The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death

The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death
Studio album by The Housemartins
Released	21 September 1987 [1]
Studio	Yellow 2, Stockport, Greater Manchester
Genre	Indie rock jangle pop
Length	38:06
Label	Go! Discs (UK) Elektra Entertainment (US)
Producer	John Williams
The Housemartins chronology
London 0 Hull 4 (1986) The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death (1987) Now That's What I Call Quite Good (1988)

The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death is the second and final studio album by The Housemartins. It was released in 1987, and produced three singles - "Five Get Over Excited" (#11 UK), "Me and the Farmer" (#15) and "Build" (#15 UK). The title song is about the British royal family, which found them gaining controversy in the tabloid papers similar to that of other bands such as the Sex Pistols, The Smiths and The Stone Roses.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Number One	[3]
Record Mirror	[4]
Sounds	[5]
The Village Voice	A− [6]

The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death was ranked number nine among "Albums of the Year" for 1987 in the annual NME critics' poll. ^[7]

Track listing

All tracks written by Paul Heaton and Stan Cullimore

1. "The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death" – 3:33
2. "I Can't Put My Finger on It" – 2:28
3. "The Light Is Always Green" – 3:59
4. "The World's on Fire" – 3:20
5. "Pirate Aggro" – 1:52
6. "We're Not Going Back" – 2:53
7. "Me and the Farmer" – 2:54
8. "Five Get Over Excited" – 2:44
9. "Johannesburg" – 3:55
10. "Bow Down" – 3:04
11. "You Better Be Doubtful" – 2:32
12. "Build" – 4:45

Charts

Chart (1987)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [8]	56

Personnel

The Housemartins

• Norman Cook – bass, vocals
• Dave Hemingway – drums, vocals
• P.d. Heaton – vocals, guitar, trombone, harmonica
• Stan Cullimore – guitar, vocals

Additional musicians

• Guy Barker – trumpet
• Sandy Blair – tuba
• St. Winifred's School Choir – backing vocals on "Bow Down"
• Pete Wingfield – piano, keyboards

Technical personnel

• John Williams – producer
• The Housemartins – producer
• Phil Bodger – engineer
• David Storey – sleeve design
• John Sims – sleeve design
• Phil Rainey – front cover photography
• Derek Ridgers – band photography
• John Woods – band photography

Certifications

Certifications for The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [9]	Gold	50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [10]	Gold	100,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "Index". Record Mirror . 12 September 1987. p. 2. ISSN   0144-5804.
2. Ankeny, Jason. "The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death – The Housemartins". AllMusic . Retrieved 25 June 2009.
3. Duff, Simon H. (3 October 1987). "Review: The Housemartins — The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death (Go Discs)". Number One . No. 224. London: IPC Magazines Ltd. p. 51. ISSN   0266-5328 . Retrieved 7 November 2022– via Flickr.
4. Morton, Roger (26 September 1987). "Albums". Record Mirror . p. 18. ISSN   0144-5804.
5. Phillips, Shaun (26 September 1987). "The Grin Reapers". Sounds . p. 35.
6. Christgau, Robert (29 December 1987). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice . Retrieved 19 January 2022.
7. "NME's best albums and tracks of 1987". NME . 10 October 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 141. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
9. Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 923. ISBN   84-8048-639-2 . Retrieved 22 July 2022.
10. "British album certifications – The Housemartins – The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved 22 July 2022.