Madness returns to Haydock racecourse and come sunshine or rain, it won’t stop the feel good music this evening! An evening filled with ska and two support acts, tonight’s show is rammed with some legendry acts it’s sure going to be a chaotic evening!  

Up first is Laurie Wright and it’s just one man and his guitar! Laurie usually has a band but it’s just him going solo so there’s no pressure here at all! Hooked in with his charismatic ways and his music feels like a combination of Pete doherty and Jake Bugg but a more happier Bugg.

Despite a small set, Laurie has done an outstanding job and this is a win win for the crowd as they have also joined in with some parts of the chorus under instruction. With a new single that comes out and sadly i don’t know the name 100%. To sumarise the set, when he sings Bambi Legs and usually theres a trumpet solo but Laurie mimics the trumpet and the funny things is this is a love song too so this is bananas! 

If you are in London he’s playing a gig on October 2nd too! If you want to have a quick listen to how ace his guitar playing is then listen to west end lover! Here’s hoping he comes back up this way soon on a tour as Laurie is one to watch! 

Soon as Laurie’s set finishes it’s gone from sunny to pissing it down with the almighty heavy of the heavy rain which for an outdoor stage, everyone ran for shelter and luckily the rain did actually stop just in time for the ordinary boys! Lead singer Preston says “it’s we tbut we’re british so we’re fucking used to it” and yeah that’s fair enough! 

Opening with the the counter of culture straight into a banger it sure sets the mood and Preston does have a good ol’ chat with the crowd during the set for a bit to forget about the rain. Apparently the best way to get dry is to dance but don’t take Preston’s word for it as you can’t trust what you read online so dance to ” life will be the death of me. 

Honestly I didn’t expect to actually see The Ordinary boys live as they have been a bucket list band to cover as they have a load of bangers and if you are a fan of the film st trinian’s then you’ll know this one 9 to 5!

Preston talks about how he’s been a massive fan of Madness since he was roughly ten years old and they are a big inspiration to his music style and that makes sense. With a massive comeback, this also means new music too “Peer Pressure” which has come out not too long ago. Anyone a fan of The Clash? as they cover “bank robber” too.

Throwing it back to another classic one “talk talk talk” which Preston is telling the crowd to sing the chorus; “grey and boring, back to work on monday morning”, the timing of this as it’s currently grey outside due to the weather! 

Up next is a brand new unreleased single which is the first time playing it live which I think it’s called Therapy ( sorry if this is incorrect) Preston jokes about a horse being on the loose so you gotta get close to jump and skank it away and yes the song is called jump and skank which does tone thing down a bit with some mellow melodies! Yes boys will be boys is next to kick things back up a notch, it’ll be rude if they don’t play this. 

Coming to the end of the show Preston says that the band pretty much went away twenty years ago and now they’re back so that’s why it’s a little confusing but dreams do come true and the ordinary boys are back! 

Madness: where do you begin with this legendary band? Despite breaking up in the mid 80’s for a few years then returning, they technically have been running for almost 50 years and that’s an achievement alone not to mention the constant arena tours, festivals and outdoor shows like this one tonight. 

Though some can argue that the band itself is predictable when it comes down to the song choices and stage presence but the other side is that if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Veteran fans know what they are in for even if it’s near identical as the shows in the past but it still works perfectly. I think Madness are one of only a few bands that can top this on a regular basis and it’s not bland. 

The combo work with the singer Stuggs and the saxophonist  Lee Thompson have that charismatic and cheeky personalities help a lot with this as they just bounce off each other while telling stories on how the songs came to be and yes one does include Lee driving a truck delivering bananas which this had to get added to the review! If you spent time quoting the band this review will be triple in length aha! 

See that’s the thing it’s not just a concert, it also feels like a theatre performance with story telling that isn’t bland and the music is still iconic as any ska fan will mention madness and bands that are influenced by this band will proudly show it like the ordinary  boys for example , Preston loved the band and that’s what got him into music. 

Though the sky might be bland and grey with the power of ska it makes the greys go away. Not really but the crowd didn’t seem to mind still being wet from the rain before as you can get to sing and dance the evening away with their favourite band. Yes they played the most known tracks that are the first one when it comes to mind , one step beyond, house of fun, night boat to cairo, my girl plus more , you know the usual. 

A big question is, who will fill madness’s boots when this band will eventually lay to rest in years to come. See this is the thing, i can’t think of any Ska band which has such an incredible amount of history and the dedicated fan base. It will be a huge blow in the industry when these titans eventually go away…unless they resort to doing holograms live abba and kiss. 

I’ve seen madness a few times over the years and they give you an instant buzz. So if they are playing near you or playing anywhere you can get to , it’s wise to go get tickets and see this wonderful band, you won’t regret it! To top things off seeing a lot of the crowd wearing the iconic fez hat is also something to see!

Laurie Wright (C) Christopher James Ryan Photography

The Ordinary Boys (C) Christopher James Ryan Photography

Madness (C) Christopher James Ryan Photography