Mark Bedford | |
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 Bedford performing live with Madness | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mark William Bedford |
| Also known as | Bedders |
| Born | 24 August 1961 Islington, London, England |
| Genres | 2-Tone |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Instrument(s) |
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| Years active | 1978–present |
Mark William Bedford (born 24 August 1961), [1] nicknamed Bedders, is an English musician, songwriter and composer. Bedford came to prominence in the late 1970s as the bass guitarist for the English ska band Madness.
Mark Bedford was born on 24 August 1961, in Islington, London, England. He started to buy records at the age of 11 or 12. Around this time, he listened to music in the charts and North American artists such as Neil Young. He began to play bass guitar at the age of 13 in order to accompany friends who played the guitar. [2]
Bedford attended William Ellis School in Kentish Town and met members of the North London Invaders at one of their gigs. He was asked to a band rehearsal and was impressed by the musicianship on display. Bedford was friends with the Invaders' drummer Gary Dovey, but after a confrontation with saxophonist Lee Thompson, Dovey left the band. Bedford brought Dan Woodgate into the band, and he was introduced as the final member of the then six-piece group which became Madness. [3]
Although not a major songwriter in Madness, Bedford co-wrote one of the band's more emotive songs "One Better Day" with Suggs. He was also responsible for co-writing "Not Home Today", "Disappear", "Return of the Los Palmas 7", "Deceives the Eye", "Stepping into Line" and "Maybe in Another Life". The only song he wrote entirely on his own was "Mummy's Boy", which appeared on the band's debut album One Step Beyond... [4]
Bedford played double bass on Robert Wyatt's recording of the Elvis Costello song "Shipbuilding" in 1982. [5]
After Madness split for the first time in 1986, Bedford played bass with Voice of the Beehive, [1] and in 1991 played bass on Morrissey's second studio album Kill Uncle . [6] He played double bass on some tracks on the album. [2]
He later teamed up with ex-Higsons brass supremo Terry Edwards, and they formed Butterfield 8 along with various members of the jazz scene at the time. [7] They released a single "Watermelon Man" and an album called Blow! This was re-released in 2001 on the Sartorial Records label.
Bedford's stage performances with Madness became more sporadic after 2009; he did not tour with the band in Australia in the early part of that year, though he did feature as a full member of the band on their album The Liberty of Norton Folgate released that May. [8] Suggs stated: "It’s like the Eagles song ['Hotel California']. You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave...There’s a lot of flexibility, allowing people to be what they want to be, and do what they want." [9]
Bedford took no part in the recording of Oui Oui, Si Si, Ja Ja, Da Da but he appeared in a TV advert with the group, promoting a popular beer. He also performed with the band on the roof of Buckingham Palace in June 2012 as part of Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Concert [2] and for the band's appearance in August at the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony. More recently, he appeared with the band on The Jonathan Ross Show on 19 January 2013 and again on 22 March 2013 when the group performed at the official closing ceremony of BBC Television Centre in London.
Since 2011, Bedford has been part of The Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra, a band he put together with Madness saxophonist Lee Thompson. The Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra released their debut album The Benevolence of Sister Mary Ignatius in 2013. They released a single "Fu Man Chu" featuring Bitty McLean from this album, and in February 2014, released a second single "Bangarang" featuring Dawn Penn and Sharon Shannon. [10]
The Near Jazz Experience (NJE), a new band with Terry Edwards, released the album Afloat in 2017. [11]
In 1987, Bedford started a relationship with Cressida, his long-term partner. They have two daughters, Alice (born 1993) and Olivia (born 1997). [3]
Madness are an English ska and pop band from Camden Town, north London, who formed in 1976. One of the most prominent bands of the late 1970s and early 1980s two-tone ska revival, they continue to perform with six of the seven members of their original line-up. Madness's most successful period was from 1980 to 1986, when the band's songs spent a total of 214 weeks on the UK Singles Chart.
Graham McPherson, known primarily by his stage name Suggs, is an English singer-songwriter, musician, radio personality and actor.
Daniel Mark "Woody" Woodgate is an English musician, songwriter, composer and record producer. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Woodgate came to prominence in the late 1970s as the drummer for the English ska band Madness and went on to become a member of the Anglo-American alternative rock band Voice of the Beehive in the late 1980s. Woodgate began his solo career in 2015, while still a member of Madness, releasing the album In Your Mind.
The Rise & Fall is the fourth studio album by English ska band Madness, released on 8 October 1982 by Stiff Records. This album saw Madness at their most experimental, exhibiting a range of musical styles including jazz, English music hall, and Eastern influences. NME described it at the time of its release as "the best Madness record". It has often been retrospectively described as a concept album.
Wonderful is the seventh studio album by the British band Madness, released on 1 November 1999. It was the band's first studio album in fourteen years since Mad Not Mad in 1985, and also the first to feature their classic seven-piece line-up since 1984's Keep Moving. The album saw Madness reunite with their original production team, Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, who had produced all of the band's previous work.
The Dangermen Sessions, Vol. 1 is a cover album and the eighth studio album by the British ska band Madness, released in 2005. The album reached No. 11 in the UK which at the time was their highest chart position in the UK since 1984's Keep Moving.
Cathal Joseph "Carl" Smyth, also known as Chas Smash, is an English singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was the secondary vocalist, trumpet player and dancer for the English band Madness from their inception in the late 1970s until 2014.
Lee Jay Thompson, nicknamed Kix or El Thommo, is an English multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and composer. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Thompson came to prominence in the late 1970s as a founder and saxophonist for the English ska band Madness.
Madstock! is the first live album by ska/pop band Madness, released on 2 November 1992 by Go! Discs. The album includes highlights from Madness' first concerts since their disbanding in 1986, on 8 and 9 August 1992 at Finsbury Park in London. The bill included Flowered Up, Gallon Drunk, Ian Dury and The Blockheads, Morrissey and Madness.
Universal Madness is the second live album by ska/pop band Madness, released on 2 March 1999 through the Goldenvoice label. It was recorded at the Universal Amphitheater on 26 April 1998 in Los Angeles. The show was Madness' first in America since 1984.
Terry Edwards is an English musician who plays trumpet, flugelhorn, saxophones, guitar and keyboards.
Work Rest and Play is an EP by British ska/pop band Madness. The EP was headlined by the song "Night Boat to Cairo", from the band's debut studio album One Step Beyond... (1979). It entered the UK Singles Chart on 5 April 1980, reaching a high of number 6.
"One Better Day" is a song by English ska band Madness from their fifth studio album Keep Moving (1984). The song, written by Suggs and Mark Bedford, was released as a single in the United Kingdom, and spent seven weeks in the charts peaking at number 18.
The Liberty of Norton Folgate is the ninth studio album by the British band Madness, released on 18 May 2009. The band worked on the album for close to three years and it was their first album of new material since 1999's Wonderful.
One Step Beyond. .. is the debut studio album by the British ska-pop group Madness, released by Stiff Records. Recorded and mixed in about three weeks, the album peaked at number two and remained on the UK Albums Chart for more than a year. The album has received much critical praise. It was ranked 90th in a 2005 survey held by British television station Channel 4 to determine the 100 greatest albums of all time.
A Guided Tour of Madness is a 3-CD/1-DVD anthology box set by English band Madness, released in 2011 on Union Square Music's collector's label Salvo. It features 70 singles and album tracks and an exclusive DVD of the band's comeback concert at the Madstock festival in August 1992. It also includes a booklet with interviews with the band, photos, the cartoon Nutty Comic (1981) and the Madness Map of Camden, the band's historic stomping ground. With the exception of "Sweetest Girl," "Sorry," and "The Harder They Come," every one of the band's 34 singles to date is represented.
Oui Oui Si Si Ja Ja Da Da is the tenth studio album by the British band Madness, released on their own Lucky 7 Records label through Cooking Vinyl in the United Kingdom on 29 October 2012 and in the United States on 13 November 2012. The album does not feature founding member and bassist Mark Bedford, who was on hiatus from the band at the time. The album cover is by Peter Blake and features rejected titles for the album crossed out. The album was preceded by a 'teaser' song, "Death of a Rude Boy", available as a digital download from 12 August 2012.
Forever Young: The Ska Collection is a compilation album by English band Madness, released in 2012 by Salvo/Union Square Music as part of their re-issues of the Madness back catalogue. The album consists of a selection of the band's ska sounding songs, including singles, b-sides and album tracks. In addition to the classic Madness tracks, the album contains two previously unreleased covers: Jimmy Cliff's "Vietnam" and Edvard Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King". Both of these bonus tracks were originally recorded for the 2005 Madness album The Dangermen Sessions Vol. 1. The album includes a fold-out poster booklet with liner notes by Record Collector's Ian McCann, including new interviews with guitarist Chris Foreman and saxophonist Lee Thompson. Foreman said of the album: "It was our take on ska, and the songs on this album have ska as their basis. Not all are full-on; I wanted it to be called The Ska and Reggae Collection, but The Ska Collection it is."
The Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra are a British band formed in 2011 by Madness saxophonist Lee Thompson. The band consists of an ever-shifting line-up of ska and reggae-orientated musicians playing classic ska covers. Their debut album was released in 2013.
Can't Touch Us Now is the eleventh studio album by the British band Madness, released on their Lucky 7 Records label through Universal Music Catalogue (UMC) on 28 October 2016. The album marked the return of founder member Mark Bedford but the departure of Cathal Smyth.
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