind) at all, the jazziness feels overly confected and the whole thing is annoying. New Delhi is also a bit of an odd one - I actually like the groove and tune, but it doesn’t necessarily feel that sincere in its approximation of Indian sounds and instruments in the way that other songs by other people in that vein do. And the Indian accents in the outro sound quite jarring to modern ears It’s a solid album that’s very listenable. A couple of great tracks, a handful of decent ones and a few that miss the mark. I think that makes it mid-high 3. 💹➕🍂 Playlist submission: Our House

Our house in the middle of our house.

The confidence of “Our House” is immediate and convincing: next to the rest of this amiable album, this declares itself the hit. The rest is fine, thoughtful and not without hummables, but don’t demand my attention. “New Delhi” brings the cringe.

I think I’ll stick to the Greatest Hits. That would be a 5

Rise and Fall 3 Tomorrow's (Just Another Day) 3.1 Blue Skinned Beast 2.8 Primrose Hill 3 Mr. Speaker (Gets the Word) 3.2 Sunday Morning 3.2 Our House 3.4 Tiptoes 3 New Delhi 2.9 That Face 3 Calling Cards 2.9 Are You Coming (With Me) 3.1 Madness (Is All in the Mind) 3.3 Score: 3.069230769

Conflicted. Grew up with Madness, one of the earliest bands I paid attention to. But can't fight the feeling the best Madness album is "the best of Madness" or whatever. You don't often think of Madness album tracks do you. Plus I kind of feel oddly racist listening to this lol. It does feel Brexitty. It also feels oddly thin, listening in 2024. I do enjoy the oddly melancholy sound to many of the tracks. Album gets seriously flabby towards the end.

If brexit was an album

Hey Madness, you are a ska band. People like your ska music. Why are you making whatever this is? "Our House" is a great song, but it feels like they just put it on the album to trick people into listening to all this other garbage. This is not a good album.

Album for true Brexit Geezahs. Quite possibly the most British album ever recorded. And yes, that includes the borderline rockabilly song at the end and the guy in brownface on the album cover. Our House fucking BANGS tho

I actually really really liked this. Loved it honestly.

great album for a great band

Love this, brilliant band of London lad musicians. Always have been a great band. Suggs is the best too.

I must admit that I overlooked this album despite a growing fondness for Madness that I didn't necessarily have when they were at their height. I know a few of the songs, but I wasn’t prepared for such a powerful, mature, and thought-provoking collection. It’s like a loose concept album that explores childhood and London, similar in feel to the much later “The Liberty of Norton Folgate,” which I also enjoy. I’ve heard comparisons to the Kinks’ “Village Green Preservation Society,” and that makes sense. The humour in Madness’s singles is still present, and the album holds together remarkably well, with a level of sophistication that isn't necessarily gleaned from a casual listen to the band’s greatest hits, good though they undoubtedly are.

Lovely - takes me back. Some songs I'd not heard too. Madness really are one of a kind

Madness, and Suggs, were always firmly in that 80s irritating camp, but this record is surprisingly amazing. Their sound is dense and layered and you never know what's coming next, and Suggs' lyrics paint a colourful picture of London in the early 80s.

No los conocía, pero me encantó.

Some bands are lucky enough to have their own "sound" and no other band could ever sound like them. Madness is one of those bands. No matter what song comes on and even if you've never heard it before, you know it's Madness and you also know that at the very least it'll make you happier. Wonderful stuff.

90% Best: Rise And Fall; Tomorrow's (Just Another Day); Blue Skinned Beast; Primrose Hill; Mr Speaker (Gets The World); Sunday Morning; Our House; Tiptoes; That Face; Are You Coming (With Me); Madness (Is All In The Mind) Must-Hear? Yes

This album is amazing. They have a really cool sound. The opening title track sets the tone - it's quite dark overall, focused on minor chords/scales, but with a very punchy upbeat rhythm and timbre (I think they're featuring a glockenspiel). That's just a winning combo for me. The CD overall maintains that theme pretty consistently, but with enough diversity in sound to keep it interesting. They've got a lot of voices on here - horns, lots of backing vocals, lots of keys, on top of the standard rock palette. They're also not at all afraid to try stuff - witness the jarring breaks between the major and minor segments on "Blue Skinned Beast". And you see a lot of experimentation with rhythm and meter, e.g. on "Sunday Morning", it's borderline prog. The most complete song might be "Our House", which I had actually heard before (but had not recalled the name of the band). It really puts all the pieces together - wonderful and prominent backing vocals, a fun upbeat singalong chorus (complete with a set of jarring key changes towards the end), and super-abrupt changes between the very minor verses and the major chorus. This album really blew me away, having never heard of the band before. Their main limitation is the singer isn't very good, but the best way to cover for that is with a wide range of instrumental voices and/or backing vocals picking up the slack, and they do that in spades. Note that this album is not on Spotify in its entirety, only one or two songs are on there. Total shame.

Where has this record been? I knew several of the songs, but the record as a whole is simply wonderful. the entire thing is not on my streaming service so I had to track down each individual song, but it was worth it.

Loveeee. Works so well for me. I like how it sounds and the themes it explores. 5 and will revisit

Great Madness album, still like it a lot.

This album was really, really fun. Reminds me of The Beatles or ELO with all the unique sounds and intruments that show up, but certainly with an 80s twist. Rise and Fall is a good example of instrumentation, chord progression, and tenpo work thay just stands out against a sea of pop. Ironically, Our House is the poppiest and most time tested song here, but I think there are much more interesting songs here.

Ahhhhhh.....Madness. I preferred their first album when they were a proper English Ska band. This isn't Ska, or even New Wave but P.O.P........(yes you read that right) Still, it's inventive Pop and a fun listen. Plus it's the only Madness on here and at least one album should make it.........I would give it 3 but on those lines it's a 5

No need for all the 12" versions, instrumentals, live cuts and remixes - a point off for that! The album itself is great though - right on the boundary between pop and serious music and any album with Our House - which contains one of my favourite lines in any song (the kids are playing up downstairs) - is fine by me!

I had many of these songs on my Madness compilation tape from 1983, which was one of my favorites at the time. I really enjoyed hearing them again (It's been a long time!) as well as the rest of the content that I'd never heard before. Of course the song and video for "Our House" were favorites. This was very much fun!

I did very much enjoy this Madness sound.

I like their fun vibe and my enjoyment increased as the album progressed.

Totally my cup of tea. I like to think I've always been a fan of Madness but the only album in my collection is their 1992 greatest hits collection Divine Madness. It was a joy to discover this album in its entirety whatever it's past transgressions may have been. Faves: Tomorrow's (Just Another Day), Our House.

I like Madness. So upbeat. One Step Beyond is my favorite.

This isn't available in the United States, so I had to skip this one. I'm going to make up for it by diving into the rest of their discography! Just not right now!

Joooooder...otra puta maravilla(PSP)

Brilliant album!

Я не знаю почему. Почему так происходит, что в который раз мне достаётся альбом "про британцев". Вы из меня британского патриота делаете? Я в целом и не против, так-то я уже поданный Его Величества... Не мне судить, но кажется, будто эта музыка слегка старовато для 1982 года. Когда у нас уже были всякие постпанки там и прочее. С другой стороны... это же вроде как попса? А она может жить долго. Мне дико понравился альбом! Это редко бывает в последнее время. Ну это же супер стильно звучит! Может быть, я перевдохновлялся британской эстетикой, но мне очень сильно запали в душу богатые на разные звуки аранжировки. И духовая секция, и клавишные-клавесинчики... всё вместе как оркестр. И так ненавязчиво... С другой стороны, концовку (прям как Lynyed Skynyrd) смазали... но попытались реабилитировать последней песней (прям как Lynyed Skynyrd). Может, я действительно бумер?

Wow! Legit great album. So fun.

Go Go Power Rangers Go Go Power Rangers Go Go Power Rangers You Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers This record made me feel like one of the Power Rangers. I did some high kicks and jumping around. It was awesome. My favourite Power Ranger is the White Power Ranger.

so saxy

Big bold sax, vaudeville, Pythonesque, campy in its own way. The musical embodiment of walking through a carnival hall of mirrors

80s ska Lahhhndahhhntown

One of my favorites

Such an underrated band. I've been listening to Madness more this year than any other year. I love their playfulness mixed with serious punk-ska beats. This is one of the bands I wish I were old enough to see live. Thankfully, YouTube exists & I can watch their videos & live performances there. Excellent album.

Madness is such a great band. This album has some love time favourites, and I've definitely picked up several new favourites.

The 80s were a strange time for music, and I'm loving every second of it. Nothing but praise from me for the pioneers of modern ska.

Great album. The music is rich, and the songs are fun.

Beautiful

I was waiting and hoping for my crazy Rocksteady crew. Not disappointed.

REALLY COOL

Its madness

I read someone comparing this album to Village Green Preservation Society and Parklife - and it rightly takes it's place as a snapshot of English life at a particular time, sitting alongside those classics. 'Our House' has some of the most affecting melodies and lyrics ever committed to record. I love the way Rise and Fall just kicks straight into vocal. 'Tomorrow's Just Another Day' is one of my favourite Madness songs. 'Blue Skinned Beast' is pure pop until the unexpected chorus, tempo change, more in the minor key, fat piano hook - another barnstormer, and complete earworm. And there's more, although it does dip towards the end, depriving it of top marks. I have overlooked Indian accents and that cover 🫣

I knew it from back in the day. It seems kinder and gentler now. I enjoyed alot.

The nice thing about such a short album is you can listen to it many times. Those key changes on Our House get me every time

This is some weird shit, but I can dig it. There's a lot of hate for this online, and if I was forced to listen to it on the radio or by my parents, I'd probably hate it too. But I wasn't, so I don't. 3.5 / 5 rounded up to 4 just to be cheeky. Was not expecting to hear "Our House", but also wasn't fully surprised by it either.

My friend's a fan so I went into this expecting it to be good. I had only heard Our House prior to this and found the the other tracks were a fun listen, although borderline racist?

Sucks you can't listen to this easily, had to resort to some random YouTube Playlist

I enjoyed it but it was far too long to justify how one tone the tracks were, as single songs every song is fantastic but as a whole experience, simply not my thing

Another good one! Didn't know any music of theirs besides Our House but this was a good album.

only 3 of them are on spotify but that’s fine, probably best in small doses

Wesoły, zakręcony, kreatywny i swobodny. Wszystko czego człowiek potrzebuje, by poprawić sobie humor. Our House wielkim hitem bylł, jest i będzie, a kilka innych kawałków wcale nie zostaje w tyle. Czy ta płyta zmienia życie? Nie, ale na pewno czyni je nieco znośniejszym 7.5/10 równane w górę

So short but great!!!

It loses a star for Barso in blackface. Otherwise poignant, wistful and bouncy

Don't love the black face on the cover, but the music iss undeniably catchy andd memorable. Fun album

Classic Madness tracks. Quality.

This band always makes me smile. I mean, aside from "Our House" and "It Must Be Love" which are two GREAT songs, they always seem to have a fun time. There was a lot of times I bopped my head during this album (and btw, why was this not on Spotify??). Some of the songs were a bit... out there. But, hey, it had "Our House" on it, so that's a plus. Top tracks: "Our House," "Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)", "That Face," "Callong Cards"

The first album I’ve encountered on here that isn’t on streaming - had to goto YouTube for this one. But it was worth it! I’ve always like Our House because Dad introduced me to it, but never knew what album it came from. Overall a fun upbeat pleasant listen. Hopefully this gets added to streaming at some point so I can listen more often.

Fun 80’s Brit pop

I actually liked this quite a bit. It was a fun little concept album that had good energy/vibes to the music. I was a little familiar with "Our House" but truly only in clips from a commercial maybe or a show? I'll look forward to a relisten for this.

Didn’t listen to all of it since not on Spotify but I enjoyed what I heard.

This was a fun album. I really enjoyed the old school feel. I think I might have given it 5 stars if I gave it another listen. Unfortunately it is not on spotify and I only have enough patience for one listen through on youtube.

Je pensais pas que Madness se taillerait une place dans la liste, mais jsuis bien content qu'ils soient inclus

I've heard of Madness, and at times have experienced Madness, but this is my first listen. As I listen, I can't fit these guys into a particular box. At least, not on this album. A bit like The Clash, just different than any of their counterparts. Ah, wait, I've heard Our House... ok, yes. Good, catchy tune. I thoroughly enjoyed the song before it, though, Sunday Morning. That one is definitely a favorite. I'll give this a 4.

I was new to most of the material here, and while I feel like it was less Ska-flavored than I was expecting for a 2 Tone artist, it was still pretty enjoyable. As cliché as it is, the highlight for me was still "Our House." The energy of that intro can't be denied, and even though I've heard it a gazillion times, it's still a banger. This band was far, far bigger in the UK than they became in the us, and it was nice to have an opportunity for me to hear more from them.

I didn't expect much from the band that gave us "Our House," a catchy one hit wonder type song I remember from early 80's teen-dom. But this has an enjoyable, intelligent pop sound, and the album is very even. Too bad it's not on Spotify, I had to listen to this one via YouTube. Another reason to give the band a break and round 'em up to 4.

Great songs, and quintessentially North London

Link went not to a full album, found the self-titled “Madness” had all the correct songs. Pretty good album with lots of layering, seems pretty underrated. I did know ‘Our House’ 3.5/5

A ska band trying to move beyond ska. I didn't really like it as much as I like their previous album, 7 probably because of that. Not as much upbeat fast tempo music but there were some great hits here like Our House and Madness

Power Pop from Britain at its best. This is fine, fun music.

****A great fun album. Totally enjoyed

4.5

Quite enjoyable English pop ska. Will seek out future listens.

Great vibe

I like the jumpiness and cheerfulness, the occasional melancholy as well, and this is a overall a very coherent album.