Mama Weer All Crazee Now

"Mama Weer All Crazee Now"
Spanish/European cover of "Mama Weer All Crazee Now".
Single by Slade
from the album Slayed?
A-side	"Mama Weer All Crazee Now"
B-side	"Man Who Speeks Evil"
Released	25 August 1972
Recorded	1972
Genre	Hard rock, glam rock
Length	3:45
Label	Polydor
Writer(s)	Noddy Holder/Jim Lea
Producer(s)	Chas Chandler
Slade singles chronology
"Take Me Bak 'Ome" (1972) "Mama Weer All Crazee Now" (1972) "Gudbuy T' Jane" (1972)
Audio sample file info · help Alternative Cover French cover of "Mama Weer All Crazee Now". Alternative Cover Dutch cover of "Mama Weer All Crazee Now". Alternative Cover Belgian cover of "Mama Weer All Crazee Now".

"Mama Weer All Crazee Now" is a song originally recorded by the British glam rock band Slade on their album Slayed?.

Written by Jim Lea and Noddy Holder and produced by Chas Chandler, it was the band's third number-one single in the United Kingdom. The single entered the charts on its first week at #2, then followed by #1 for the next 3 weeks in September 1972. It was last seen in the top 100 on 4 November 1972 at #39.^[1] The single fared less well in the USA, where it peaked at #76. It also topped the chart in Ireland.

Besides its commercial success, the song has also received critical acclaim, with the musical magazine Record Mirror labelling it as "full of sheer bloody-minded slay them enthusiasm".

Background

Some months before the band had played at the Boston Gliderdrome in Linolnshire, a bouncer had told them about another act who had appeared there drunk - "crazy with whiskey" - and this gave Holder the idea for the lyrics. The song was originally titled "My My We're All Crazy Now"—the title was changed by manager Chas Chandler; the spelling, of course, was adapted by the band's own traditions. Several of the most distinctive parts of the record were virtual ad-libs, including the "mama mama mama yeah" coda at the end. Chandler also opened the song with a howl recorded during some of Holder's vocal exercises.^[2]

In a December 1984 interview with Record Mirror, the magazine tested Lea's memory by asking him to recall the story behind certain hits. For "Mama Weer All Crazee"/"Cum on Feel the Noize", Lea stated "I was at a Chuck Berry gig in '72 and everybody was singing his tunes. He kept stopping and letting the crowd sing and it wasn't just a few people, it was everyone. I thought it was amazing and thought - why not write the crowd into the songs, and so of course, the next one was 'Take Me Bak 'Ome' then 'Gudbuy T'Jane' but then we got round to 'Mama Weer All Crazee Now' and 'Cum on Feel the Noize' and all the chants were written into the tunes."

Dave Thompson from AllMusic described the song as "a full-on adrenalin monster, ear-splittingly loud with its lyrics a raw-throated bellow."^[3]

In the late 1970s, The Boomtown Rats would play Slade's "Mama Weer All Crazee Now" over the PA as they walked on stage at their American performances.^[4][5]

Promotion

No promotional video was created for the song.^[6][7]

The main form of promotion for the single were numerous UK and European TV performances on programmes such as Top of the Pops. The band's live performances were also a form of promotion.

The song was performed on the UK show Top of the Pops as well as the unknown show ATV. In Germany, the song was performed on the TV shows Disco as well as Musikladen, where the band also performed "Gudbuy T'Jane". In 1973, the band performed the song at Earls Court in London, where the performance was filmed, unofficially available on YouTube.

In 1977, the band performed the song on the UK show Supersonic along with their new release of the time, "Gypsy Roadhog". Also in 1977, the band performed the song on German TV where the group also mimed several other previous hits, as well as each member being interviewed.

In 1981, the band performed the song on the ITV show Moondogs Matinee, along with their new release of the time, "We'll Bring the House Down".^[8]

Track listing

7" Single

1. "Mama Weer All Crazee Now" - 3:43
2. "Man Who Speaks Evil" - 3:15

Critical reception

Upon release, Record Mirror magazine reviewed the single, "O mi gord, thuy av dun eet agen. Thuy R monsturs in evry meenin of the wurd. It's hard-driving beat, full of sheer bloody-minded slay them enthusiasm, and a wall of sound behind the vocal line. It's hammer, hammer, hammer all the way - exciting foot-and-skull thumping which doesn't vary much in intensity, but is blessed with an exactly commercial hook. A smash of course. Bigger than others? Probably - chart certain."^[9]

NME magazine wrote "Slade don't fool around - this immediately comes on like a number one record and thats exactly what its going to be. After the hits they've had already I consider this their best by far from the fuzzed out guitar intro to the rocking; stomping, chorus through to the crowd singing along at the end. Slade personify the excitement thats obtainable through the forty-five market."^[10][11]

Disc magazine wrote "With howls they tear straight into another huge boogie with that typical distant and manic voice sounding like rending calico Slade's unique power comes from the fact that they fit memorable melodies to their boogies. By the time this one ends you could believe, so dense does the sound and the atmosphere become, that 50,000 people were roaring along with the band in some distant dark stadium. The total line is shouted over and over with a lot of whoopig and shrieking behind it and there's another bust of that hand-clapping that is incorporated so well into the band records, how on earth can a record like this fail? And what curmudgeon would want it to?"^[10][11]

In early 2010, Classic Rock magazine featured Slade as part of their ‘The Hard Stuff Buyers Guide’ where the magazine reviewed numerous Slade albums. As part of this article, an ‘Essential Playlist’ listed 14 Slade songs which included "Mama Weer All Crazee Now".

The song is heard on the pilot of the HBO TV series ""Vinyl""

Chart performance

Cover versions

• In 1973, Les Humphries Singers & Orchestra released a cover of the song on their album Sound '73.^[21]
• In 1978, American girl band The Runaways recorded a cover of the song and included it on their 1979 album And Now... The Runaways.^[22] In 1981, the group released a five track mini-album under the song's title.^[23]
• In 1984, American rock band Quiet Riot released the song as a single where it peaked at #51 in America, becoming the band's last charting single.^[24] The song was included on the band's album Condition Critical.^[25] Quiet Riot had previously released a cover of Slade's "Cum On Feel the Noize" in 1983 which peaked at #5 in America.^[20][26]
• In 1984, Irish hard rock band Mama's Boys released a cover of the song as a single and was included on the band's self-titled album.^[27]
• In 1990, Glam rock tribute released a cover of the song as a b-side to the 12" single "Merry Xmas Everybody" which was also a cover of the Slade song. This single was produced by Noddy Holder and Jim Lea of Slade. The single peaked at #55 in the UK.^[28][29]
• In 1996, John Springate of glam rock group The Glitter Band released a cover of the track on a glam rock tribute album titled Wham Bam Thank You Glam.^[30]
• In 1996, the English rockabilly band, Big 6, released a cover of the track on an album titled Ready to Rock.^[31]
• In 1997, Welsh anti-fascist Oi! band The Oppressed released a cover of the song on their extended play "The Noise" which also featured covers of Slade's "Cum On Feel the Noize" and "Gudbuy T' Jane".^[32] These three tracks were also included on the 1998 album More Noize For The Boys.^[33]
• In 2009, American ska punk band Reel Big Fish released a cover of the song on the album Fame, Fortune and Fornication.^[34]
• The song has also been covered by Arrows, Ángeles del Infierno, James Last, London (Nikki Sixx's pre-Mötley Crüe band), and the Mission.

Personnel

• Noddy Holder: Lead vocals and guitar
• Jim Lea: Bass guitar and backing vocals
• Dave Hill: Lead guitar and backing vocals
• Don Powell: Drums

References

Slade
Dave Hill Don Powell John Berry Mal McNulty Noddy Holder Jim Lea Steve Whalley Steve Makin Craig Fenney Dave Glover
Studio albums	Beginnings (Ambrose Slade, 1969) Play It Loud (1970) Slayed? (1972) Old New Borrowed and Blue (1974) Slade In Flame (1974) Nobody's Fools (1976) Whatever Happened to Slade? (1977) Return to Base (1979) We'll Bring the House Down (1981) Till Deaf Do Us Part (1981) The Amazing Kamikaze Syndrome (1983) Keep Your Hands Off My Power Supply (1984) Rogues Gallery (1985) Crackers – The Christmas Party Album (1985) You Boyz Make Big Noize (1987)
Live albums	Slade Alive! (1972) Slade Alive, Vol. 2 (1978) Slade on Stage (1982)
Compilations	Coz I Luv You (1972) Sladest (1973) Slade Smashes! (1980) Slades Greats (1984) Wall of Hits (1991) Feel The Noize- Greatest Hits (1997) The Genesis of Slade (2000) The Very Best of Slade (2005) Slade Alive! - The Live Anthology (2006) The Slade Box (Anthology 1969-91) (2006) B-Sides (2007) Live at the BBC (2009) Merry Xmas Everybody: Party Hits (2009)
Singles	"You Better Run" (The N' Betweens) "Genesis" (Ambrose Slade) "Wild Winds are Blowing" "Shape of Things to Come" "Know Who You Are" "Get Down and Get With It" "'Coz I Luv You" "Look Wot You Dun" "Take Me Bak 'Ome" "Mama Weer All Crazee Now" "Gudbuy T' Jane" "Cum On Feel the Noize" "Skweeze Me, Pleeze Me" "My Friend Stan" "Merry Xmas Everybody" "Everyday" "The Bangin' Man" "Far Far Away" "How Does It Feel" "Thanks for the Memory (Wham Bam Thank You Mam)" "In For a Penny" "Let's Call It Quits" "Nobody's Fool" "Gypsy Roadhog" "Burning in the Heat of Love" "My Baby Left Me - That's All Right" "Give Us a Goal" "Rock 'n' Roll Bolero" "Ginny, Ginny" "I'm a Rocker" "Sign of the Times" "Okey Cokey" "Six of the Best (EP)" "Live at Reading (EP)" "Xmas Ear Bender (EP)" "We'll Bring the House Down" "Wheels Ain't Coming Down" "Knuckle Sandwich Nancy" "Lock Up Your Daughters" "Rock and Roll Preacher" "Ruby Red" "(And Now the Waltz) C'est La Vie" "My Oh My" "Run Runaway" "Slam the Hammer Down" "All Join Hands" "7 Year Bitch" "Myzsterious Mizster Jones" "Little Sheila" "Do You Believe in Miracles" "Still the Same" "That's What Friends Are For" "You Boyz Make Big Noize" "Ooh La La in L.A." "We Won't Give In" "Let's Dance '88" "Radio Wall of Sound" "Universe"
Video	"Slade in Flame" "Wall of Hits" "Inside Slade - The Singles 1971-1991" "The Very Best of Slade" "Slade Alive! - The Ultimate Critical Review"
Related articles	Discography List of songs by Slade Therapy (James Whild Lea album)
Book:Slade