 In 1981 , the band 's third studio album , 7 , reached number 5 in the UK album charts and contained three hit singles : " Grey Day " ( no . 4 , April 1981 ) , " Shut Up " ( no . 7 , September 1981 ) , and " Cardiac Arrest " ( no . 14 , February 1982 ) . In an article in 1979 , Chris Foreman explained that the band 's music would move with the times , and change styles as time goes on . This was shown to be the case , as unlike the two ska @-@ filled , fast @-@ paced albums that preceded it , 7 was something of a change in direction . Suggs ' vocal performance changed significantly , and his strong accent from the previous albums had been watered down . The album strayed from the ska @-@ influenced sound of One Step Beyond ... and Absolutely , and moved towards a pop sound ; a trend that continued with subsequent albums . 
