MADNESS - ONE BETTER DAY

Released: June 2, 1984

Charted:  UK: #17 

"One Better Day" is a song from the band fifth studio album “Keep Moving”, written by Suggs (Graham McPherson) and Bedders (Mark Bedford). 

Suggs explained in an interview with Daniel Rachel for the book The Art of Noise: Conversations with Great Songwriters: "The idea of that song was when you'd hear people say, 'Oh, he's seen better days,' like when you see a guy in a suit looking a bit tatty. I thought, 'What was that one better day?' Then I had the idea that he would meet this other homeless person that happened to be a woman - and they fell in love. Between them they could engender onebetter day as people who had, supposedly, seen better days."

As the 80s unfolded and the impact of the Thatcher government's policies intensified, Madness faced challenges in maintaining their lighthearted image. Feeling the need to address the unfolding realities in Britain, they shifted their focus. One notable song from this period, "Victoria Gardens," which starkly portrayed London's homeless community and criticized Thatcher with the line "she said it's for the good of us all," was initially intended as a single for 1984's “Keep Moving” album. However, it was replaced by a more poignant exploration of the theme. In this alternative track, Suggs narrates the story of a homeless couple finding love amidst the harsh streets. The song's strength lies in the contrast between the grim verses and the chorus's romantic richness, reminiscent of a scene from Charlie Chaplin's City Lights: "Walking round you sometimes/Hear that sunshine/Beating down in time with the rhythm of your shoes." 

The music video featured Suggs and his wife, singer Bette Bright, portraying the protagonists, dancing with their belongings in front of Arlington House, a hostel in Camden Town for the homeless. Because it was their last single through Stiff Records, the label didn't want to film a video, so the band funded it themselves.

Mark made some comments about the recording of the song in the liner notes of the Utter Madness compilation album: thrang! Suggs tape recorder had a spasm as I hit is acoustic guitar to hard. The needles clattered into the red. “One better day” had no good off to a good start. Eventually at a softer level, we recorded a rough version of the song. This wasn't bound to be an easy one. Several chord changes later, Suggs had the first verse and chorus. The song progressed bumpily through rehearsals and even into the studio. In fact we recorded three different versions finally settling on the one you can hear today, and that nearly never made it. If you listen to the record as it fades you can almost hear the bass and drums grind to a halt. Who says it's all done with machines? But with a sympathetic string arrangement from David Bedford and a great vocal it fell into place at the death. This song should really be called ‘Perseverance’.