House of Fun
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| "House of Fun" | ||
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| Single by Madness | ||
| Released | April 30, 1982 | |
| Format | vinyl record 7" | |
| Recorded | 1982 | |
| Genre | Ska/Pop | |
| Length | 2:49 | |
| Label | Stiff Records | |
| Writer(s) | Lee Thompson Mike Barson |
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| Producer(s) | Clive Langer Alan Winstanley |
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| Chart positions | ||
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| Madness singles chronology | ||
| "Cardiac Arrest" | "House of Fun" | "Driving in My Car" |
"House of Fun" is a 1982 one-off single by British ska/pop group Madness. It was their first and only number one single in the UK. The song is about a boy trying desperately to buy a packet of condoms on his 16th birthday (the age of consent in England), but because he's using slang ("party hats"/"box of balloons") the woman behind the counter at the chemist's shop (pharmacy) thinks he wants actual party supplies and sends him to the shop down the street, "The House of Fun."
[edit] Music video
The video starts with Suggs dressed as a boy entering the shop with Lee Thompson and Chas Smash playing horns behind him. He is trying to buy condoms but is misunderstood by the shopkeeper who later says that "this is a chemist's not a joke shop". Later the band is shown singing in a barber shop and on a roller coaster.
[edit] Track listing
- "House of Fun" - 2:49
- "Don't Look Back" - 3:31
[edit] Usage in popular culture
The song was featured in The Young Ones episode 'Boring' with the band performing in the Kebab & Calculator pub. Rik Mayall's character Rick asks Suggs if the band know Summer Holiday by Cliff Richard, to which Suggs replies "You hum it, I'll smash your face in."
| Preceded by "A Little Peace" by Nicole |
UK number one single May 23, 1982 |
Succeeded by "Goody Two Shoes" by Adam Ant |
| Personnel |
Suggs • Mike Barson • Lee Thompson • Chris Foreman • Mark Bedford • Daniel Woodgate • Chas Smash |
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| Discography | |
| Studio albums |
One Step Beyond... • Absolutely • 7 • The Rise & Fall • Keep Moving • Mad Not Mad • The Madness • Wonderful • The Dangermen Sessions Vol. 1 |
| Compilations |
Complete Madness • Madness • Utter Madness • It's... Madness • It's... Madness Too • Divine Madness • Madstock! • The Business • Total Madness • Universal Madness |
| Singles |
"The Prince" • "One Step Beyond" • "My Girl" • "Night Boat to Cairo" • "Baggy Trousers" • "Embarrassment" • "Return of the Los Palmas 7" • "Grey Day" • "Shut Up" • "It Must Be Love" • "Cardiac Arrest" • "House of Fun" • "Driving in My Car" • "Our House" • "Wings of a Dove" • "The Sun and the Rain" • "Michael Caine" • "(Waiting For) The Ghost Train" • "Lovestruck" • "Sorry" |
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