Listen, I bet that if you were living in Manchester or anywhere in Britain during the 1980s, you celebrated the arrival of The Happy Mondays! What may seem like frivolous rave-rock nowadays must’ve been a revelation in that grey and depressing part of the world where The Smiths were practically the scriptwriters for everyday life.
How good is “Step On?” Well, I reckon that it’s one of the greatest alternative rock songs of the 1990s.
But was Shaun Ryder fighting against with his party guerrilla? And what do the lyrics to the song actually mean? Here’s what I know, what I think I know, and what I’ve heard from unreliable sources.
Happy Mondays and the Road to Making “Step On”
No, it wasn’t Eastern Europe where gun-toting guards supported brutal dictatorships. And it wasn’t Eastern Africa where wars were common. But Manchester can’t have been a picnic, either. Bands like The Smiths and the 1980s shoegaze presented both a grim picture of reality and a place to hide.
However, groups like The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays, as well as Scotland’s Primal Scream, were different. Their members were arrogant. But they were also optimistic, flamboyant, and ready to take on the world.
They invented a sound dubbed Madchester or rave-rock. It was influenced, I suppose, by rave culture and electronic dance music. Happy Mondays was the band that moved closest to that electro-dance culture.
The band’s first two albums, released at the tail-end of the 1980s, were initially hated in Manchester, but the band slowly grew a following. The group’s third album, 1990’s “Pills ’n’ Thrills and Bellyaches” was an instant classic, the moment where all the cut-up melodies and grooves came together to form impossible to ignore anthems.
Yes, I suppose that the production is a little passe. And, I do admit that I don’t just listen to this album every day while having tea. But, heard in the right mood, “Step On” and the lot of those songs can still move you.
Meaning of the Lyrics to “Step On”
Technology hadn’t quite caught up to the ambitions of British rockers back in the 1980s. Ever since cosmic country-rocker Gram Parsons, back in the States in the 1960s, dreamed of merging widely different styles, there had been hope that a rock combo could make records in any style.
In many ways, Happy Mondays were innovators. Shaun Ryder’s music prophesied the rise of DJ-based stadium acts like the Chemical Brothers.
But what do the lyrics for “Step On” actually mean? First of all, contrary to popular belief, this is not a Ryder composition. While Ryder’s lyrics were occasionally powerful, he chose a John Kongos song to share his emotions.
The original song is “He’s Gonna Step On You Again.” It was released in 1971. And, although it had been a hit in the U.K., it had all but been forgotten.
The lyrics are a protest against colonialism. John Kongos saw European powers as hypocritical, desiring to continue carving up African territory for themselves.
That’s why the original track attempted to blend African tribal music with soul and pop. The Guinness Book of Records even states that this is the very first sample used on a record.
Naturally, Ryder felt a kinship with Kongos’s blend of styles, his use of, at the time, cutting-edge technology, and his philosophy.
Music Video
It’s one of the great non-performance, no-storyline music videos of all time. Frankly, it’s all based on the band’s undeniable charisma. The band is hanging out on a hotel rooftop above the sea while Mark “Ben” Berry dances away manically. I’ve rarely seen anything cooler.
The Legacy of John Kongos, Happy Happy Monday, and of “Step On”
Unexpectedly, “Step On” became the biggest single that Happy Mondays ever released. It was no. 5 in the U.K. and nearly cracked the Top 50 in the U.S.
Consequently, “Pills ’n’ Thrills and Bellyaches” was greeted with great enthusiasm across Britain. It reached No. 4 and spent 28 straight weeks on the charts. The album has sold over 300,000 copies worldwide.
Is the happy ending that Happy Mondays deserved? Sure. But the band members conspired to nearly derail their careers several times until the good times rolled back.
By the mid-1990s 1990s tales of drug abuse and arrests were a common occurrence when discussing Ryder and his crew of misfits. The follow-up to “Pills,” 1992’s cheekily titled “…Yes Please,” has to be heard to be believed.
But, against the odds, Happy Mondays did pull it together. Ryder released his autobiography “Twisting My Melon,” borrowing a line from “Step On.” Bez became a bona fide television star. And, the group reunited to positive responses from the crowds.
Meanwhile, John Kongos scored another big hit with “Tokoloshe Man” and became an in-demand session musician.
“Step On” seemed to announce that the 1990s were going to be a place for non-stop party people. I don’t suppose that ever came true. However, this is one of the greatest alternative rock recordings of all time.
