"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 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:
The single reached number eight on the Hot 100 singles chart.
Other recordings "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. In 1955, a recording by Chuck Miller for Mercury Records reached number nine on the Billboard Popular Records chart.Larkin, Colin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 1690. ISBN 0-85112-939-0. A cover by Asleep at the Wheel peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1987. The Harvard Krokodiloes have long used the song as their traditional opening number at all their concerts.
References