Song · Madness
“It Must Be Love” by Madness
Released 1981
“It Must Be Love” by Madness appears on 11 radio countdowns from 5 stations between 1983 and 2025. It was first released in 1981. Its best result is #9 on the Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2006). In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #88 alternative song of 1983 and #2,110 alternative song of all time.
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Madness took "It Must Be Love", a song the English singer Labi Siffre wrote and released in 1971, and recorded their own version in 1981 for Stiff, with Clive Langer producing. The ska-pop band plays it straight and sweet, a lovestruck sway with just enough of a wink to keep it from going soppy, and the chorus practically begs the whole room to join in.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 34 | 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana | 91X Top 91 Songs of 1983 | 91 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 207 | Live 105 | Live 105 Top 300 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1992) | 299 |
| 1999 | 399 | 91X | 91X Fat 500 Songs of All-Time (July 1999) | 500 |
| 2001 | 61 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) | 500 |
| 2003 | 2020 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
| 2004 | 38 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) | 500 |
| 2005 | 60 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) | 500 |
| 2005 | 70 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 100 Brit Songs of All-Time (May 2005) | 100 |
| 2006 | 9 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2006) | 500 |
| 2024 | 308 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 850 Cover Songs | 850 |
| 2025 | 213 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 800 Mood Booster Songs | 800 |
Also listed as: It Must be Love.
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