Madness was formed in 1976 under the name North London Invaders, but soon changed their name to Madness, a reference to the Prince Buster song of the same name. Madness was one of a handful of bands from England’s 2 Tone ska era. With 16 top-ten hits, they are arguably the biggest! Their new album, Theatre of the Absurd Presents C'est la Vie (2023), hit number one on the UK charts, beating Taylor Swift and Drake! Now as Madness prepares for their first US tour in a decade, we bring on their lead singer, Suggs. 

We talk about everything with Suggs, including their new album, specifically the song “Baby Burglar,” since it talks of their younger, petty criminal years. We talk about such Madness influences as Ian Dury, The Kinks, Desmond Dekker, Toots and the Maytals and of course Prince Buster. Suggs even tells us about the one-and-only time he met Prince Buster. It’s a great story.

We also talk about their experience on Saturday Night Live—they met and hung out with Clara Peller, the “Where’s The Beef” lady. At the request of former IDOS guest Ted Leo, we discuss the production of their only US hit, “Our House.” And we learn what prank Madness did that caused The Clash to not speak to them for five years. 

Plus we hear about Suggs ill-fated career as a DJ, the impact that “Un Paso Adelante” (The Spanish “One Step Beyond”) had on their popularity in Mexico, and we learn which Thunderclap Newman song inspired the piano part in “My Girl.” 

Plus the interview has many delightful, offbeat sidetracks, including one involving a shepherd's pie! 

Go to Madness’ website to see all their upcoming tour dates. 

Listen to Suggs go deep into Madness' story on this episode of In Defense of Ska, and make sure to like, review, and follow the series wherever you get your podcast. Fans can also get early and ad-free episodes by joining the IDOS Patreon, and don't forget to check out all the Consequence Podcast Network series here.

You can also support the In Defense host Aaron Carnes by purchasing a copy of his book, In Defense of Ska. The 2nd, expanded edition will be released in Oct 2024.

If you like our theme song, go download the EP Lives by Slow Gherkin. They wrote the opening and closing songs for our podcast. You can get both tunes from their Lives EP. Also, check out Dan P and the Bricks two LPs. They provided the mid-roll ad transition music. 

Co-host Adam Davis has a band called Omnigone. Their latest record, Against The Rest released on March 31, 2023. 

The In Defense of Ska editor Chris Reeves runs a record label called Ska Punk International. They have new releases coming out all the time.

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