"The House of Blue Lights" is a boogie woogie-style popular song written by Don Raye and Freddie Slack. Published in 1946, it was first recorded by Slack with singer Ella Mae Morse and Raye.
| "The House of Blue Lights" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Freddie Slack with Ella Mae Morse | |
| B-side | "Hey Mr. Postman" |
| Released | May 1946 |
| Genre | Boogie woogie |
| Length | 2:51 |
| Label | Capitol |
| Songwriter(s) | Don Raye, Freddie Slack |
The song's intro includes a "hipster"-style spoken exchange:
- "Well, whatcha say, baby? You look ready as Mr. Freddy this black. How 'bout you and me goin' spinnin' at the track?"
- "What's that, homie? If you think I'm goin' dancin' on a dime, your clock is tickin' on the wrong time."
- "Well, what's your pleasure, treasure? You call the plays, I'll dig the ways."
- "Hey daddy-o, I'm not so crude as to drop my mood on a square from way back ..."
A single review in Billboard magazine included similar hipster parlance:
For back-room boogie with a mellow eight-to-the-bar kick, la [sic] Moore teams her tobacco pipes to the Black rhythm wing, giving big-time treatment to a small-time tune. Riding a solid rail, chirp chants it out with a contagious lilt. Dialog patter between Miss Moore and the tune's cleffer, Don Raye, is clever but takes up too much surface. "Postman" is typical B-side stuff.[1]
The single reached number eight on the Hot 100 singles chart.[2]
Other recordings
edit"The House of Blue Lights" has been recorded by a variety of musical artists.
- A version by the Andrews Sisters, also released in 1946, reached number 15.[2]
- In 1955, a recording by Chuck Miller for Mercury Records reached number nine on the Billboard Popular Records chart.[3]
- A cover by Asleep at the Wheel peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1987.[4]
- The Harvard Krokodiloes have long used the song as their traditional opening number at all their concerts.[5]
References
edit- ^ "New Records". Billboard. Vol. 58, no. 19. May 11, 1946. p. 33. ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ a b Dawson, Jim; Propes, Steve (1992). What Was The First Rock'n'Roll Record?. p. 14-17. ISBN 0-571-12939-0.
- ^ Larkin, Colin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 1690. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Hot Country Songs 1944–2012. Record Research, Inc. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-89820-203-8.
- ^ Rodman, Melissa C. (March 7, 2016). "Harvard Krokodiloes Celebrate 70th Anniversary". The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved January 5, 2024.