“Room on Fire” is Track 1 on The Other Side of the Mirror (1989), the lead single from Stevie Nicks‘ fourth solo album. It precedes “Long Way to Go” in the album track order.
About ‘Rooms on Fire’
“Rooms on Fire” was inspired by Stevie’s professional and personal relationship with British producer Rupert Hine. Stevie described their instant connection in her 1991 Timespace compilation liner notes: “It always seemed to be that whenever Rupert walked into one of those rooms…that the rooms were on fire. There was a connection between us that everyone around us picked up on, and everyone was very careful to respect our space…our Timespace.”
For “Room on Fire,” Stevie adapted lines from Oscar Wilde’s 1890 novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. Here are the lines for comparison:
Wilde: “Out of the unreal shadows of the night comes back the real life that we had known. (Chapter 11)
Nicks: “Somewhere out in the back of your mind comes your real life and the life that you know.”
Wilde: “Life suddenly became fiery-coloured to him. It seemed to him that he had been walking in fire.” (Chapter 2)
Nicks: “Maybe I’m just thinking that the rooms are all on fire every time that you walk in the room.”
Wilde: “And astounding the county by the wanton luxury and gorgeous splendour of his mode of life.” (Chapter 11)
Nicks: “She dreamed of a wanton luxury.”
Wilde: “He would laugh at any one who tried to taunt him.” (Chapter 11)
Nicks: “She laughed and she cried and she tried to taunt him.”
Wilde: “He hated to be separated from the picture that was such a part of his life.” (Chapter 2)
Nicks: “And he hated to be separated from that picture.”
Lyrics
Somewhere out in the back of your mind
Comes your real life and the life that you know
It seems like it was the creation of some of those same old things
It seemed to be the only thing left out in the light
She had trusted many
But been unfamiliar with
Almost everyone but you…
Well, maybe I’m just thinking that the rooms are all on fire
Every time that you walk in the room
Well there is magic all around you, if I do say so myself
I have known this much longer than I’ve known you
She had trusted many
And then there would be someone who would enter into her presence
That she could sense for miles
She dreamed of her wanton luxury
And she laughed and she cried and she tried to taunt him
And he hated to be separated
From that picture, no…
Well maybe I’m just thinking that the rooms are all on fire
Every time that you walk in the room
Ooh, well there is magic all around you, if I do say so myself
Well I have known this much longer than I’ve known you
Long nets of white cloud my memory
Long nets of white cloud my memory
Ooh there is magic all around you
Every time you walk in the room
Well maybe I’m just thinking that the rooms are all on fire
Every time that you walk in the room
Well there is magic all around you, if I do say so myself
Well I have known this much longer than I’ve known you
(Stevie Nicks/Rick Nowels) © 1989 Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc, Spirit Music Group
Release
Modern Records released “Rooms on Fire” as the lead single from The Other Side of the Mirror on April 19, 1989. The single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on May 6, 1989, peaking at No. 16. It topped the Album Rock chart for one week and became an international Top 40 hit in many countries.
Charts
| Rooms on Fire | Peak |
| Billboard Hot 100 | 16 |
| Billboard Adult Contemporary | 16 |
| Billboard Album Rock | 1 |
Outside U.S.
| Country | Peak |
| Australia | 23 |
| Belgium | 30 |
| Canada | 9 |
| Germany | 46 |
| Ireland | 17 |
| The Netherlands | 15 |
| New Zealand | 12 |
| UK | 16 |
‘Rooms on Fire’ — The Music Video
Modern released a music video for “Room on Fire” (directed by Marty Callner), which was played often on MTV.
For the music video, Stevie found inspiration in the 1947 black-and-white film The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, in which a young widow finds her seaside cottage is haunted and forms a unique relationship with the ghost. Stevie recreated the ending of the film for the last minute of the music video.
Appears on the following releases:
- The Other Side of the Mirror (1989)
- Timespace: The Best of Stevie Nicks (1991)
- The Enchanted Works of Stevie Nicks (1998)
- Crystal Vision…The Very Best of Stevie Nicks (2007)
References
Nicks, S. (1991) Timespace: the best of Stevie Nicks [liner notes].
Whitburn, J. (1995). Rock tracks: album rock 1981-1995. Record Research, Inc.
Wilde, O. (1890). The picture of Dorian Gray. Retrieved from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/174/174-h/174-h.htm
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MIRROR: Rooms on Fire | Long Way to Go | Two Kinds of Love (Duet with Bruce Hornsby) | Ooh My Love | Ghosts | Whole Lotta Trouble | Fire Burning | Cry Wolf | Alice | Juliet | Doing the Best I Can (Escape from Berlin) | I Still Miss Someone (Blue Eyes)
