While many are still waiting for Madness to be awarded with a Brit Award, the band continue to be nominated for or listed in other awards line-ups across the globe.

This latest addition sees our favourite band inducted into the Goldmine Magazine Hall of Fame. 420 artists have already joined the hall of fame with another 280 still to go.

We’re not quite sure how the list was calculated, as the numbers next to the bands don’t seem to denote a final placing position – there are a number of (1) values next to 11 entries, for example.

Regardless, it’s nice to see the North London based outfit receive further recognition.

To view the list point your web browser over to:

The Goldmine Hall of Fame inductees

Our thanks go to the Goldmine Magazine staff for giving us the heads-up on this one.

Now, on with the issue!

Jon Young, Rob Hazelby, Simon Roberts, Paul Williams

SHOWTIMES

See below for all forthcoming Madness and Madness related gigs and events. If there’s something we’ve missed off or you feel should be added then please let us know.

Madness

July 5th 2014, en Normandie au Festival Beauregard

July 13th 2014 Festival Musilac, France http://www.musilac.com/

July 29th 2014, Theatre Jean Deschamps, 1100 Carcassonne City, Festival De Carcassonne

November 21st – 24th 2014 – Minehead – Earlybird tickets can be ordered here: http://www.bigweekends.com/splash-pages/madness2014.aspx

For tickets also see links via: www.madness.co.uk

Our thanks go to the French MIS team for the Normandie and Carcassonne dates: https://www.facebook.com/groups/frenchmis

Suggs Live

April 2014

2nd – Newbury Corn Exchange
3rd – Loughborough Town Hall
4th – Wakefield Theatre Royal
5th – Southport The Atkinson Theatre
6th – Runcorn The Brindley
8th – Mansfield Palace Theatre
9th – Stamford Corn Exchange
11th – Isle of Wight Shaklin Theatre
12th – Aldershot Princes Hall
13th – Wimborne Tivoli Theatre
15th – Bury St Edmonds The Apex
16th – Tunbridge Wells, Assembly Hall
17th – Stroud Subscription Rooms
22nd – Chelmsford Civic Theatre
23rd – Stevenage Gordon Craig Theatre
24th – Redditch Palace Theatre
25th – Malvern Forum Theatre
26th – Margate Winter Gardens
27th – Northampton Derngate
29th – Bolton Albert Halls
30th – Darlington Civic Theatre

May 2014

1st – Newark Palace Theatre
2nd – Redhill Harlequin Theatre
3rd – Watford Colosseum
4th – Yeovil Octagon Theatre
10th – DUBLIN Olympia Theatre
13th – Harlow Playhouse
14th – Lowestoft Marina Theatre
15th – Eastbourne – Royal Hippodrome
16th – Leamington Royal Spa Centre
17th – Jersey Opera House
19th – Milton Keynes The Stables
20th – Winchester Theatre Royal
21st – Epsom Playhouse
22nd – Kettering Lighthouse Theatre
23rd May at Cardiff College of Music and Drama
27th May at Bury St Edmunds The Apex
29th May at Derry Millennium Forum
30th May at Belfast Ulster Hall

The Magic Brothers

Monday 3rd March, Dublin Castle, Camden, London
Tuesday 11th March, Dublin Castle, Camden, London
Thursday 27th March, Dublin Castle, Camden, London
Thursday 3rd April, Dublin Castle, Camden, London
Thursday 24th April, Dublin Castle, Camden, London

Ticket info at: http://www.bugbearbookings.com/dublin-castle/

Suggs and Friends

The charity fund raising evening “Suggs and Friends” makes a welcome return this coming March.  The 2014 fundraiser takes place on March 20th at 6.30pm, with champagne reception and auction.

The £150 donation tickets for pancreatic cancer gain entry to the Porchester Hall event in London W2. There’s no announcement yet as to who is joining Suggs at the exclusive event.

Roger Daltrey has been added to the line-up of this evening.

The Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra

Thursday 13th March, Dingwalls, Camden Town, London
More info regarding the above on Facebook at: http://on.fb.me/1mKWGkX

Ska Orchestra web site: www.ltso.mis-online.net

The Lee Thompson Band (Lee’s other band, with Daley)

*** NEW *** April 24th.  The Hop Poles. Enfield
https://www.facebook.com/events/1387868218100592/

Deaf School

No further gigs or events at present. Keep an eye on http://deafschoolmusic.com for more information.

Near Jazz Experience

No further gigs at present.

Louis Vause – Midnight in Havanna

Wednesday 26th Feb, The Speakeasy downstairs at Aces and Eights, Fortess Road, Tufnell Park, London NW5

BUY IT

If money’s currently burning a hole in your pocket then perhaps we can help with your dilemma.

The Specialized EP Featuring Lee Thompson

A 4 track vinyl EP featuring Lee’s track from the first specialized album and tracks by the Valves, Rhoda Dakar and Nick Welsh.

Should be in stock this coming week.

Thanks go to Chuck Wren and Jump Up Records, Stan from A&R Texas (pressing plant), and Mike Schneider of Indigo Iguana (design).

LOOK SO GOOD YA COULD LICK EM…. Will be available via

www.specializedproject.co.uk

The Specialized Big One 2. Live DVD.

For those wanting a copy of the DVD of the Big One 2 event we can reveal that you can now pre-order your copy. This will be limited edition and available into the new year. As is the normal spec with Specialized, all proceeds go to the Teenage Cancer Trust.

Welcome to Specialized Project official website

LTSO, Bangarang, Featuring Dawn Penn

Single release date March 24th.

The Magic Line Album * Out Now! *

Signed T-shirt packages and a deluxe edition.

http://www.magicbrothers.com/topspin-store/all/

A range of Magic Brothers T-shirts, Polo Shirts are now available to buy.

The CD album is available via Amazon and the download via iTunes contains an interview with Phil Jupitus talking to Woody about the album.  But if you buy the album via the official band site you can choose a signed option or bundle.

If you’ve a spare £75 and are really into the magic, then there are 25 packs going fast that include all of this….

The Magic Line Collectors Pack – Limited Edition of 25 includes; The Magic Line Signed CD Album. The Magic Line Digital Download. The Magic Line T Shirt. Woodys Drumsticks Signed. Nicks Guitar Paick Signed. Copy of Album Lyrics. “Thank You” Phone Call From Woody & Nick.

Our thanks go to Paul Smart for the above

Suggs “The Close” Signed Book

Suggs is one of pop music’s most enduring and likeable figures. Written with the assured style and wit of a natural raconteur, this hugely entertaining and insightful autobiography takes you from his colourful early life on a North London council estate, through the heady early days of Punk and 2-Tone, to the eighties, where Madness became the biggest selling singles band of the decade. Along the way he tells you what it’s like to grow up in sixties Soho, go globetrotting with your best mates, to make a dead pigeon fly and cause an earthquake in Finsbury Park.

Suggs is a singer, songwriter, DJ, actor and TV presenter. He is perhaps best known as lead singer with Madness, who have had 24 top-twenty hits and continue to tour. Suggs lives in Camden, London.

– Features unseen and exclusive lyrics.
- 352 pages.
- Hardback.

http://www.recordstore.co.uk/search.html?term=suggs

Louis Vause – Midnight in Havana

“Oh dear. I’m alive..!” Pianist Louis Vause has always said that his albums are “Gouged out of him by circumstance” but his third album ‘Midnight In Havana’really is a case in point.

Recorded as a valedictory set, a swansong if you like, after he was told that the onset of cancer meant that he had mere months to live, the completion of the work coincided with his liver transplant and the all clear. He was in the pink. The same could not be said for his credit cards which had covered Louis’ uncharacteristically cavalier spending on recording costs.

http://www.cadizmusic.com/2007/index.php?location=/web/Catalogue/CADIZCD119

Mark Adamson of the Deaf School Website gives us an exclusive quote or two from Suggs, on the forthcoming Deaf School Book.

Deaf School – the story is told at last!

“For me, the gigs Deaf School have done recently have been some of the best I’ve seen by any band.”

So writes Suggs in his foreword to a book, published this month amid a flurry of Deaf School gigs and other Book Launch events, charting the creation and career of a band that influenced so many artists that followed – and that still fills venues 40 years after their debut at the Liverpool School of Art Christmas Dance.

Deaf School had a huge impact on Madness (Suggs: “Back in my youth I met some characters who were a right bunch, but what we had in common was that we loved Deaf School.”) – not least, of course, because guitarist Clive Langer’s became Madness producer and because Suggs married Deaf School singer Bette Bright!

Written by leading rock music writer, author and broadcaster Paul du Noyer, a lifetime Deaf School fan, Deaf School: The Non-Stop Pop Art Punk Rock Party, is published later this month by the Liverpool University Press, priced at £14.99. Accompanying the publication of the book is a Deaf School exhibition, featuring original art works by band members, posters, photos, rare films of live performances, band stage costumes and much more.

The book is available from Deaf School’s website at www.deafschoolmusic.com

MIS FEATURE

“Robbie Williams Stole my Band” – A Magic Brothers Live Preview

MIS this week had a lovely quick chat with Woody about the forthcoming live residency of The Magic Brothers at The Dublin Castle.

Magic Monday we are calling it, we told Woody, the first gig on March the 3rd that starts the run. “That’s good I’m liking that.” He replied.

“We are playing about just half the first album, the second album has more songs suited to being exciting in a live environment. You Know Up Tempo Stuff. We are playing more of that.”  He told us, which will be exciting for fans to get a first hear of.

The second album is called “In Your Mind”.  Recently a new track was heard briefly on a video of studio string work Woody put up on his facebook recently, he said – “That may not be even going on the album that one”.  Chris Trades, is a great worker on The strings though, according to Woody, he is also appearing with the live band.

We called Woody Prolific for the speed at which this second album seems to be happening and he called his brother “we are talented” he said, then playing down how far the album has got so far, “still need to add brass…”  and much more layers on songs to be added.

The big rehearsals for the full live band takes place next week on the 26th through to the 28th.  “We had a great rehearsal last year to test the water.”

Woody explained “sounded full on, these songs.”. Tim Maple, the bands 2nd guitarist was enthused about, comparing him and brother Nick, to “Thin Lizzy”  when the two of them were guitar duelling in sessions.  Woody explained that Nick would be playing guitar solos, but not playing while singing, and that two guitars works great.

We spoke about The Dangermen gig’s that had previously taken place in The Dublin Castle venue, and it feeling right that those gigs began were a toe in the water Wednesday, and so  this residency begins on a Monday before building up.

“Thursday is a pretty good weeknight to be out, I think, I like Thursdays”, explained Woody, of the later dates happening in the run. Talking about the warm “home gig” feel of The Dublin Castle as a venue, and the need to help with Nick’s agoraphobia, at these first gigs stage and also to show Bugbear the capabilities of the new band before any weekend dates might happen. “we will get people come who know who we are there at this venue. For these gigs.”

Woody sees this next stage of The Magic Brothers as easing into the live arena. “We could really do with the Albert Hall!” he imagined, in matching up to the sound of some of the songs the band do, with their sweeping and emotional highs within.

Talking about how he formed the live band of musicians for these shows, beyond the family members that we know form it’s core, Woody explained how closely he works with Mike Kearsey. Mike, whose role as the Trombone in Madness live shows has extended to arrangements and more since the Norton Folgate album, is Woody’s translator when it comes to string and brass parts on Magic Brothers albums.  “He takes my ideas and tells them how to do it more in their own language”

Mike has put Woody in touch with most of the professional working musicians making up The Magic Brothers live band.

Asking about the live band roll call, Woody Exclaimed “Robbie Williams Stole my band!” Both Mike and Mark Brown (who has been keyboard working on the second album) have gone off to do live dates with Robbie Williams.  With Trumpet Player Joe Auckland also busy on the live circuit, Woody jokingly dubbed present sax player Steve Hamilton from Madness’ Brass section as “The Loyal one.”

“The Magic Brothers is a band of Dan’s”, Woody also retorted, as two members were highly recommended and share his first name.

“Dan Drury, played 2 gigs with Madness back to back” in a recent year, “and was just great, without any rehearsals.”

And “Dan Moriyama, has played with The Blockheads.”

There is a second Nick in the band too, must be magic at work bringing in band members with the same names as the brothers, this one recommended by Joe.  Making the Magic Brothers first live line up a 9 piece group.

Nick Woodgate – Vocals & Guitar Solo’s
Dan Woodgate – Drums
Siobhan Fitzpatrick – Vocals
Tim Maple – Guitar
Dan Moriyama – Piano Keyboards
Dan Drury –  Bass
Chris Traves – Trombone
Nick Etwell –  Trumpet

LIVE INTENSIFIED

Louis Vause @The Riverhouse

The Riverhouse Barn, Walton on Thames is a beautiful small venue, which is in a converted barn right alongside the river in Surrey (luckily with all the flooding round here lately, not in it). The area was set with tables and chairs, each with a candle and low lighting making the gig a very intimate one, being true to myself as a barrier hugger at Madness gigs my sister and I chose a table close to the stage. The audience was of the older more genteel type than the average Madness gig is!

Louis came on stage alone at first and played a couple of tunes using a grand piano, I’m more used to seeing him play with TLTSO using an electric keyboard. Louis was then joined by his ‘Friends’, who Included Ray Vaughan and from the near jazz experience Simon Chaterton. Together they played a good mix of uptempo tunes and slow melodic ones.

At the start of each tune Louis gave us a story about his travels and what inspired the music, all very interesting especially the one when he caught a train in India and had to lie flat on the roof as he and his friends couldn’t afford the fare!

Moonshine – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-lv9icPsyo&feature=youtu.be

“You can take it either way.” Said Louis of twilight moon in the sky, or illegal whisky, “Or both together” he suggested.

Gum Shoe – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyIFX5IZDtc

They played two sets of 45 mins and received a standing ovation at the end from a very appreciative audience which inspired them to do an impromptu encore.

Although the music is not the type I’m used to it was a very enjoyable evening and I would highly recommend Louis Vause and Friends to everyone!

Sharon Staite

SPECIALIZED – MAD NOT CANCER

Oui Oui

We present you with a slight French taste to this week’s update on The Specialized Project, as our French MIS counterparts get further involved in with the charity.

Following our MIS announcement recently of Indeed covering a song for the album, this week Benoit de Gauléjac, known to many as Mister B, has designed a nice graphic for the project. Check it out on facebook. Alongside Mister B, Mad Iky has also appeared with news of his band now also involved…

Specialized are very pleased to announce that we add a certain sophistication with a …bit of continental flavour in the shape of FRENCH BOUTIK.

These guys will be performing on Specialized 3 – Mad Not Cancer , covering that Madness cracker ” Tiptoes”. Great to have them- More Euro-class in the coming week!

French Boutik: An exquisite pop shop moderniste exhibiting only the finest melodies, this Parisian ensemble has their musical hands firmly on the pulse of our future while keeping their feet grounded on dance floors of the past. Theirs is a unique vision of modern French pop where elegance and schizophrenia collide to generate a distinctive female vocal driven outfit of many harmonic faces. Buzzing and popping with powerful guitar and percolating organ, the amusing and troubling sounds perfectly represent French Boutik’s timely marriage of English and French pop. The resulting songs here are social portraits peppered with irony, and delivered with a sophistication not unlike The Kinks, Jacques Dutronc or XTC. Their sound is fresh, slick, poised, insouciant and clever. This is the sound of Pop Moderniste.

Meet The Artists!

Specialized are very very pleased to announce all the way from Manila in the Philippines- ROCKET PUNCH- will be performing on Specialized 3 – Mad Not Cancer ! – These talented guys will be playing on their version of ” S…wan Lake”. You’ll love the big boss sounds.

Rocket Punch was formed in the underground music scene of Manila. Formed in Taguig City, Philippines, Rocket Punch are heavily-influenced by Boss reggae sounds of the late 60’s and early 70’s, they are best remembered with their intensified, tight live performances. Planning to release a demo EP with a few original songs of their own this year, the members of Rocket Punch, of which three of them are brothers, are excited and proud to represent the Philippines and be part of the Specialized album this year. Rocket Punch is composed of Wang Fernando (lead vocals), Anthon Corre and Glenn Sta. Ana (rhythm guitars), Augie Sta. Ana (keys), Arcci Sta. Ana (drums) and Don Pangilinan (bass).

Paul Willo / Jonathan Young

SIGN OF THE TIMES

Articles that have caught our eye over the course of the past week.

Blockheads Will be Blockheads

Source: Jonathan Young

Dun Punkin is a mock film that shows musicians being sent away to an old people’s home separated from their instruments. (If you look closely in the promo video here for new Blockheads single, Boys will be boys, you’ll notice Mr Thompson in the zimmer frame and long johns pool scenes.)

Boys Will Be Boys – http://youtu.be/PYX5UERTKoQ

It’s one of a few tracks on The Blockheads latest album Same Horse Different Jockey, which is out now.

The next release is due to be a remix album, called “Same Song Different Mix”. If you are a gifted DJ or producer of music you too can get on the album. One submitted remix for each track will appear.

You can download the album stems for each track from The Blockheads website now, and remix the track anyway you wish, submitting it back to them for consideration.

We, at the MIS have already submitted a rather terrible grungy guitar focused remix of Boys Will Be Boys, with some silliness, that pretty much assures it’s bound to lose.  So, why not have a go yourself, it’s a fun idea that brings you a closer sense of how The Blockheads construct their music. It would be great if Madness do this for just one future/current song.

Jonathan Young

I REMEMBER WAY BACK WHEN

This week, MIS co-editor Rob Hazelby, goes back 5 years to issue 512, and the week of Sunday 22nd February to Saturday 28th 2009, and then back 10 years to issue 250 and the week of Sunday 22nd February to Saturday 28th February 2004.

5 years ago…

Issue 512 – Sunday 22nd February to Saturday 28th February 2009

Following the news earlier in the week announcing that Trinity Street had gone belly-up the Madness Central Forums and email list had understandably been busy with concerned fans wondering what was going to happen with their money, album and Madstock ticket orders.

At present we were no closer to finding out exactly what was going to happen, but Chris Foreman had kindly taken two minutes out of his no doubt busy (and now rather stressful!) schedule, to give us all a quick update.

The Madness Central’s Steve Bringe informed us that Madness’ management were hoping to make an official announcement as early as Monday night. If/when this did appear we promised to send out another special edition of the MIS so that you were brought bang up to date with what was going on.

Elsewhere we reported that Terry Edwards, occasional Madness member and one half founder of Butterfield 8 had turned his talents to that of author. Terry had captured Madness’ story of making the debut album One Step Beyond.

The book was party of a publishing series that focused on great albums called 33 1/3, meaning Madness were alongside many other great album makers who had been given the full treatment in the series.

On to tribute news, and we gave you the heads-up on a new album from Bristol based ska outfit The Communicators. The band had been kind enough to send us a review copy of their new album, and so we did the only decent thing and review it for you.

This week we received the news that another date had been added to the band’s already growing list of summer gigs. This latest addition would see Madness performing at Newbury Racecourse on Saturday 30th May. Having had to cancel the venue the previous year it was hoped that this new date would run without a hitch.

10 years ago…

Issue 250 – Sunday 22nd February to Saturday 28th February 2004

We decided to hold off the release of this issue until late on Sunday evening, as earlier that day we’d discovered that Channel Four were airing a one off programme entitled “The Ultimate Pop Star”.

Yes, this was yet another one of those `listing run-down` affairs that the station seems to have a kind of addiction to, but for once the chart wasn’t based on the opinions of people who voted over the phone or the internet. No. This ranking was based on the number of UK sales that the pop star or group has had.

Hosted by Paul Whitehouse and Harry Enfield as Smashy and Nicey, the programme gave the viewer a top 50 run-down of the best selling artists from the 50-odd years that the UK charts have been running.

With something like this, it was a dead cert that the lads would be listed somewhere in those 50 places. Initial clips of Madness videos at the start of the programme certainly added to the possibility that they’d be on there, and with it being pretty much common knowledge that the band spent more weeks in the 1980’s UK charts than any other group, we were sure the lads would be there.

Well, we’re pleased to say that we weren’t disappointed. Storming past big names such as U2, The Pet Shop Boys, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, and Duran Duran, Madness were placed at number 31 with a whopping 5,564,459 single sales – just one slot behind Gordon Sumner and the boys (The Police, to most of you!).

Suggs was on hand during the Madness slot to explain that when the band were having a laugh in the videos it was because they were just larking around, and really were having a laugh.

We’ve got no idea who finally attained the number 1 slot, and quite frankly we didn’t care. We switched off after The Police `slot`.

Moving on to the issue itself, and we started off with a few words from Madness guru Christopher ‘Dell’ Wardell who was kind enough to give a few suggestions about what he felt you needed to put in your music collection. This turned out to be Early Bird by Kalles Kaviar featuring Mr.Symarip is available on Leech Records (LEECH 057), which is a ska label in Zurich.

Elsewhere, and no sooner did he finish serialising his Christmas tour write-up, he then returned with a Dutch to English translation of a television interview a number of the band members made back in December 1999. Who were we talking about? Jermaine of `Tour Madness`, of course.

Further on, and subscriber Mike Wille alerted us all of a rather unusual Madness related auction. We did warn readers not to get too excited though. It wasn’t that great, and was stupidly over-priced.

To finish off with, we had a rundown of tour dates for Ian Dury and The Blockheads tribute outfit, `Reasons to be Cheerful`, a band, we were told, were well worth catching.

Rob Hazelby

TIME…

It’s almost time for us to bring this latest issue of the MIS to a close, but before we go we’ve got a few last minute bits and pieces to pass in your general direction.

First-up, and news in from Lee Thompson reveals that The Upsetters will be supporting the Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra when they play at Dingwalls, Camden Town, on the 13th of March.

Next, and this is more of a teaser than an actual snippet of news, but Darren Fordham recently tweeted that he had seen the video for Bangarang, and that it would be “coming at us real soon”. Naturally, as soon as we hear more we’ll let you know.

And finally, we’d like to congratulate MIS subscriber Tony Baker, who won the competition we set last week to see Louis Vause performing “Midnight in Havana”, at The River House.

Until next week, take care,

Jon Young, Rob Hazelby, Simon Roberts, Paul Williams

(With thanks to Sharon Staite)