Madness rocking on

John Nurden

john.nurden@KRNmedia.co.uk

WILL Madness star Suggs make the Earth move this weekend?

It is almost 18 years to the day since the Nutty Boys virtually brought the house down, literally, with their two-day Madstock reunion concert at London’s Finsbury Park.

More than 75,000 fans jumping up and down together during One Step Beyond shook the ground so hard it registered five on the Richter scale on August 8.

Startled neighbours called the police who then evacuated three eight-storey tower blocks thinking London had been hit by an earthquake. The same thing happened at exactly the same time the following day.

Seismologists put the noise and damage down to the fans dancing at the same frequency as the apartment blocks. Will it happen on Saturday when Madness play Quex Park at Birchington? Experts think not.

Perhaps that is because there are not many high rise flats around, apart from Margate’s Arlington House. Or perhaps it is because lead Nutty Boy Suggs is now 49 and a little more settled these days.

He puts his calming influence down to Whitstable. He said: “I visit Whitstable most weekends. My wife was one of the last to be born in the town and her family still live in Tankerton.

“When I was 18 I did all my courting there. It is one of the few places on the coast to have retained its character over the past 30 years. I was always amazed to find my mother-in-law going for a swim in the sea every day.

“When our two daughters, Viva and Scarlett, were small we took them to Whitstable, too. They are two urban kids but they were brought up to appreciate the sea and they love it.

“My wife’s family has a beach hut there. It’s been in the family for 40 years, long before they became like the crown jewels. It’s a beautiful place. I can’t think of anything better than sitting in the hut, when everyone else has left the beach, and watching the sunset.

Suggs, who had hits with One Step Beyond, Driving In My Car, It Must Be Love and My Girl’s Mad At Me, first met his wife, Anne Martin, a former student at Canterbury Art College, when she was singing in a band called Deaf School.

Suggs, real name Graham McPherson, said: “Deaf School was a huge influence on Madness and one of its members, guitarist Clive Langer, became our producer.

“Anne left to pursue a solo career as Bette Bright. It’s good that she was in the business because she knows the need for touring and why I am away from home so much. She and her family are also a calming influence on me. They keep me grounded.”

Suggs also has fond memories of Margate.

He said: “As a London boy I’d go to Margate for my holidays. I was about eight or nine and loved the feeling of freedom, let loose in Dreamland with 20p in my pocket to spend on whatever I wanted.

“I went there nine months ago and it was very sad to see Dreamland all shut up. I hear they are planning a retro Dreamland. Does that mean they will recreate all the fights between Mods and Rockers on the beach?”

Did he ever think he’d still be singing in the band 31 years later?

He said: “Never, we only ever thought about one day at a time.

“When we started, I was a gardener and thought it was excellent to play in a pub on a Friday night, get a little cash and then go into work like a hero on Monday.

“We all met at school. How many others have kept in touch with their school mates for 30 years? We may travel in a little more luxury these days but we still have a great time. It’s organised chaos.”

First record? “The first single I bought was Wall Street Shuffle by 10cc. But I stole a few before that. I took a 12-inch version of Ring My Bell by Anita Ward from Woolworths, although this is not to be encouraged. Perhaps you shouldn’t write that?

First car? “It was a VW Kharmen Ghia. It was my wife’s favourite. We had just married on December 23, 1981, so I decided to buy her one. It looked like a Porsche. I drove it from Luton to London but I was only 21 and didn’t have a licence. I drove it all the way in first gear. It took me two and a half days. I had no idea what I was doing. Perhaps you shouldn’t write that, either!”

Madness play Quex Park, Birchington, this Saturday (July 24) from 5pm with support from The Blockheads, Lightning Seeds and the King Blues. Tickets are £33.50 from 08712 200260 (24 hours), 01843 292795 or www.gigantic. com