| A Guided Tour of Madness | |
| Type: | Box set |
| Artist: | Madness |
| Cover: | A_Guided_Tour_of_Madness.jpg |
| Released: | 19 September 2011 |
| Recorded: | 1979–2011 |
| Length: | 232:19 |
| Label: | Salvo/Union Square |
| Producer: |
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| Prev Title: | Ultimate Madness |
| Prev Year: | 2010 |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
A Guided Tour of Madness is a 3-CD/1-DVD anthology box set by English band Madness, released in 2011 on Union Square Music's collector's label Salvo. It features 70 singles and album tracks (from 1979’s One Step Beyond... to 2009’s The Liberty of Norton Folgate) and an exclusive DVD of the band's comeback concert at the Madstock festival in August 1992. It also includes a booklet with interviews with the band, photos, the cartoon Nutty Comic (1981) and the Madness Map of Camden, the band's historic stomping ground.[1] With the exception of "Sweetest Girl," "Sorry," and "The Harder They Come," every one of the band's 34 singles to date is represented.
The compilation is notable as containing the first (and, until Record Store Day 2022, only) official physical release of the track "Le Grand Pantalon", which closes the collection. This slower, waltz version of "Baggy Trousers", complete with accordion and double bass, as well as French lyrics, was originally created as part of Madness' participation in Kronenbourg Brewery's 'Slow the Pace' ad campaign.[1] However, its popularity led to the band recording a full version, initially available only as a free download.[2]
AllMusic rated the box set 4 stars out of 5, saying, "A cut above most hastily assembled retrospectives, A Guided Tour of Madness is a cleverly selected affair which should satisfy anyone wishing to investigate more than their more ubiquitous commercial hits." The Super Deluxe Edition website wrote, "The care and attention in the included booklet, combined with the overall quality of the packaging, makes this an easy box set to recommend, even for the casual listener."[3]
See individual albums for full personnel credits.