"Reasons to Be Cheerful, Part 3" is a song and single by Ian Dury and the Blockheads, initially released as the single "Reasons to be Cheerful, Part 3 / Common as Muck" issued on 20 July 1979 and reached number 3 in the UK Singles Chart the following month. It is the last single to be released by the band in their original line-up. Recording "Reasons to be Cheerful" was not recorded at The Workhouse, Old Kent Road with the material that made up the Do it Yourself album, but in Eretcia Studios (owned by RCA) in Rome during a break in a long European tour. According to its writer, Ian Dury, the song was inspired by a near-fatal accident involving a lighting roadie. Roadie Charley almost got electrocuted in Italy by a microphone stand while leaning over a mixing desk. Another roadie saved his life, hence 'no electric shocks' is included in the song's lyrics. The song was written in the band's hotel during the aftermath of this, and a fight at the venue was only narrowly averted when the band were forced to cancel the show because of the safety issues. Both it and the B-side "Common As Muck" were recorded in the break in the tour caused by the cancellation of the Italian shows. Dury said, "there were two songs that we didn't put on Do it Yourself that were even more miserable than the ones that we did put on it. So, it seemed sensible to cheer up a bit. In a way, it was inspired by the Sergeant Peppers sleeve... just a load of nice people. I write quite a lot of songs that are just lists." Saxophonist Davey Payne was upset about the financial disparities within Dury's band, so in order to placate him, Dury told co-writer Chaz Jankel to incorporate a sax solo part in the middle, which Payne could improvise and thus earn a share in the song. Composition The song has been described as a 'shopping-list song'. It is a simple list of a number of reasons to be cheerful. In that respect it is almost identical to an older Ian Dury track, "England's Glory", a song that he had refused to revive when asked the previous year. The list of reasons to be cheerful includes: Rock 'n' Roll singer Buddy Holly Little Richard's 1956 hit "Good Golly Miss Molly" Hammersmith