‘In Every Dream Home’: The artwork that inspired the Roxy Music classic
The pioneering glam stylings of Roxy Music were always influenced by frontman Bryan Ferry, and his somewhat questionable obsession with eroticism. From lyrics to album covers, every aspect of the group seemed to be impacted by Ferry and his sexual exploits. His unique grasp of the wild and erotic was never more present than on the 1973 track ‘In Every Dream Home a Heartache’.
Taken from their second studio album, For Your Pleasure, the song quickly became one of Roxy Music’s defining tracks. The song is a mainstay of their live performances and a favourite among fans, featuring in iconic performances including The Old Grey Whistle Test and their live albums Viva! and Concerto. The song itself is built around an ominous, building monologue delivered by Ferry, a critique of opulence and an ode to the eroticism of an inflatable doll.
As the song reaches its peak, with Ferry delivering the unforgettable lines “I blew up your body, but you blew my mind”, the guitar stylings of Phil Manzanera take over, forming perhaps the greatest moment in instrumentation across the entirety of Roxy Music’s discography. The song was written by Ferry in a Derbyshire carriage, lent to him by an artist friend, and was originally twice as long before being cut back.
In many ways, ‘In Every Dream Home a Heartache’ is the archetypal Roxy Music song. It does not sound like any other rock track, composed of a darkly gothic monologue without anything resembling a chorus; the song is a testament to the daring experimentation and innovative songwriting that made Roxy Music so unforgettable. Like many of their other tracks, including ‘Virginia Plain’, the inspiration for the song came from the artistic world.
According to the songwriter, the song was deeply inspired by the 1956 collage, Just what is it that makes today’s homes so different, so appealing? by Richard Hamilton. An early example of pop art, Hamilton’s work was composed of magazine cut-outs, focusing on consumerism and daily life. Hamilton would later mentor Bryan Ferry at Newcastle University in the 1960s, teaching the future Roxy Music frontman fine art.
In addition to Hamilton’s artwork, the song was inspired by another artist friend of Ferry, as he told Q, “I had an artist friend who lent me a remote carriage up in Derbyshire. This came out of that trip. I remember getting into my Renault 4, loading up a cassette player, keyboards, and pads of paper and pens, and driving up there with the express purpose of writing some songs. Life was so much simpler in 1973.”
If life in 1973 was simple, then you would have never guessed it from listening to Roxy Music. Awash with lyrical complexities and pioneering music-making techniques, Ferry’s group were among the most influential artists of the decade, later inspiring a great deal of experimental music as well as the punk rock boom of the mid-1970s.
