There are several theories about why the Happy Mondays are called what they are. One is that the band's name refers to what Manchester's unemployed population called the day that welfare checks were issued, or that simply they didn't have to go back to work on Mondays unlike the poor working sods. However, Shaun Ryder did remark in an interview with drug smuggler Howard Marks that the name Happy Mondays was merely a quick solution to naming the band and bears no real relevance at all. Despite fan speculation, he name has no connection with the song "Blue Monday" by synthpop band New Order, as the Mondays were together and had named the band before this song was released.
First incarnation
Manchester pop impresario Tony Wilson discovered the Mondays at a battle of the bands contest held at his Hacienda nightclub. The story goes that Wilson signed them to his label, Factory Records, even though they came in last. Their first album, Squirrel and G-Man Twenty Four Hour Party People Plastic Face Carnt Smile (White Out), debuted in 1987. A number of other albums followed, most of which were released in the United States on the Elektra Records label. By the late 1980s, the Happy Mondays were an important part of the Madchester music scene and personified rave culture. By this time frontman Ryder was fighting a serious drug problem and the band's productivity plummeted.
Musically, the band fused indie pop guitars with a rhythmic style that owed much to house music, techno and northern soul. Much of their music was remixed by popular DJs, emphasizing the dance influences even further. In terms of style and dress, they crossed hippy fashion and ideals with 1970s glamour. Sartorially and musically, the band helped to encourage the psychedelic revival associated with acid house. One of their most popular songs was Lazyitis, featuring a surreal duet between Ryder and country music legend Karl Denver.
The Mondays disbanded in 1992, and Shaun Ryder and Bez formed Black Grape with ex-Paris Angels guitarist, Paul Wagstaff a.k.a."Wags" and ex-Ruthless Rap Assassins star, Paul Leveridge a.k.a. "Kermit".
Second incarnation
Seven years passed, but in 1999 Happy Mondays reformed, minus Paul Davis and Mark Day. In their place were Wags and a number of other musicians close to Shaun Ryder. However, the reunion with a world tour and the release of a new single, The Boys Are Back In Town, was to be short-lived. The single sunk in the charts, reaching only number 30 in the UK singles chart. It was also dropped from the live set after proving difficult for the band to perform live. In 2000 the band called it a day after providing support for Oasis on their "Standing on the Shoulder of Giants" tour.
The band is featured in the 2002 movie 24 Hour Party People, with Danny Cunningham as Shaun Ryder. Paul Ryder had a cameo role as a gangster and Rowetta (who sang for the band on Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches and Yes, Please!) appeared in the film as herself.
Third incarnation
2004 saw another reformation, comprising Bez, Gary Whelan and Shaun Ryder, following the latter's unsuccessful solo career. The musicians released a live DVD that year of a show in Barcelona, and rumours abounded that the band was recording a new album. The Mondays played a variety of festival dates in 2005 (including Glastonbury), capping it off with a concert at the Manchester Evening News Arena in their hometown.
In June 2006 the Mondays performed another one-off gig in Liverpool, although Paul Ryder was not present - having sworn to never perform with his brother again following the 2000 break-up. On Sunday 30th July 2006 the Mondays were special guests at The Fuji Rock Festival - a 3 day festival held at the Naeba Ski Resort in Japan. They performed a 60 minute set - starting with Loose Fit and ending with 24 Hour Party People. Only Shaun, Bez and Gaz Whelan were present from the original lineup.
In early August of 2006, the band announced that they had completed their first album in 14 years with producers Sunny Levine and Howie B, and have recently signed to Sanctuary Records. A new single, "Playground Superstar" from the soundtrack for the football film "Goal!" was released a few months prior to completion of the new album, titled Uncle Dysfunctional and released in Summer 2007.
Happy Mondays performed before another reformed act, Rage Against the Machine, to put the finishing touches at the venerated 2007 Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California on April 27, 2007. The band then toured medium-sized venues in England in May 2007, playing old and new material. Various festival dates in the UK and New York City were performed throughout Summer 2007.
Fourth incarnation
On 29 January 2012, Shaun Ryder announced on radio station Xfm that the band would return with the original and definitive lineup of himself, his brother Paul Ryder on bass, Gary Whelan on drums, Rowetta as female vocalist, Mark Day on guitar, Paul Davis on keyboards and dancer Mark Berry. They appeared on ITV's This Morning, and were interviewed by Philip Schofield. Shaun Ryder pronounced that amends had been made, friendships reinstated and that it was just like the old days, but without the madness. They did a 13-date UK tour in May 2012, most of which were sold out, and an extra date was added at London's Brixton Academy due to the demand for tickets.[26] The tour included other shows at the Manchester Arena, plus other dates in Bournemouth, Glasgow, Dublin, Leeds, Sheffield and Nottingham. To coincide with the band's reformation tour a best of album, Double Double Good was released in July 2012, as well as a live recording of the band's May 2012 gig in Brixton. The band went on to play gigs in Chile and Argentina in May 2012 and then a number of European festivals in the summer of 2012, including Ireland's Sea Sessions, Scotland's T in the Park, the band were headliners at Camp Bestival in Dorset in July 2012 and they performed at the V Festivals in August 2012. They then travelled to Majorca and Ibiza to play the Ibiza and Majorca Rocks events.
The band announced in September 2012 that they were writing their first album with the original lineup in more than 20 years.[citation needed]
The band played two nights at the Roundhouse, London and in Manchester in December 2012. They travelled to Dubai in April 2013 to perform and in May 2013 played gigs at Bristol's Vegfest and one in Brighton. June 2013 brought gigs at the Isle of Wight Festival and Scarborough, then in July 2013 they played at the Warrington Music Festival and at Sandown Park Racecourse in Esher, Surrey. They played dates in Belfast, Crewe and Dublin in August 2013. In October 2013 they travelled to Spain to do gigs in Barcelona and Madrid then in November 2013 they kicked off a 16 date UK tour to celebrate 25 years since their second critically acclaimed album Bummed was released, and the band plan to play most of the songs from that infamous album. The band signed to Creation Management in 2015. They have announced an international tour to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches.
In September 2015, a special programme on Watch called Singing in the Rainforest followed the band as they travelled to Panama to record a new song with an isolated tribe called the Embera. The band composed a track with members of the tribe for a performance, penning the track "Ooo La La to Panama". Although billed as the first original line-up recording since 1992, Paul Davis was not present, and no mention of him was made. Gaz Whelan confirmed via the Happy Mondays Twitter account (in answer to a question from a Twitter user named ormi_shinobi) that Davis had left the band.
The band toured New Zealand and Australia in February and March 2019, performing their 1990 album Pills 'N' Thrills And Bellyaches.
On 15 July 2022, the band announced via their Facebook page that Bassist and original member Paul Ryder had died in the early hours of that morning. He was 58 years old.
Happy Mondays have continued to perform live after Ryders death.
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Discography
Squirrel and G-Man Twenty Four Hour Party People Plastic Face Carnt Smile (White Out) (1987)
Bummed (1988)
Hallelujah (1989)
The Peel Sessions 1989 (1990) #79 UK
Madchester Rave On EP (1989) #19 UK
Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches (1990) #4 UK, #89 US
Live (1991) #21 UK
Yes Please (1992) #14 UK
Loads (1994) #41 UK
Greatest Hits (1999) #11 UK
Step On - Live In Barcelona (recorded Dec. 2004) (2005) #194 UK
The Platinum Collection (2005) #19 UK
Uncle Dysfunktional (2007) #73 UK
Dennis And Lois
Happy Mondays Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Where we punch with love and did somebody good
It's good to see you to see you nice
If you do me one, well we'll do you twice
We're twice as likely we're twice as right
Right
Right on, right on
Right
We all learnt to wash at the scrubbers club
Where we ring out the dirt with a rud a dub dub
Tell how you think if you think it was good
Say it loud and clear so it's understood
You take it how you made it like I know you would
Let it bled let it heal let me sleep it's no good, so
Let's ride, right on right on
Honey how's your breathing
If it stops for good we'll be leaving
And honey how's your daughter
Did you teach her what we've taught yer
And if you didn't well you ought to do it now
Well lets ride on ride on
The opening line of "Dennis and Lois" by Happy Mondays refers to the experience of the band members at a place called the Midget Club, where they learned how to box. Despite the somewhat violent connotations of boxing, the band members approach it with love, implying that there is something communal and supportive about the experience. The line "We punch with love and did somebody good" suggests that there is some kind of redemptive quality to physical expression that is not necessarily negative. The following lines also emphasize this feeling of togetherness and collaboration, with the band members echoing each other and bouncing off of each other's energy.
The second stanza of the song refers to the "scrubbers club," where the band learned how to wash. The imagery of "ringing out the dirt with a rub a dub dub" is less violent and more soothing, suggesting that there is something therapeutic about the act of cleansing. However, the sentiment behind the two stanzas is quite similar -- in both cases, the band members are talking about a communal space where they learned important skills that have helped them in life. The lines "Tell how you think if you think it was good / Say it loud and clear so it's understood" suggest that there is also an aspect of reflection and communication involved, where everyone is encouraged to share their thoughts and opinions in a supportive environment.
The repeated refrain of "right on, right on" is a classic example of a call-and-response, with one band member leading and the others echoing. The overall effect is one of camaraderie and shared experience, emphasizing the idea that the band members are all in this together. The final lines, "Honey how's your breathing / If it stops for good we'll be leaving / And honey how's your daughter / Did you teach her what we've taught yer / And if you didn't well you ought to do it now / Well lets ride on ride on," are somewhat cryptic but seem to suggest that the band members are aware of mortality and the need to pass on knowledge to future generations.
Line by Line Meaning
We all learn to box from the Midget Club
We are all familiar with the art of boxing that we learned at the Midget Club.
Where we punch with love and did somebody good
We box with love and intentions of doing well for somebody.
It's good to see you to see you nice
It is great to see you looking well and feeling great.
If you do me one, well we'll do you twice
If you do something good for me, I'll return the favor by doing two good things for you.
We're twice as likely we're twice as right
We are twice as capable and twice as confident in our abilities.
Right
Yes, that's correct.
Right on, right on
Affirmative, completely in agreement.
We all learnt to wash at the scrubbers club
We all learned how to clean up at the Scrubbers Club.
Where we ring out the dirt with a rud a dub dub
Where we remove the dirt with a quick and vigorous action.
Tell how you think if you think it was good
Share your thoughts if you believe that it was good.
Say it loud and clear so it's understood
State it boldly and unambiguously so that it is clear to everyone.
You take it how you made it like I know you would
You accept it the way you made it, as I know you would.
Let it bled let it heal let me sleep it's no good, so
It's not good to continue worrying about it, so let it heal and let me sleep.
Let's ride, right on right on
Let's go, full speed ahead.
Honey how's your breathing
Sweetheart, are you breathing well?
If it stops for good we'll be leaving
If you stop breathing permanently, we will have to leave.
And honey how's your daughter
Sweetheart, how is your daughter doing?
Did you teach her what we've taught yer
Did you give her the same knowledge that we gave you?
And if you didn't well you ought to do it now
And if you haven't, you should do it now.
Well lets ride on ride on
Well, let's get going and continue moving forward.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: PAUL ANTHONY RYDER, GARY KENNETH WHELAN, MARK PHILIP DAY, PAUL RICHARD DAVIS, SHAUN WILLIAM RYDER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jean Berthet
Not their most famous, but such a great tune, anthem for the baggy generation. beautiful lyrics too...
Alan Meadows
FUCKING DIPSHIT/dont try and play it cool.20 possibly 21
Antony James HERBERT
yes
Johnnys Smashed 69
Some of their best tracks are the album tracks .
NostaMusica
I was in Army when I played this non stop. my fellow soldiers didnt get it they listened to MTV crap like Ugly Kid Joe and Warrant.
Only one friend liked them my barracks neighbor a high yella brother from Detroit he used to come in my room dancing saying "thats got some soul." he loved the whole album and I cut him a copy. The beat and the bass he just loved he was surprised when he found out it was a bunch of pasty white boys from england. Good stuff & timeless.
FMCH
I know how you felt. Thankfully when I was in the Navy(92-96), a new alt rock radio station began in Hampton Roads, 96X. Thanks to them, we got a lot of great groups coming through and we got to hear great alt rack.
Antony James HERBERT
love
Burton Rd Forever 1977
@Celeste Williams 👍👍
Celeste Williams
@Burton Rd Forever 1977 I'm a 77 kid as well 😎😄
Celeste Williams
I used to like Ugly Kid Joe, back in the day...but now, I can only dig what really matters...😎❤