Buttkickin' Halloween Songs: "House of Fun" -- Madness (1982)

Box of balloons
With the feather-light touch
Pack of party-poppers
That pop in the night
A toothbrush and hairspray
Plastic grin
Miss Clay on all corners
Has just walked in…

OK yes, strictly speaking, a young boy who turns 16 and thus reaches the UK age of consent and is off to buy some prophylactics is technically not, as it stands, a reasonable basis for any worthwhile Halloween song.

Or is it?

All I can say is (1) have you ever been a 16-year-old boy, and (2) have you ever been a 16-year-old boy buying his first prophylactics? ABSOLUTE TERROR. Or something. That 8,000 year old lady at the counter is SO silently judging you…

But never mind all that. We’re showcasing House of Fun as part of our Buttkickin’ Halloween Songs, and why not? This 1982 smash UK single from legendary ska/pop band Madness is a masterful piece of Funhouse kookiness. Scares and chills? None to be found (unless you’re reliving your 16-year-old boy memories, and that’s never pretty) but listen to that carnival-ride chorus kick the song into Halloween high-gear. You could totally picture the denizens of the underworld just bouncing along with gleeful, malevolent joy.

It can’t ALL be bodies thrown down a well. Let’s bring out the goofy side of All Hallow’s Eve.

Welcome to the house of fun
Now I’ve come of age
Welcome to the lion’s den
Temptation’s on his way
Welcome to the house of fun…