9. Madness - It Must Be Love
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmezIIrFQmY Madness were The Kinks and The Monkees of the 80s all wrapped into one. They were in love with the perfect pop song, storytelling and were unashamedly influenced by their musical heroes, which in their case came from the world of Ska, Dub and Soul, to which they gave this music a cockney accent, adding a charisma to everything they did. Madness drew on the gang mentality of Mod and Punk, but turned it into something unique to them. A look through their back catalogue of songs tells the story of what they brought to pop, they were chroniclers of the times, check the tale of anarchy in the classroom that is Baggy Trousers, the anxiety of entering the world of sex in House of fun and the consequences of such sex told heartbreakingly in Embarrassment. However, having put the world to rights, they did something very in keeping with the times; they recycled a song by one of their heroes and decided that all we needed was love. It must be love combined everything that was charming about these cheeky chappies; this was no one man show but a gang of wonderful musicians creating a version of their hero Labi Siffres tune about the power of love. It was a genius antidote to the songs of hedonism and temporariness of the 80s, which placed the lyrical heart of the cult bands of the time firmly into the mainstream. Who can listen to the line I never thought Id miss you half as much as I do, and I never thought Id feel this way, the way I feel about you and not feel at least a wee bit soppy?
Ed Nash
Contributor
What makes music fantastic? Star quality, amazing music, breathtaking lyrics and the ability to bring something new to the table, even if that means a new take on the classics. That's what I love to listen to and write about.
As well as writing for What Culture, I occasionally write a blog http://tedney.blogspot.co.uk and sometimes use Twitter, but sparingly @TedneyNash
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Ed