7 (also known as Madness 7) is the third studio album by the English ska and pop band Madness. Released in October 1981, it peaked at No. 5 on the UK Albums Chart. All but one track was recorded at Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas in the summer of 1981, the exception being "Grey Day" which was recorded in London earlier in the year, although in 2011 co-producer Alan Winstanley stated in the Guided Tour of Madness boxed-set that much of the album was re-recorded in London when they returned from Nassau. The album title was band member Chas Smash's idea based on the lucky number 7.
Critical reception
In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine described 7 as "a great leap forward" for Madness, noting that while "they're still clearly the same nutty band that tore it up with One Step Beyond", the album "finds the group expanding its horizons considerably, ratcheting up the melodious pop quotient in their songwriting, as well as the distinctly English character sketches."
; CD 1
; The original album
: *The first disc contains the thirteen tracks from the original album plus four promo videos.
; The promo videos
- Grey Day
- Shut Up
- It Must be Love
- Cardiac Arrest
;CD 2
Personnel
Madness
- Graham "Suggs" McPherson – lead vocals
- Mike Barson – piano, organ, vibes, marimba, tubular bells
- Chris Foreman – guitar, sitar
- Mark Bedford – bass
- Lee Thompson – saxophones, burps, squeaks, lead vocals on track 10
- Daniel Woodgate – drums, congas
- Chas Smash – backing vocals, trumpet
Technical
- Clive Langer – producer, engineer
- Alan Winstanley – producer, engineer
- Arun Chakraverty – mastering
- Stella Artwork – cover
- C-More – cover
- Mike Putland – photography
2010 reissue
- Dale Griffin – producer on Richard Skinner session
- Mike Engels – engineer on Richard Skinner session
- Tim Turan – remastering
- Martin 'Cally' Callomon – art direction, design
- David Quantick – liner notes
Chart performance
Album
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Chart (1981)
! Peak<br>position
! Total<br>weeks
|-
| align="left"| Dutch Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"| 5
| style="text-align:center;"| 17
|-
| align="left"| Swedish Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"| 41
| style="text-align:center;"| 1
|-
| align="left"| UK Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"| 5
| style="text-align:center;"| 28
|}
Singles
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Date
! Single
! Chart
! Position
|-
| Apr 1981
| Grey Day
| UK
| No. 4
|-
| Sep 1981
| Shut Up (edited to 3:26 for issue as a single)
| UK
| No. 7
|-
| Feb 1982
| Cardiac Arrest (remixed for issue as a single)
| UK
| No. 14
|}