One Step Beyond... | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 19 October 1979 [1] | |||
Recorded | September 1979 [2] | |||
Studio |
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Genre | ||||
Length | 39:02 | |||
Label | Stiff (Europe) Sire (North America) | |||
Producer | ||||
Madness chronology | ||||
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Singles from One Step Beyond... | ||||
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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.
This was the first album produced by the team of Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, who would go on to produce more Madness albums and to work with artists including Elvis Costello and the Attractions, Morrissey, Dexys Midnight Runners, They Might Be Giants and David Bowie.
The "Nutty Train" photo on the sleeve, shot by Cameron McVey, was inspired by a photo of Kilburn and the High Roads roadie Paul Tonkin that appeared on the back cover of the band's album Handsome. [6]
The title track, released as a single, was originally written and recorded by the Jamaican ska musician Prince Buster, and its "Don't watch that, watch this ..." introduction is adapted from another Prince Buster song, "The Scorcher". The track "The Prince" is a tribute to Buster and a re-recording of the band's debut single, originally released on the 2 Tone label. [7] Its B-side, "Madness", another Prince Buster song, was also re-recorded for the album. "Madness" and "Bed and Breakfast Man" were released as singles in North America through Sire Records. [8]
After the album's initial release, reissues were released in 2009 and 2014 by Union Square Music's collector's label Salvo, [9] each containing additional material such as video productions featuring the band.
This album with The Specials were responsible for popularizing the 2 Tone music in the UK, they were also a great influence on other bands of the genre.
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [4] |
Christgau's Record Guide | B+ [10] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [11] |
Mojo | [12] |
Q | [13] |
Record Collector | [14] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [3] |
Smash Hits | 6/10 [15] |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "One Step Beyond" | Cecil Campbell | 2:18 |
2. | "My Girl" | Mike Barson | 2:44 |
3. | "Night Boat to Cairo" |
| 3:31 |
4. | "Believe Me" |
| 2:28 |
5. | "Land of Hope & Glory" | Lee Thompson | 2:57 |
6. | "The Prince" | Thompson | 3:18 |
7. | "Tarzan's Nuts" |
| 2:24 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
8. | "In the Middle of the Night" |
| 3:01 |
9. | "Bed and Breakfast Man" | Barson | 2:33 |
10. | "Razor Blade Alley" | Thompson | 2:42 |
11. | "Swan Lake" |
| 2:36 |
12. | "Rockin' in A♭" | Willy "Wurlitzer" Smith | 2:29 |
13. | "Mummy's Boy" | Mark Bedford | 2:23 |
14. | "Madness" | Campbell | 2:38 |
15. | "Chipmunks Are Go!" |
| 0:51 |
The 2009 reissue also includes the music videos for "The Prince", "One Step Beyond", "My Girl", "Night Boat to Cairo" and "Bed and Breakfast Man". The first four of these were also included on the version of One Step Beyond... issued as part of the box set The Lot. The bonus disc contains B-sides as well as all three songs previously only released on the Work Rest and Play EP in April 1980.
A 35th-anniversary edition was released in 2014. It includes 14 of 20 tracks from a 1979 rehearsal tape entitled "Fab Toones" and a DVD featuring videos, Top of the Pops and Old Grey Whistle Test appearances and a BBC documentary. [16]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "The Prince" | |
2. | "One Step Beyond..." | |
3. | "Bed and Breakfast Man" | |
4. | "My Girl" | |
5. | "Night Boat to Cairo" |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "The Prince" | Thompson | 2:31 |
2. | "Bed and Breakfast Man" | Barson | 3:24 |
3. | "Land of Hope & Glory" | Thompson | 2:42 |
4. | "Stepping into Line" |
| 2:38 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
5. | "One Step Beyond" (7" single version) | Campbell | 2:17 |
6. | "My Girl" (demo version with Mike Barson on vocals) | Barson | 2:58 |
7. | "Mistakes" (B-side of "One Step Beyond") |
| 2:52 |
8. | "Un Paso Adelante" ("One Step Beyond" Spanish version) | Campbell | 2:33 |
9. | "Nutty Theme" (B-side of "One Step Beyond" 12") |
| 2:10 |
10. | "My Girl" (ballad version) (from Flexipop flexi disc) | Barson | 2:28 |
11. | "Stepping into Line" (B-side of "My Girl") |
| 2:15 |
12. | "Un Passo Avanti" ("One Step Beyond" Italian version) | Campbell | 2:22 |
13. | "Deceives the Eye" ( Work Rest and Play EP) |
| 2:00 |
14. | "The Young and the Old" (Work Rest and Play EP) |
| 2:04 |
15. | "Don't Quote Me on That" (Work Rest and Play EP) |
| 4:31 |
16. | "Razor Blade Alley" ( Dance Craze live version) | Thompson | 2:35 |
17. | "Night Boat to Cairo" (Dance Craze live version) |
| 3:12 |
18. | "One Step Beyond" (Dance Craze live version) | Campbell | 2:53 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
16. | "Nutty Sounds" |
| 3:13 |
17. | "Mistakes" |
| 2:53 |
18. | "Sunshine Voice" |
| 3:32 |
19. | "My Girl" | Barson | 2:50 |
20. | "Memories" | Foreman | 2:31 |
21. | "Believe Me" |
| 2:39 |
22. | "Lost My Head" |
| 2:24 |
23. | "Razorblade Alley" | Thompson | 2:33 |
24. | "Land of Hope & Glory" | Thompson | 2:47 |
25. | "Mummy's Boy" | Bedford | 2:21 |
26. | "In the Middle of the Night" |
| 2:51 |
27. | "You Said" |
| 2:21 |
28. | "Stepping into Line" |
| 2:29 |
29. | "Bed and Breakfast Man" | Barson | 4:15 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
30. | "Madness" | Campbell | 2:20 |
31. | "My Mates" |
| 2:40 |
32. | "Shop Around" | 3:01 | |
33. | "There's Always Something There to Remind Me" | 4:05 | |
34. | "Swan Lake" |
| 2:49 |
35. | "Rockin' in A♭" | Wurlitzer | 2:09 |
Five promotional music videos were filmed to promote the singles during the album's release. All of these, with the exception of “The Prince” (which was in fact a Top of the Pops performance only released in the UK and was used the single version for the video) were in rotation on MTV during its first few years. Some of these promo videos were also featured in other music TV outlets, such as Top of the Pops. However in 2022, Madness released two new videos for the album versions of “The Prince” and “Madness”, with footage taken from the 1981 Madness' documentary movie Take It or Leave It .
Year | Video | Director |
---|---|---|
1979 | “The Prince” (Single version & Top of the Pops Performance Clip) | Unknown |
“One Step Beyond” | Dave Robinson | |
“Bed and Breakfast Man” | ||
“My Girl” | Unknown | |
1980 | “Night Boat to Cairo” | Unknown |
2022 | “The Prince” (Album version) | Dave Robinson |
“Madness” |
Chart (1979) | Peak position | Total weeks |
---|---|---|
Austrian Albums Chart [17] | 11 | 10 |
Finnish Albums Chart [18] | 23 | 6 |
Dutch Albums Chart [19] | 22 | 12 |
German Albums Chart [20] | 14 | 37 |
New Zealand Albums Chart [21] | 27 | 9 |
Norwegian Albums Chart [22] | 24 | 7 |
Swedish Albums Chart [23] | 12 | 7 |
UK Albums Chart [24] | 2 | 78 |
US Billboard Hot 200 [25] | 128 | 9 |
Chart (2009) | Peak position | Total weeks |
---|---|---|
UK Albums Chart [26] | 67 | 1 |
Chart (1980) | Position |
---|---|
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [27] | 46 |
Date | Single | Chart | Position [26] | Weeks |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sep 1979 | "The Prince" (single version) | UK | 16 | 11 |
Nov 1979 | "One Step Beyond" | UK | 7 | 14 |
Jan 1980 | "My Girl" | UK | 3 | 10 |
Apr 1980 | "Night Boat to Cairo" | UK | 6 | 8 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
France (SNEP) [28] | Gold | 100,000* |
United Kingdom (BPI) [29] | Platinum | 300,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
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