The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death explained

The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death
Type:	studio
Artist:	The Housemartins
Border:	yes
Released:	21 September 1987^[1]
Studio:	Yellow 2, Stockport, Greater Manchester
Producer:	John Williams
Prev Title:	London 0 Hull 4
Prev Year:	1986
Next Title:	Now That's What I Call Quite Good
Next Year:	1988

The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death is the second and final studio album by The Housemartins. It was released in 1987, and produced three singles - "Five Get Over Excited" (#11 UK), "Me and the Farmer" (#15) and "Build" (#15 UK). The title song is about the British Royal Family, which found them gaining controversy in the tabloid papers similar to that of other bands such as the Sex Pistols, The Smiths and The Stone Roses.

Critical reception

The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death was ranked number nine among "Albums of the Year" for 1987 in the annual NME critics' poll.^[2]

Track listing

All tracks written by Paul Heaton and Stan Cullimore

1. "The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death" – 3:33
2. "I Can't Put My Finger on It" – 2:28
3. "The Light Is Always Green" – 3:59
4. "The World's on Fire" – 3:20
5. "Pirate Aggro" – 1:52
6. "We're Not Going Back" – 2:53
7. "Me and the Farmer" – 2:54
8. "Five Get Over Excited" – 2:44
9. "Johannesburg" – 3:55
10. "Bow Down" – 3:04
11. "You Better Be Doubtful" – 2:32
12. "Build" – 4:45

Personnel

The Housemartins

• Norman Cook – bass, vocals
• Dave Hemingway – drums, vocals
• P.d. Heaton – vocals, guitar, trombone, harmonica
• Stan Cullimore – guitar, vocals

Additional musicians

• Guy Barker – trumpet
• Sandy Blair – tuba
• St. Winifred's School Choir – backing vocals on "Bow Down"
• Pete Wingfield – piano, keyboards

Technical personnel

• John Williams – producer
• The Housemartins – producer
• Phil Bodger – engineer
• David Storey – sleeve design
• John Sims – sleeve design
• Phil Rainey – front cover photography
• Derek Ridgers – band photography
• John Woods – band photography

Notes and References

1. 12 September 1987 . Index . . 2 . 0144-5804.
2. NME's best albums and tracks of 1987 . . 10 October 2016 . 24 November 2018.
3. Book: Kent, David. David Kent (historian). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. illustrated. Australian Chart Book. St Ives, N.S.W.. 1993. 0-646-11917-6. 141.