One Better Day

"One Better Day"
Single by Madness
from the album Keep Moving
Released 2 June 1984
Format 7"
12"
Genre Pop, ska, reggae
Length 4:06
Label Stiff Records
Writer(s) Graham McPherson (lyrics)
Mark Bedford (music)
Producer(s) Clive Langer
Alan Winstanley
Madness singles chronology
"Michael Caine"
(1984)		 "One Better Day"
(1984)		 "Yesterday's Men"
(1985)
Music sample
One Better Day
Keep Moving track listing
Side One
  1. "Keep Moving"
  2. "Michael Caine"
  3. "Turning Blue"
  4. "One Better Day"
  5. "March of the Gherkins"
  6. "Waltz into Mischief"
Side Two
  1. "Brand New Beat"
  2. "Victoria Gardens"
  3. "Samantha"
  4. "Time for Tea"
  5. "Prospects"
  6. "Give Me a Reason"

"One Better Day" is a song by British band Madness from their 1984 album Keep Moving. The song was written by Graham McPherson and Mark Bedford.[1] The song was released as a single in the UK, and spent 7 weeks in British charts peaking at number 18.[2]

The single was a last minute choice, as "Victoria Gardens" from the same album was originally slated to be the album's second single.[2] The remixed version of "Victoria Gardens" intended for the A-side was instead included as a bonus track on the 12" single. The substitution was likely made to avoid releasing two consecutive singles with Carl Smyth as lead vocalist, following the disappointing (by their standards) sales of "Michael Caine" and widespread rumours that Suggs was about to leave, or had already left, the group. This was the last single under the Stiff Records label, before the band's creation of their own label, Zarjazz Records.[2] The B-side "Guns" was McPherson's first solo writing credit and meant that all seven members of the group had been credited with at least one solo composition.

Music video

As the single was the final release under Stiff Records, the label did not want to film an accompanying music video, and the band had to fund it themselves.[2] Mike Barson flew from Amsterdam especially to be a part of the video.[2] The resulting music video was filmed in Arlington Road, just outside "Arlington House". Incidentally, "Arlington House" is the first line of the song, and was a local homeless refuge, one of the Rowton Houses.[2]

Most of the video shows the band members as homeless people, except a few clips showing them performing the song. It also shows Suggs dancing with his wife Bette Bright, who plays a homeless woman in the video.

Appearances

In addition to its single release and appearance on the album Keep Moving, "One Better Day" also appears on the Madness collections Divine Madness (a.k.a. The Heavy Heavy Hits), Utter Madness, Total Madness, The Business and Our House: the Best of Madness. It did not appear on any of the band's US compilations.

Formats and track listings

These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "One Better Day".

  1. "One Better Day" (McPherson/Bedford) - 4:06
  2. "Guns" (McPherson) - 3:14
  1. "One Better Day" (McPherson/Bedford) - 4:06
  2. "Guns" (McPherson) - 3:14
  3. "Victoria Gardens" (Smyth/Barson/Smyth) - 4:01
  4. "Sarah" (Thompson/Madness) - 3:43

Chart performance

Chart (1984) Peak
position		 Total
weeks
UK Singles Chart[3] 17 7

Notes

  1. ↑ "Allmusic.com Keep Moving Overview". Retrieved on June 27, 2007.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 "The Madness Timeline: 1984". Retrieved on June 27, 2007.
  3. ↑ Madness at Official Charts Company Retrieved 21 June 2013