House calls: #5 "Our House" Madness (1982)

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“Our house, in the middle of the our street Our house, it has a crowd There’s always something happening” Madness rode the crest of the ska revival scene to becoming huge in their native UK. Not so much in the US where they were basically relegated to alternative radio. Madness is a raucous group best known for energetic near instrumentals “Madness” (the heavy heavy monster sound!) and “One Step Beyond.” The band made a departure from ska to the gentler sounds of “Wings of a Dove” and “Our House.” From the album “The Rise and Fall,” “Our House” was written by Chris Foreman and Cathal Smyth of the band and plays nostalgic about home, mum and kids. “Our House” would be Madness’ biggest hit going UK #5 and US #7. The song was more palatable to mainstream US tastes.