7 (Madness album)

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1981 studio album by Madness

Studio album by

Madness

Released| 2 October 1981 (1981-10-02)
Recorded| July–August 1981
Studio| Compass Point Studios, Nassau, Bahamas
("Grey Day" recorded early 1981 in London)[1]
Genre|

* 2 Tone
* ska
* pop
* reggae

Length| 38:35
Label| Stiff
Producer|

* Clive Langer
* Alan Winstanley

Madness chronology
| Absolutely
(1980)  | 7
(1981)  | Complete Madness
(1982)

|
|

Singles from  7

1. "Grey Day"
Released: 17 April 1981
2. "Shut Up"
Released: 11 September 1981
3. "Cardiac Arrest"
Released: 12 February 1982

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [2]
Record Mirror| [3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide| [4]
Smash Hits| 8/10[5]

7 (also known as Madness 7)[6] is the third studio album by the English ska and pop band Madness. Released in October 1981, it peaked at No. 5 on the UK Albums Chart. All but one track was recorded at Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas in the summer of 1981, the exception being "Grey Day" which was recorded in London earlier in the year. Although in 2011 co-producer Alan Winstanley stated in the Guided Tour of Madness boxed-set that much of the album was re-recorded in London when they returned from Nassau. The album title was band member Chas Smash's idea based on the lucky number 7.[7]

## Track listing

[edit]

Side oneNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Cardiac Arrest"| Chas Smash, Chris Foreman| 2:52
2.| "Shut Up"| Graham McPherson, Foreman| 4:07
3.| "Sign of the Times"| McPherson, Mike Barson| 2:43
4.| "Missing You"| McPherson, Barson| 2:32
5.| "Mrs. Hutchinson"| Barson| 2:17
6.| "Tomorrow's Dream"| Lee Thompson, Barson| 3:54

Side twoNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

7.| "Grey Day"| Barson| 3:40
8.| "Pac-a-Mac"| Thompson, Barson| 2:37
9.| "Promises Promises"| Thompson, Barson| 2:52
10.| "Benny Bullfrog"| Thompson, Foreman| 1:51
11.| "When Dawn Arrives"| Thompson, Barson| 2:43
12.| "The Opium Eaters"| Barson| 3:03
13.| "Day on the Town"| McPherson, Foreman| 3:24
Total length:| 38:35

There were several different versions of the album released throughout the world. Some territories removed the not so tourist-friendly "Day on the Town" while others replaced it with "Never Ask Twice (a.k.a. Aeroplane/Airplane)", which was issued on the "Shut Up" 12" single in the UK. In Belgium "Never Ask Twice" was issued on a one-sided 7" single with initial copies of the album. France renamed "Day on the Town" as "A Place in the City". Australia added "It Must Be Love" and "Never Ask Twice", Spain replaced "Cardiac Arrest" with "It Must Be Love" and Japan added "In the City", which was issued there as a single after it was initially written for and used to promote Honda City cars in television commercials.

Initial vinyl pressings featured different mixes of some tracks (most notably "Mrs Hutchinson" and "Day on the Town"), which haven't been used since.

### 2010 reissue

[edit]

In 2009 and 2010, Madness re-released their entire back catalogue of studio albums up until 1999's Wonderful with a bonus CD and extra tracks. 7 was reissued by Union Square Music's collector's label Salvo on 12 April 2010.[8]

CD 1
The original album
*The first disc contains the thirteen tracks from the original album plus four promo videos.
The promo videos

1. Grey Day
2. Shut Up
3. It Must be Love
4. Cardiac Arrest

CD 2

The Richard Skinner sessionNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Missing You" (recorded 27 September 1981 for BBC Radio 1 at Maida Vale Studio 4, London)| McPherson, Barson| 2:41
2.| "Sign of the Times" (recorded 27 September 1981 for BBC Radio 1 at Maida Vale Studio 4, London)| McPherson, Barson| 2:37
3.| "Tiptoes" (recorded 27 September 1981 for BBC Radio 1 at Maida Vale Studio 4, London)| McPherson, Barson| 2:40

The bonus tracksNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

4.| "Memories" (B-side of "Grey Day" single)| Foreman| 2:24
5.| "A Town with No Name" (B-side of "Shut Up" single)| Foreman| 2:51
6.| "Never Ask Twice" (B-side of "Shut Up" 12" single)| McPherson, Barson| 3:00
7.| "It Must Be Love" (non-album single, 1981)| Labi Siffre| 3:26
8.| "Shadow on the House" (B-side of "It Must Be Love" single)| Foreman| 3:21
9.| "In the City" (B-side of "Cardiac Arrest" single)| McPherson, Barson, Smash, Foreman, Bill Crutchfield, Daisuke Inoue| 3:00
10.| "Cardiac Arrest" (12" extended version)| Smash, Foreman| 4:17
11.| "Grey Day" (live) (from NME Racket Packet cassette, 1983)| Barson| 4:32
Total length:| 34:56

## Personnel

[edit]

Madness

* Graham "Suggs" McPherson – lead vocals
* Mike Barson – piano, organ, vibes, marimba, tubular bells
* Chris Foreman – guitar, sitar
* Mark Bedford – bass
* Lee Thompson – saxophones, burps, squeaks, lead vocals on track 10
* Daniel Woodgate – drums, congas
* Chas Smash – backing vocals, trumpet

Technical

* Clive Langer – producer, engineer
* Alan Winstanley – producer, engineer
* Arun Chakraverty – mastering
* Stella Artwork – cover
* C-More – cover
* Mike Putland – photography

2010 reissue

* Dale Griffin – producer on Richard Skinner session
* Mike Engels – engineer on Richard Skinner session
* Tim Turan – remastering
* Martin 'Cally' Callomon – art direction, design
* David Quantick – liner notes

## Chart performance

[edit]

### Album

[edit]

Chart (1981)  | Peak
position  | Total
weeks

|
|

Dutch Albums Chart[9] | 5  | 17
Swedish Albums Chart[10] | 41  | 1
UK Albums Chart[11] | 5  | 28

### Singles

[edit]

Date  | Single  | Chart  | Position

|
|
|

Apr 1981  | Grey Day  | UK  | No. 4
Sep 1981  | Shut Up (edited to 3:26 for issue as a single)  | UK  | No. 7
Feb 1982  | Cardiac Arrest (remixed for issue as a single)  | UK  | No. 14

## Certifications and sales

[edit]

Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

United Kingdom (BPI)[12] | Gold  | 100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "The Madness Timeline: 1981". Madness Official Website. Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
2. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "7 – Madness". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
3. ^ Ludgate, Simon (3 October 1981). "Albums: Heaven 7. Madness – 7" (PDF). Record Mirror. London: Spotlight Publications Inc. p. 11\. ISSN 0144-5804. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 December 2024. Retrieved 7 January 2025.
4. ^ Considine, J. D. (2004). "Madness". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 508. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
5. ^ Silverton, Pete (1 October 1981). "Albums: Madness – 7 (Stiff)" (PDF). Smash Hits. Vol. 3, no. 20\. Peterborough: EMAP National Publications, Ltd. p. 19\. ISSN 0260-3004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 May 2024. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
6. ^ "Madness - Madness 7". BPI. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
7. ^ "Chris Cupboard - Madness". Retrieved 19 June 2025.
8. ^ "10. Full details of the Seven re-issue tracklisting". Madness Central Newsletter: Issue 15. January 2010. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
9. ^ 7 at  Dutch Charts Retrieved 18 June 2013
10. ^ Steffen Hung. "Swedish Charts Portal". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 5 September 2011.
11. ^ "UK Singles & Albums Official Charts Company". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 September 2011.
12. ^ "British album certifications – Madness – Madness 7". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 12 March 2022.

## External links

[edit]

* 7 at Discogs (list of releases)

* v
* t
* e

Madness

* Chris Foreman
* Mike Barson
* Lee Thompson
* Suggs
* Dan Woodgate
* Mark Bedford

* Chas Smash

Studio albums|

* One Step Beyond...
* Absolutely
* 7
* The Rise & Fall
* Keep Moving
* Mad Not Mad
* The Madness
* Wonderful
* The Dangermen Sessions Vol. 1
* The Liberty of Norton Folgate
* Oui Oui, Si Si, Ja Ja, Da Da
* Can't Touch Us Now
* Theatre of the Absurd Presents C'est la Vie

Compilation albums|

* Complete Madness
* Madness
* Utter Madness
* It's... Madness
* It's... Madness Too
* Divine Madness
* The Business
* Total Madness (1997)
* Our House
* Total Madness (2009)
* Ultimate Madness
* A Guided Tour of Madness
* Forever Young: The Ska Collection

Live albums|

* Madstock!
* Universal Madness

Box sets|

* The Business
* A Guided Tour of Madness

Extended plays|

* Work Rest and Play

Singles|

* "The Prince"
* "One Step Beyond"
* "My Girl"
* "Night Boat to Cairo" (Work Rest and Play EP)
* "Baggy Trousers"
* "Embarrassment"
* "The Return of the Los Palmas 7"
* "Grey Day"
* "Shut Up"
* "It Must Be Love"
* "Cardiac Arrest"
* "House of Fun"
* "Driving in My Car"
* "Our House"
* "Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)" / "Madness (Is All in the Mind)"
* "Wings of a Dove"
* "The Sun and the Rain"
* "Michael Caine"
* "One Better Day"
* "Yesterday's Men"
* "Uncle Sam"
* "Sweetest Girl"
* "(Waiting For) The Ghost Train"
* "The Harder They Come"
* "Night Boat to Cairo"
* "Lovestruck"
* "Johnny the Horse"
* "Drip Fed Fred"
* "Shame and Scandal in the Family"
* "Sorry"
* "NW5"
* "Dust Devil"
* "Sugar and Spice"
* "Forever Young"

Related articles|

* Discography
* Lucky 7 Records
* Dikran Tulaine
* Our House the Musical
* 2 tone
* Zarjazz Records
* "Starvation/Tam Tam Pour L'Ethiopie"
* The Madness
* Take It or Leave It
* The Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra
* Boring (The Young Ones)
* Sick (The Young Ones)
* Unreleased album

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

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