Meaning

In the liner notes for the 1986 singles compilation, Utter Madness, Chas Smash – now known as Carl Smyth – recalled that the roots for Our House lay in his idea that each member should write a song about their family backgrounds, “as all our families were so different. No one else bothered. I did.” Written in that familiar Nutty voice – a mixture of warm nostalgia, affectionate wit and subtle pathos – Our House was a homely portrait of Smyth’s youth, with father, mother, sisters and brothers all cramped in one chaotic abode, love and mischief abiding, and a bittersweet middle eight suggesting those familial ties might not always bind.


https://www.theguardian.com

Lyrics

Father wears his Sunday best
Mother's tired she needs a rest
The kids are playing up downstairs
Sister's sighing in her sleep
Brother's got a date to keep
He can't hang around

Our house, in the middle of our street
Our house, in the middle of our

Our house it has a crowd
There's always something happening
And it's usually quite loud
Our mum she's so house-proud
Nothing ever slows her down
And a mess is not allowed

Our house, in the middle of our street
Our house, in the middle of our

Our house, in the middle of our street
(Something tells you)
(That you've got to get away from it)
Our house, in the middle of our

Father gets up late for work
Mother has to iron his shirt
Then she sends the kids to school
Sees them off with a small kiss
She's the one they're going to miss
In lots of ways

Our house, in the middle of our street
Our house, in the middle of our

I remember way back then when
Everything was true and when
We would have such a very good time
Such a fine time
Such a happy time
And I remember how we'd play
Simply waste the day away
Then we'd say
Nothing would come between us
Two dreamers

Father wears his Sunday best
Mother's tired she needs a rest
The kids are playing up downstairs
Sister's sighing in her sleep
Brother's got a date to keep
He can't hang around

Our house, in the middle of our street
Our house, in the middle of our street
Our house, in the middle of our street
Our house, in the middle of our
Our house, was our castle and our keep
Our house, in the middle of our street
Our house, that was where we used to sleep
Our house, in the middle of our street
Our house, in the middle of our street
Play with the song, fill the gaps
Legend
  • The video player plays from the time specified
  • Chorus
  • People Talking

Vocabulary

hang around

To wait or spend time somewhere, usually for no particular reason:
I spent most of my youth hanging around the bars of Dublin.