Madness - Gatcombe Park

Monday 29th June 2009

After a stressful week spent dealing with poorly children, work dilemmas, builders in my house and, to top it all, a long power cut, I must admit I just felt like staying home in front of the TV on Friday night.
But I had tickets to review Madness at Gatcombe Park, playing what was the first-ever open-air concert to be held in the grounds of the Princess Royal's home.
And so my friends and I joined the thousands thronging in to the royal estate near Minchinhampton.
Things got off to a slow start. Support act ASWAD did their best to warm up the crowds, who were spread out around the grounds lounging on rugs or queuing up for chips, treating us to their best-known hits, Don't Turn Around and Shine, and even a first performance of their new single.
But the party didn’t really get started and things tailed off a bit with a long break between Aswad and the appearance of Madness.
But when Suggs and co. finally took to the stage, the 7,000-strong crowd went wild. As soon as the first sounds of One Step Beyond filled the air the fans were up and dancing, leaving behind their comfy deckchairs and pushing forward to get closer to the stage. It was like a switch had been flicked.
And boy was I glad I did make the effort to attend - because what a brilliant night it was. ‘Ska’ pioneers Madness belted out a mix of most of their old 80s favourites, including Our House, My Girl, Baggy Trousers, It Must be Love and Wings of a Dove, as well as material from their lauded new album, the Liberty of Norton Folgate, and it was just a great, great show.
I had forgotten the recuperative power of great live music and a good old dance!
Even better, after the torrential rain earlier in the day, was the unexpected evening sunshine which bathed the happy crowd, silhouetting the sea of bopping fans wearing fezes and pork pie hats as it set in orange and pink streaks over the Gatcombe fields.
"It never rains on Madness," Suggs told the crowds, who cheered with delight on hearing that it was raining in Glastonbury while we were enjoying the evening sun. And in another one over on the Glastonbury goers, the Gloucestershire folk got to see Madness first (and without the long traffic jams) - as they were due to appear at the Somerset music festival the next day.
The event was one of just three massive open-air concerts to celebrate 30 years of Madness, featuring all the original band members.
The highlight of the evening was a fantastic performance of House of Fun, which left no-one in any doubt as to just what great live performers and musicians the Madness boys are. Everyone was jigging happily around – no mean feat in a venue as large and spread out as the grounds of Gatcombe and with a crowd largely consisting of thirty and forty-somethings! 

 Alison Dhonau