The House of Blue Light

The House of Blue Light is the twelfth studio album by English rock band Deep Purple, released on 16 January 1987 by Polydor Records. It was the second recording by the reformed Mark II line-up, and the sixth studio album overall by this formation of the band.

The House of Blue Light
Studio album by
Deep Purple
Released16 January 1987[1]
RecordedApril–September 1986
StudioThe Playhouse, Stowe, Vermont, USA with Le Mobile Studio
GenreHard rock, heavy metal
Length50:38
LabelPolydor
ProducerRoger Glover, Deep Purple
Deep Purple chronology
Perfect Strangers
(1984)		 The House of Blue Light
(1987)		 Slaves and Masters
(1990)
Singles from The House of Blue Light
  1. "Call of the Wild"
    Released: January 1987 [2]
  2. "Bad Attitude"
    Released: 1987
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal10/10[4]
Kerrang![5]
Rolling Stone(favourable)[6]

Recording

The album's creation was an exceedingly long and difficult process, which singer Ian Gillan compared to the recording of Who Do We Think We Are in Rome.[7] Gillan has remarked on how strained relations within the band compromised the album: "I look back at House Of Blue Light, there are some good songs on that record, but there’s something missing in the overall album. I can’t feel the spirit of this band. I can see or hear five professionals doing their best, but it’s like a football team, it’s not functioning. It’s like 11 superstars that are playing on the same field but are not connected by the heart or by the spirit."[8] Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore has said much of it was re-recorded,[9] and confessed, "I think I played like shit on it, and I don't think anyone else really got that into it."[10] Added organist Jon Lord, "House of Blue Light was a weird album and hard to put together. We made the massive mistake of trying to make our music current. We discovered that people didn't want us to do that."[11]

Despite the band's concerns, House of Blue Light sold well. It hit No. 10 in the UK charts, No. 34 on the Billboard 200 in the United States, and reached the top 10 in six other countries.

Promotion

Two promotional videos to the songs "Bad Attitude" and "Call of the Wild" were produced, both of which feature members of the band.

Track listing

Note: Several tracks on the LP and cassette versions are shorter than those on the original CD released in 1987. The 1999 CD remaster used the original vinyl master tapes, meaning its running time is also shorter than the original CD version.

All tracks written by Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Gillan and Roger Glover, except where noted.

1987 CD edition
No.TitleLength
1."Bad Attitude" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord)5:04
2."The Unwritten Law" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Paice)4:54
3."Call of the Wild" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord)4:48
4."Mad Dog"4:36
5."Black & White" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord)4:39
6."Hard Lovin' Woman"3:25
7."The Spanish Archer"5:31
8."Strangeways"7:36
9."Mitzi Dupree"5:05
10."Dead or Alive"5:00

Vinyl, cassette and 1999 CD edition
No.TitleLength
1."Bad Attitude" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord)4:32
2."The Unwritten Law" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Paice)4:34
3."Call of the Wild" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord)4:48
4."Mad Dog"4:29
5."Black & White" (Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord)3:39
6."Hard Lovin' Woman"3:25
7."The Spanish Archer"4:56
8."Strangeways"5:56
9."Mitzi Dupree"5:05
10."Dead or Alive"4:42

Personnel
Deep Purple
Production
  • Produced by Roger Glover and Deep Purple
  • Recorded at the Playhouse, Stowe, Vermont, with Le Mobile operated by Guy Charbonneau
  • Engineered by Nick Blagona
  • Mixed by Harry Schnitzler at Union Studios, Munich, West Germany
  • Mastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound, New York

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[28] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[29] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[30] Silver 60,000^
Summaries
Worldwide — 2,500,000[31]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. "The House of Blue Light certification".
  2. "Deep Purple singles".
  3. Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Deep Purple The House of Blue Light review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
  4. Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 91. ISBN 978-1894959315.
  5. Simmons, Sylvie (8 January 1987). "Deep Purple 'The House of Blue Light'". Kerrang!. No. 137. London, UK. pp. 10–11.
  6. Fricke, David (26 February 1987). "Deep Purple: The House Of Blue Light". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  7. Thompson, Dave (August 2004). Smoke on the Water: The Deep Purple Story. Toronto, Canada: ECW Press. p. 251. ISBN 978-1-55022-618-8. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  8. Dolas, Yiannis; Anasontzis, George; Nikas, Sakis (2005). "Interviews: Deep Purple singer, Ian Gillan". Rockpages.gr. Archived from the original on 18 September 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  9. "News: Countdown to the new album". DPAS Magazine. No. 33. January 1987. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
  10. "Ritchie Blackmore - Recalls Life with Deep Purple". Guitar.com. Archived from the original on 10 October 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  11. Lalaina, Joe (January 1989). "Jon Lord's Purple Reign". Modern Keyboard. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  12. "Austriancharts.at – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  13. "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 45, No. 22, March 07, 1987". Library and Archives Canada. 7 March 1987. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  14. "Dutchcharts.nl – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  15. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  16. "Offiziellecharts.de – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  17. "Classifiche". Musica e Dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 27 May 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Album". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Deep Purple".
  18. AA.VV. (1990). Oricon Chart Book 1970-1989 (オリコンチャートブック〈LP編) (1 ed.). Tokyo, Japan: Oricon. p. 205. ISBN 978-4871310253.
  19. "Charts.nz – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  20. "Norwegiancharts.com – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  21. "Swedishcharts.com – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  22. "Swisscharts.com – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  23. "Deep Purple | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  24. "Deep Purple Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  25. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  26. "Deep Purple Chart History: Mainstream Rock Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  27. "Deep Purple Official Charts". Official Chart Company. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  28. "Canadian album certifications – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light". Music Canada. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  29. "Gold & Platinum Awards 1987" (PDF). Music & Media. 26 December 1987. p. 44-45. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  30. "British album certifications – Deep Purple – The House of Blue Light". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  31. "Spotlight - Deep Purple" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 12, no. 7. 20 October 1990. p. 24. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
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