You run around and groove like a baggy
Continuing my trip back through the 1990 album charts.
18/11/90 : Pills 'n Thrills And Bellyaches - Happy Mondays
The Happy Mondays are an odd bunch, aren't they? What with all their recreational activities, it's amazing they ever managed to make any music but they pulled together some surprisingly cracking tunes in their time. I'd have to say I'm not expecting the quality to be particularly consistent though (and no, we've never owned it - 3/7)
Actually, it's generally better than I was expecting. When it works, as it does on "Kinky Afro" and "Step On" ("you're twistin' my melon man"), it really does work. And for most of the rest of it, there's a strong rhythm and decent enough noises for it to be engaging. However, when it doesn't work, as it doesn't on "Grandbag's Funeral", it REALLY doesn't work. God, it was awful - but as a whole the album was fine and yes, it had a good beat to it, daddio.
We're at #12 in the chart this week on their second week of a 28 week run with it having peaked at #4 in its debut week - all of which feels a bit more successful than I was expecting. The top five this week were Madonna (a new entry about to start a nine week run at the top), Elton John (about to start a nine week run at #2 - would he have spent 11 weeks at the top if not for Madonna?), Phil Collins (about to start a five week run at #3), Paul Simon (our first studio album in top five this year!) and The Three Tenors and we have two more new entries in the top ten for Jimmy Somerville (#6) and Kylie Minogue (#9).
Wikipedia has way more on the album than I was expecting (242 milliPeppers) and I actually learned some stuff! The album was produced by Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne (who I wasn't aware of but he's done loads of stuff) - apparently they provided "substantial input" (why does that not surprise me?). Bizarrely, on the album tour Happy Mondays were supported by Donovan - I knew there was a connection but had to check Wikipedia to remind me that Shaun Ryder and his daughter Oriole had a child together. But, most bizarrely, and I'm amazed I never knew this, I learned that "Step On" is a cover version. Why did no-one EVER tell me? The original is surprisingly similar - a lot more so than I was expecting.
The critical response was generally positive - Stuart Maconie declared it to be "a tremendous record", but the Americans were a bit confused by it all. Which isn't really all that surprising now, is it? What is surpising is the legacy view - there's quite a few people think that this is as important an early 90s album as any, Which, tbh, I'm not sure I see - but what do I know eh? What might surprise you is that this got to #89 in the US though - I'm intrigued as to how that happened...
"Customers also listened to" The Charlatans, Primal Scream, The Stone Roses and Black Grape - some definitely similar sounds there. I enjoyed this album - it's a bit of a surprise I never experienced it before, but I'm glad to have righted that wrong now.
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