Stupid Stupid Stupid

Stupid Stupid Stupid is the second studio album by British rock band Black Grape, released on 10 November 1997 through Radioactive Records. While touring in support of their debut studio album It's Great When You're Straight...Yeah (1995), vocalist Paul "Kermit" Leveridge was diagnosed with sepsis. Carl "Psycho" McCarthy temporarily filled in Kermit's role, before being added to the line-up permanently. Though he was too ill to tour, Kermit joined the band in Hollywood to work on songs for their next album, which continued throughout 1996. They recorded their second album at Real World Studios in Bath, and Westlake Audio in Los Angeles, California, over eight weeks with Danny Saber, John X Volaitis and frontman Shaun Ryder as producers. Stupid Stupid Stupid is a dance-rock album that continues the party atmosphere of It's Great When You're Straight...Yeah while toning done that album's religious references. Stupid Stupid Stupid received mixed reviews from music critics, some of whom saw it as a continuation of It's Great When You're Straight...Yeah, while others found it to be an inferior version of that album. It peaked at number 11 in the UK, as well as charting highly in Scotland and Sweden. It would be certified gold in the UK within a few months of release. With an appearance at Phoenix Festival, Saber was made a member of Black Grape. "Get Higher" was released as the lead single from Stupid Stupid Stupid on 20 October 1997, reaching number 12 in Scotland and number 24 in the UK. It was followed by the European-only second single "Dadi Waz a Badi". Following a fight prior to a show, Ryder fired the rest of the band; future touring plans were subsequently cancelled. "Marbles" was released as the album's third single on 23 February 1998, sitting outside of the top 40 in Scotland and the UK. By July 1998, Ryder said he would no longer be recording under the Black Grape name. Background Black Grape released their debut studio album It's Great When You're Straight...Yeah in August 1995. It topped the UK Album Chart for two months, and was eventually certified platinum. All three of its singles – "Reverend Black Grape", "In the Name of the Father" and "Kelly's Heroes" – reached the top 20 in the UK, with "In the Name of the Father" peaking the highest at number eight. After flying back to the United Kingdom after a show, vocalist Paul "Kermit" Leveridge fell ill, and was subsequently diagnosed with sepsis.