release date: Sep. 30, 1985
format: cd (2000 remaster)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [2,88]
producer: Clive Langer, Alan Winstanley
label: Virgin Records - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: 1. "I'll Compete" - 2. "Yesterday's Men" - 3. "Uncle Sam" - 6. "Sweetest Girl" - 7. "Burning the Boats"
6th studio album by Madness is the band's last to be produced by the Langer-Winstanley duo originally released on Zarjazz. It's the band's first and (so far) final studio album on the band's own newly-established label Zarjazz and also the first without Mike Barson who is replaced by The Attractions' keyboardist Steve Nieve. Paul Carrack (of Ace) replaced Barson on tours prior to the studio recordings.
The album marks an even stronger change of style than ever before in the lifespan of Madness. The music has grown into a sophisti-pop version of pop / rock with a bold use of horns, strings and backing vocals, and there's frankly not much left that links this over-produced album with the band's former releases.
Only the single "Yesterday's Men" fared decently reaching #18 on the single charts in the UK - the next two single releases "Uncle Sam" and "Sweetest Girl" (a cover originally performed by Scritti Politti) didn't make it into top 20 - and the album became the band's least successful to date peaking at #16 on the national album charts list. The band now experienced its most unfruitful artistic time and in '86 they had recorded material for a new album but internal discussions about musical direction ultimately led to the decision to call it a day and put an end to the band. In Sep. 1986 the band officially announced the split. Lead vocalist Graham McPherson has in later interviews labelled the album as a 'polished turd'. An early attempt to revive the band as a quartet was already made in '88 when McPherson, Smyth, Thompson and Foreman recorded and released new songs under the name of The Madness; however both album and singles failed to meet their former successes and in early '89 the project was disbanded.
In my mind, this is only above mediocre. The typical 80s Langer-Winstanley production is at their most inferior. There are only few fine songs on the album and the highlights presented above are at worst only the decent echoes of the band's former repertoire.
Not really recommendable.
[ allmusic.com 2,5 / 5, Rolling Stone 2 / 5 stars ]
