Our House (Madness song)

"Our House"
Single by Madness
from the album The Rise & Fall
B-side "Walking with Mr. Wheeze" (UK)
"Cardiac Arrest" (US)
Released 12 November 1982
Format
Recorded 1982
Genre
Length 3:23
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Madness singles chronology
"Driving in My Car"
(1982)		 "Our House"
(1982)		 "Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)" / "Madness (Is All in the Mind)"
(1983)

"Driving in My Car"
(1982)		 "Our House"
(1982)		 "Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)"/"Madness (Is All in the Mind)"
(1983)
Audio sample
  • file
  • help

"Our House" is a song by English ska and pop band Madness. It was released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, The Rise & Fall, on 12 November 1982. The song charted within the top ten in multiple countries and won Best Pop Song at the May 1983 Ivor Novello Awards.[3]

About

Released in November 1982, it peaked at #5 in the UK singles chart.[4] In 1983, "Our House" was their biggest hit in the US, reaching #7 on the Billboard Hot 100.[5] On the US rock chart the song peaked at #9, and also reached #21 on the US dance chart.[6] It receives constant airplay by radio stations.

The B-side, "Walking With Mr. Wheeze", is an instrumental song. The title is a play on "Groovin' With Mr. Bloe", an instrumental hit of 1970 by the session group Mr. Bloe.[7]

Music video

The video depicts the band acting out the song's lyrics in an old Victorian terraced house. The song's lyrics mostly describe the working-class family lifestyle, and the band acts them out by portraying such a family in the video. The band plays their instruments in the living room, prepares for work and school as the family plays squash and relaxes in a hot tub. The video also includes exterior shots of various other houses including the "Playboy Mansion" Stocks House in Aldbury, Hertfordshire,[8] and Buckingham Palace. The property that featured in the video is a terrace house on Stephenson Street in north west London, near Willesden Junction.[9]

Use in media

In 1984, Madness made a guest appearance in the series 2 episode "Sick" of The Young Ones performing "Our House".[10] They had previously appeared in series 1 performing "House of Fun".

In 1985 "Our House" was the theme song for a children's drama series, Dodger, Bonzo and the Rest.[11] The version featured on the show was performed by the cast members.

A 1992 episode of Spitting Image featured a satirical version of the song highlighting the negative equity crisis being faced by many British homeowners at the time.

The original recording was also used as the theme for a 1998 ITV docusoap series, The Estate Agents.

A musical called Our House, featuring Madness songs, ran in London's West End between October 2002 and August 2003.[12] A recording of the show was broadcast on BBC Three and was released as a DVD.[13]

An altered version of the song was used in a Maxwell House commercial and the real version was featured in a montage for an episode of the BBC comedy, My Family,[14] as well as for a 2004 American reality game, House of Dreams.

The song also featured in a 2007-08 series of TV advertisements for Bird's Eye in which Suggs appeared,[15] as well as an advertisement for the 2008 ABC reality game show Opportunity Knocks, and in episode 4 of season 3 of US TV show Brothers & Sisters, during the yard sale scene.

In 2010, a mashup of "Jingle Bells" and "Our House", created by New York music and audio branding company Expansion Team, was used in a Christmastime commercial for Verizon.[16]

At the 2012 Olympic Games Madness performed "Our House" in the closing Olympic ceremonies during an elaborate light show with scores of dancers.[17]

An altered version of the song is used in a 2014 TV advertisement for Chemist Warehouse.[18]

In Chile, the song was used in the spot and theme song of Chilean Canal 13 TV series Papá Mono.[19]

In August of 2017, the YouTube channel GameGrumps released a parody edit of the song.

Track listing

  • 7" single
  1. "Our House" – 3:23
  2. "Walking with Mr. Wheeze" – 3:31
  • French 7" single
  1. "Our House (Stretch mix)" – 3:45
  2. "Walking with Mr. Wheeze" – 3:31
  • US 7" single
  1. "Our House" - 3:20
  2. "Cardiac Arrest" - 2:58

("Stretch mix" is a mostly instrumental edit of the extended mix)

  • 12" single
  1. "Our House" (Extended Mix) – 6:00
  2. "Our House" (7" Version) – 3:23
  3. "Walking with Mr. Wheeze" – 3:31
  • U.S. 12" single
  1. "Our House (Dance mix)" – 5:02
  2. "Mad House (Our House dub mix)" – 4:35

Charts

Chart (1982–83) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[20] 17
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[21] 15
Canada (CHUM)[22] 3
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[23] 1
Germany (Official German Charts)[24] 8
Ireland (IRMA)[25] 3
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[26] 49
Norway (VG-lista)[27] 4
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[28] 1
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[29] 4
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[30] 5
US Billboard Hot 100[31] 7
US Hot Dance Club Play [6] 21
US Cash Box[32] 5
Chart (2017) Peak
position
Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100)[33] 64

References

  1. ↑ https://www.soundonsound.com/people/classic-tracks-madness-our-house
  2. ↑ Glenn Gaslin; Rick Porter (1 January 1998). The Complete, Cross-referenced Guide to the Baby Buster Generation's Collective Unconscious. Boulevard Books. p. 129. ISBN 978-1-57297-335-0. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  3. ↑ "1983 Winners". Ivor Novello Awards. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  4. ↑ "Madness". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  5. ↑ "Madness". Billboard Hot 100. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  6. 1 2 Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 163.
  7. ↑ "Mr. Bloe". imuzdb.com. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  8. ↑ Reed, John. House of Fun: The Story of Madness. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857127150.
  9. ↑ "It's Madness! Iconic terrace home featured in 1980s Our House pop video sells for more than £500K (Suggs not included)". Daily Mail. 13 November 2015. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  10. ↑ "The Young Ones - Sick". imdb.com. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  11. ↑ "Dodger, Bonzo and the Rest Episode Guide". IMDb. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  12. ↑ "Our House". www.guidetomusicaltheatre.com. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  13. ↑ " Our House - The Musical: BBC3 cast list" BBC Archived 31 January 2005 at the Wayback Machine.
  14. ↑ "May family - Reloaded". IMDb. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  15. ↑ "Birds Eye – In Our House". www.tvadmusic.co.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  16. ↑ coronagarretts (2010-12-09), Verizon - Jingle Bells - Our House mash up, retrieved 2018-03-15
  17. ↑ "London 2012 Olympic Closing Ceremony - Madness singing Our House". YouTube. Retrieved 2016-11-05.
  18. ↑ Chemist Warehouse TV (2014-08-10), "Our House" 2014 Chemist Warehouse TV Ad (45s), retrieved 2017-03-28
  19. ↑ "[Video] Canal 13 estrenó spot de su nueva serie 'Papá Mono'". www.cooperativa.cl (in Spanish).
  20. ↑ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989, part 1". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  21. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Madness – Our House" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  22. ↑ "CHART NUMBER 1388 – Saturday, August 20, 1983". Archived from the original on 13 February 2006. Retrieved 2014-01-11. . CHUM.
  23. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6286." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  24. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Madness – Our House". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  25. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Our House". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  26. ↑ "Charts.nz – Madness – Our House". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  27. ↑ "Topp 20 Single uke 10, 1983 – VG-lista. Offisielle hitlister fra og med 1958" (in Norwegian). VG-lista. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  28. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Madness – Our House". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  29. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Madness – Our House". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  30. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  31. ↑ "Madness Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  32. ↑ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending AUGUST 6, 1983". Archived from the original on 11 September 2012. Retrieved 2016-05-16. . Cash Box magazine.
  33. ↑ "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved 24 July 2017.

See also

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