Happy Mondays play first of three nights at Glasgow’s Barrowland Ballroom

Written by Paul Cooper

Iconic 90’s Indie band Happy Mondays were back in Glasgow last night (16 April) on the UK Pills and Thrills tour to celebrate 35 years of their platinum album Pills ‘n’ Thrills and Bellyaches.

Happy Monday’s performing at Glasgow’s Barrowland Ballroom on 16 April 2026 | Credit: Paul Cooper

The album reached number four in the UK Album Chart on its release in 1990 and a packed Barrowland Ballroom had come to be transported back to that time.

Upon entering the venue, an air of anticipation was evident as the crowd waited for the Manchester band to come on, the blue smoke that surrounded the stage also added a sense of mystery.

This feeling was enhanced as the band entered the stage without two key components, vocalist/founding member Shaun Ryder and dancer Mark Berry (better known as Bez).

They had delayed their entrance and to the delight of the crowd, finally appeared just into the album’s opening track and fan favourite ‘Kinky Afro’.

The album was then played in its entirety, as the ‘Mondays fascinated their following by changing up popular tracks like ‘Loose Fit’ and ‘Bob’s Yer Uncle’ with additional guitar chords and solos.

These were built nicely into arguably the band’s most well-known song ‘Step On’, which was instantly recognisable with its unique piano riff, by this time the crowd were loving it.

The final track of the album was the blues inspired ‘Harmony’ and after that the group surprised their fans by going on to play another six songs (‘Hallelujah’, ‘Mad Cyril’, ‘Rave On’, ‘Judge Fudge’, ‘24 Hour Party People’ and ‘Wrote for Luck’), building the gig back up to a faster pace.

Most of these tracks predate the album, apart from ‘Judge Fudge’ which was released in 1991, and their popularity exemplifies that the band were a force even before the release of Pills ‘n’ Thrills and Bellyaches. Putting them up there with other great Manchester bands such as Joy Division, The Stone Roses, James and Oasis (to name but a few).

A downside to the gig for me was standing to the left of the stage. I found that the sound was bassy and a little distorted making some of the tracks more difficult to hear. This may have been down to the acoustics in that corner and if you fancy going on any of the other dates (17 and 18 April) maybe a central position would make for a better listening experience.

This didn’t take away from the entertainment value on the night and although they may overuse the mic a little, the camaraderie between Ryder and Bez is a sight to behold.

Bez looked to be having the time of his life, dancing around shaking his maracas, interacting with the crowd and trying on items of clothing that were thrown onto the stage.

Other things to talk about were the talents of guitarist Mark Day and female vocalist Firouzeh Razavi.

How long Happy Mondays will stay around is anybody’s guess, but while they still are, they are well worth going to see.