Released on August 31, the lead-off single from Yes Please!, Stinkin’ Thinkin’, debuted on the UK chart at number 39. Barely a month later, its parent LP stalled at number 14. The only international chart troubled by its presence was Australia, at number 99. According to Shaun Ryder, “it was not a good album. There were no catchy grooves… it had absolutely no character. Yes Please! wasn’t the Mondays. It could have been anyone.” Hi Matt and thanks for talking to LTW…’Ups & Downs’ is a real lively collection of work, the paintings are wonderful , the colours and effect are both exciting and rather striking. First off the exhibition itself and your own thoughts on the reactions and coverage so far? Happy Mondays are always worth listening to and now they sound even better so devote a few hours to their swagger and slang and enjoy feeling part of one of our finest band of outlaws.

Kitty Empire (10 June 2007). "Pop: Happy Mondays, Astoria, London WC2 | Music | The Observer". The Guardian . Retrieved 25 December 2012. Ryder played with Happy Mondays for their peak era in the late 1980s, as the group communed with the rave scene of the time while innovating their own brand of psychedelic pop. After minor success with second album Bummed, they had a huge hit with the follow up Pills ‘n’ Thrills and Bellyaches in 1990, buoyed by the singles Step On and Kinky Afro, which both reached No 5 in the UK singles chart. Happy Mondays Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Archived from the original on 10 October 2021 . Retrieved 10 October 2021. It perhaps goes without saying that the decision by the Happy Mondays to make their fourth album, Yes Please!, in the sun-kissed paradise of the Caribbean was not without incident. Recorded at Blue Wave Studios, a lavish complex owned by the reggae star Eddy Grant, its towering costs helped bankrupt Factory Records, the label on which it was released. With sales of 50,000 copies – far less than a quarter of its predecessor, Pills’n’Thrills And Bellyaches - it would be its authors’ last LP for 15 years.A fictionalised depiction of the band is featured in the 2002 film 24 Hour Party People, with Danny Cunningham as Shaun Ryder and Paul Popplewell as Paul Ryder. Paul Ryder himself had a cameo role in the film as a gangster and Rowetta appeared in the film as herself. [18] Third incarnation [ edit ] Happy Mondays performed before another re-formed act, Rage Against the Machine, at the 2007 Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California. They were introduced by Tony Wilson. Bez missed the show because he could not get into the US due to "passport issues". [23] The band then toured throughout the summer of 2007 including a trip to the Numusic Festival in Norway. They played Splendour in the Grass in Australia in July 2009, and the UK V Festival in August 2009. Happy Mondays: Biography". The Guardian home. Guardian News and Media Limited. 13 August 2010 . Retrieved 6 May 2012.

Yes Please!, then, may go largely uncelebrated as it passes its 25th anniversary. But its mixture of warm Caribbean sun and hard Manchester rain, sleek production sheen and lyrical despair, makes the album brilliantly unique, a weird combination of Eddy Grant, Joy Division, Tom Tom Club and one of the best lyricists in British history straining at the very end of his patience. Forget the four lousy songs that end Yes Please!, stop worrying about the demise of Factory and you can appreciate the first six songs on the album for their raw emotional power. a b Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDFed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p.124. Brod, Doug; Krugman, Michael. "Happy Mondays". Trouser Press. Archived from the original on 3 December 2020 . Retrieved 27 September 2021. As determinedly hedonistic as his bandmates in daily life, there was nevertheless something solid about his playing. In a outfit whose musicianship was occasionally called into question – Shaun claimed that former Smiths bassist Andy Rourke had attempted to form a band with the Mondays’ keyboard player Paul Davis, giving up when he realised “that lad can’t play a note” – Paul’s bass provided an anchor, something the listener could latch on to amid the confusion. Iverson, Doug (27 December 1992). "McEntire serves up too much heartache". The Blade. Archived from the original on 9 October 2021 . Retrieved 15 October 2021.Happy Mondays Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Archived from the original on 10 October 2021 . Retrieved 10 October 2021. We were wondering if u were thinking of reproducing any of your work as we would love to have some for our home not only because we love your pieces but as a constant reminder and inspiration for us as a family. You see we have 3 wonderful little boys and 2 of those little boys are Otis and Eli who are twins and who also have downs.” In the meantime, the members of the band had taken advantage of their fame and fortune, living lives of decadence and excess. Lead singer Shaun Ryder, in particular, was notorious for his Caligula-esque antics, such as hosting four-day parties featuring sex shows and dwarfs. Meanwhile, he took so many drugs he made the Gallagher brothers look like teetotalers. Interview: Paul Ryder on Life with the Happy Mondays" (Interview). Live4ever. Live4ever Ezine. 11 May 2011 . Retrieved 6 May 2012.