‘Mama Weer All Crazee Now’ is a song by the British rock band Slade, released in 1972 as the lead single from their third studio album Slayed?. It was written by lead vocalist Noddy Holder and bassist Jim Lea, and produced by Chas Chandler. It reached No. 1 in the UK, giving the band their third number one single, and remained in the charts for ten weeks. In the United States, the song reached No. 76.
‘Mama Weer All Crazee Now’ was the first tune Jim Lea wrote entirely on his own. Holder got the idea for the lyrics at the band's concert at Wembley Arena in London. After the show, he looked at the remains of the auditorium's smashed seating and thought "Christ, everyone must have been crazy tonight." The song was originally titled ‘My My We're All Crazy Now’. When Holder and Lea played the song acoustically to Chandler for the first time, he thought Holder was singing ‘Mama We're All Crazy Now’. The name was then changed accordingly as Holder and Lea felt Chandler's title was better.
n a 1984 interview with Record Mirror, Lea spoke of ‘Mama Weer All Crazee’ and ‘Cum On Feel the Noize’: "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 we got round to ‘Mama Weer All Crazee Now’ and ‘Cum On Feel the Noize’ and all the chants were written into the tunes." In his 1999 biography Who's Crazee Now?, Holder recalled: "We had hit on our benchmark sound. It was perfect for Slade, very raucous, but catchy and pop. It was a real powerhouse record. Everyone loved it and everyone knew all the words."
In the UK Slade enjoyed 16 Top 10 hits including six #1s. They didn't enjoy the same success in the US, where their biggest hit was ‘Run Runaway,’ which peaked at #20 in 1984. They had just one other American Top 40: "My Oh My" (#37) also in 1984. The American metal band Quiet Riot broke big with a cover of Slade's ‘Cum On Feel The Noize’ in 1983. For their next album, they did ‘Mama Weer All Crazee Now,’ issuing it as the first single. It reached #51, marking their last Hot 100 appearance. "We were already getting the stigma of, 'You had a hit with somebody else's song,'" their drummer, Frankie Banali, said in an interview. "I could see the writing on the wall coming on that one."
Label – Polydor
Songwriters – Noddy Holder, Jim Lea
Producer – Chas Chandler
SONG LYRICS
[Intro]Oww!
[Verse 1]
I don't want to drink my whisky like you do
I don't need to spend my money but still do
[Pre-Chorus]
A-don't stop now, a c'mon
Another drop now, a c'mon
I wanna lot now, so c'mon
That's why, that's why
[Chorus]
I said Mama, but we're all crazy now
I said Mama, but we're all crazy now
I said Mama, but we're all crazy now
Woo!
Yeah!
[Verse 2]
And you told me a fool fire water won't hurt me
And you tease me, and all my ladies desert me
[Pre-Chorus]
A-don't stop now, a c'mon
Another drop now, a c'mon
I wanna lot now, so c'mon
That's why, that's why
[Chorus]
I said Mama, but we're all crazy now
I said Mama, but we're all crazy now
I said Mama, but we're all crazy now
Ow
Stop it!
[Verse 3]
I don't want to a-drink my whisky but still do
I had enough to a-fill the patios glass shoe
[Pre-Chorus]
A-don't stop now, a c'mon
Another drop now, a c'mon
I wanna lot now, so c'mon
That's why, that's why
[Chorus]
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
[Chorus]
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
[Chorus]
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
I said mama, but we're all crazy now, yeah
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
[Outro]
Come on, come on
I said mama, but we're all crazy now
Come on, come on, come on
I said mama, but we're all crazy now