The Monsters Go Disco

BONUS TRACK!

The Monsters Go Disco by The Monster Cereals

I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to talk about this nugget of nostalgic goodness, and smack dab in the middle of a Monster Disco Block seemed like the perfect place. Because, ya know, there’s no better way to segue out of fully audible quasi-consensual Vampire fucking than to start taking about children’s breakfast mascots.

Additionally, it appears dragging my feet for years has actually timed this post up to the 50th anniversay of the Monster Cereals, commemorated here with their own all-star box of super-group cereal called Monster Mash! Albertsons, Ralphs and Target all failed me on this box. When every single goddamn physical retail store finally succumbs to the will of Amazon, let The Monster Mash Cereal be their epitaphs!

As an added bonus, the crew teamed up to produce a new version of Boris Pickett’s classic graveyard smash, The Monster Mash. The song’s kind of trash, as Monster Mash covers go, but you can scan this QR code and listen to it on Spotify. They even made a mildly amusing Behind the Music-style video as accompaniment, and that’s worth a watch.

But I digress.

Anyone who’s probably actually reading these posts are well aware of the Monster Cereals. They’re iconic, even if you’ve never indulged in a bowlful of their colorful and crunchy crap.

Before these cartoon creatures came to be, cereal giant General Mills used to use Disney-owned properties to slang their morning crack. But in 1971, they decided it would be a hell of a lot more profitable if they just invented their own characters and kept all the proceeds. Enter Franken Berry and Count Alfred Chocula. Yep, Chocula has a name and that name is apparently Alfred.

So, smashed between Saturday morning cartoons, General Mills unleashed their animated monsters and grabbed the minds and stomachs of an entire generation.

Interesting side note: apparently in 1972, they began using a pigment in Franken Berry which actually turned kids shit pink. They even had a term for it known as “Franken Berry Stool.” Not sure whether this pigment was actually harmful or not, but they discontinued using it shortly thereafter none the less.

But because turning kid turds funny colors while pushing an addictive powder directly into their bloodstreams only makes you so much money, an entire marketing web was established. Stickers, rings, vinyl toys, magnets, and other such pieces of plastic were either shoved into the boxes, or featured as mail-away prizes on the back.

Well in 1979, General Mills began a campaign of of thin, flexible 45rpm records known as Flexi-Discs. These prizes were attached directly the backs of specially marked boxes of the each of the Monster Cereals.

3 of these 4 minute records were produced featuring the gang performing skits, including Monster Adventures in Outer Space and Count Chocula Goes to Hollywood. But it is the 3rd record which concerns us today, The Monsters Go Disco. It was 1979, after all.

This tale involves the monsters finding themselves frightfully lonely on a Saturday Night and deciding to give the local discotheque a go.

There they encounter a Wolfman Jack like disc jockey and have themselves a good ole fashioned dance off for the affections of “Donna Disco.”

This particular record has an even deeper history, as it was animated and remixed years later by 2 General Mills employees. You can read the backstory and strange journey of this record here, in a fantastically myopic and interesting Pop-Icon article.

But for now, let’s us indulge in a little lull amidst our Monster Disco Block and get a little Franken Berry Stool of our own with The Monsters Go Disco.

Disco Blood

TRACK #292:

Disco Blood by The Vamps

No, it’s not that Disco Blood, featured in 1981’s slasher classic, The Prowler, as performed by Nowherefast. Unfortunately, that one still appears to be unobtainium at the moment. Nope, this disco hit comes courtesy of Brazilian dance outfit, The Vamps.

It’s the title track the from their only LP, Disco Blood, released back in 1977.

And boy, what a weird ass tune this is.

It’s essentially a disco tale of a nubile woman who runs afoul “the vampire.” And not just a vampire, mind you, but the vampire. We could assume this means Dracula, as it typically does, but perhaps not. We’re just not sure.

Anyway, after some less than coy flirtations, and then overt unsolicited advances, this thing turns to (from the sounds of it anyway) straight up Vampire rape. After which, this poor young woman seems to acquiesce to the dire situation and the song then devolves into these 2 audibly fucking for almost 2 minutes over a disco beat. Well then.

The story itself, in all its myriad complexity, is actually illustrated for us on the album’s sleeve. Well, that’s a curious bonus. Chalk one up for The Vamps.

These are some great pictures to have on the back of an album, and it was an unexpected treat when I received this record in the mail.

As for the song, there’s some serious bongo work on display with this tune and man if it don’t get yer foot tapping.

Sure, you could take issue with the less than favorable subject matter, either as a moralistic objection to sex in general, the performance and distribution of simulated sex on record, or the unholy union of a human and creature of the night in sexual congress. Any one of those would make perfect sense and could impair someone’s desire to dance. I get that.

However, having no objection to the above, one could still find it difficult to dance to a song featuring a woman being thrust upon by a man (or monster) against her will. True enough. This woman literally yells “Get out of me!” Not sure if that’s just a language barrier or something more specific, but whatever’s happening here is not (at least initially anyway) consensual in the slightest.

But then again, I think that’s the nature of the vampire. For what is a vampire attack, if not a wildly non-consensual act.

But, if you can square yourself with that unfavorable situation, then you got one hell of a smokin’ disco number on you’re hands.

Unfortunately, like most of the artists this year it seems, I couldn’t dig up too much information on The Vamps.

So, I guess all we have are these drawings and 7 and a half minutes of a little 33rpm auditory pornography/maybe rape/probably horror/definitely disco. Eh, why not?

I apologize in advance.

You Bring Out the Werewolf In Me

TRACK #284:

You Bring Out the Werewolf In Me by Simon Stokes

So, yesterday I talked about how Child’s Play and My Mom’s a Werewolf both contain the same song by D.B. Night. Now that’s a rather obscure track to be featured on either soundtrack, to be sure. But both? That’s even more bizarre.

On the surface, Child’s Play and My Mom’s a Werewolf don’t have much else in common. Although only 6 months separate their releases, they’re both produced, written and directed by completely different people.

However, if you dig a bit deeper, a common name appears, and it’s music supervisor David Chackler.

And Chackler’s no slouch, as he’s responsible for uniting Lindsay Buckingham and Stevie Nicks with Fleetwood Mac, bringing Queen to the United States and recording 2 Live Crew.

In the early 80’s David began working as a music supervisor in Hollywood. And if you take a browse through his storied filmography, a lot of Shindiggery starts making a lot more sense.

First and foremost, he was the music supervisor for Quiet Cool in 1986. Then in 1987, he provided that same duty for Dream Warriors, which draws an immediately line from the replacement of Dokken’s Into The Fire with an instrumental version of Joe Lamont’s Quiet Cool for the opening credits of Dream Warriors’ home video release. Pretty nifty.

Is it any wonder then that David was also the music supervisor for Return of the Living Dead 2, a movie which features certified banger and Shindig hit Flesh to Flesh from the same Joe Lamont?

Now flashback to 1985 and you’ll see David was the music supervisor for Tom Holland’s original horror hit, Fright Night. That film features one of the greatest title tracks of all time by the J. Geils Band. But do you know who actually wrote that song? Why it was Joe Lamont.

Sidestepping Joe Lamont for a moment, consider that David Chackler was the also supervisor on 1986’s rap classic Knights of the City. That movie, if you’re not familiar, features an awesome jail cell performance from Kurtis Blow and The Fat Boys. Well, guess what? David Chackler was also the music supervisor on A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 4 and is directly responsible for The Fat Boys doing Are You Ready for Freddy. That alone makes this guy a Shindig legend, you ask me.

And speaking of The Dream Master, guess who also shows up on that soundtrack? Yep, it’s Joe Lamont, writing and performing a song called Pride and Joy.

And, since it’s what we’re here talking about, is Joe Lamont featured in My Mom’s a Werewolf? You bet he is, singing (as it happens) a version of his very own Fright Night!

I’m sorry, what?! And it’s playing a during a Halloween party? Get right outta town. I need to hunt down this version of that tune, pronto. Though I must say, my initial surface search proved fruitless. When (and if) I find it though, you’ll definitely be the first to know.

Considering all of this, it perhaps comes as less of a surprise that both Child’s Play and My Mom’s a Werewolf each feature the song I’m Hangin’ by 80’s heavy-hitters D.B. Night. David Chackler makes it happen.

And then, connecting these 2 films even further is our next Shindigger, You Bring Out the Werewolf in Me, written and performed by Simon Stokes, whom some of you may know as the guy behind The Chucky Song. Yep, same the track unceremoniously axed from…Child’s Play.

Filling the same role here, Simon’s light hearted track plays over the end credits in much the same way The Chucky Song should have. I guess the producers all felt it was more appropriate at the end of something like My Mom’s a Werewolf, and I can’t say I disagree.

Here’s Simon getting straight beastly with You Bring Out the Werewolf In Me!

Green Slime

TRACK #255:

Green Slime by Sherry Gaden, Richard Delvecchio & Rick Lancelot

Now, we’re gonna kick things all the way back to ‘68 with a brand new contender for Oldest Title Track on the Shindig. And what a doozy of a contender it is.

You’d be forgiven for thinking the Title Track to The Green Slime must be a joke. It sounds almost like an anachronism. It sounds like it doesn’t belong in this movie. It sounds awesome.

Produced by Surf Rock pioneer Richard Delvecchio and sung by Frank Zappa vocalist Rick Lancelot, Green Slime is a rollicking garage-rock romper that feels a little ahead of its time, and a bit out of place.

This Japanese produced space-standoff proceeds like Sid and Marty Croft directed a Toho remake of This Island Earth. It’s a movie with a weird vibe.

What’s weirder? The fact that this song kicks off the whole damn thing. It honestly gets you pumped. Almost too pumped. This song is probably the coolest thing about the movie. Not that there’s anything specifically terrible about the movie, it’s just that cool of a song.

I mean, I won’t lie, you really gotta be into 60’s sci-fi monster movies. And being frank here, that’s not gonna be everyone’s bag, particularly these days. The miniatures look like the model train sets your Dad built in the basement, the acting in stagey and the aliens looks like 33rd degree Sigmund the Sea Monsters. But all of that is the charm. If you’re in the right mood, anyway.

Also, the pacing is pretty crisp for its day, though nothing close to what audiences have become accustomed to over the intervening 40 odd years.

So, you know yourself. Would you like that? Eh, then maybe give The Green Slime a go. If not, at least kick back and enjoy this trailblazing tune. One of the great Title Tracks of all time.

(It’s A) Monsters’ Holiday

TRACK #245:

(It’s A) Monsters’ Holiday by Buck Owens and The Buckaroos

On Oct. 30th 1973, Hee-Haw co-host and future Country Hall of Fame inductee Buck Owens entered his Bakersfield California studio with his Buckaroos to record this shit-kickin’ country creep-out.

Released the following summer, just ahead of Halloween 1974, (It’s A) Monsters’ Holiday reached #6 on the Billboard Country Charts. Not bad for a silly monster song.

And boy howdy, is this one silly.

Rattling off all kinds of monsters – Frankenstein, The Wolfman, Dracula, The Hunchback, Gremlins, Goblins, Mummies and Zombies – Buck Owens gives shout outs all around in this goofy and upbeat tune.

Now, why all of these Monsters inexplicably appearing in Buck’s bedroom constitutes a “holiday” I couldn’t well say. To me, it just sounds like more work.

Cause for Monsters, scaring people is their job, right? At least, you could say it’s not below their pay-grade. So, if they’re just doing their job, than it sounds like they’re at work. Not much of a holiday, just doing what you do for a living.

Now, if they were hanging out by the pool, hittin’ the slopes, or yuckin it up down at the local Monster VFW, I could see considering this a nice little reprieve from their everyday responsibilities; a true holiday.

As it stands, this doesn’t sound like much of a vacation to me. But it does sound like one down home, country-fried Shindiggin’ Halloween hoedown if I’ve ever heard one.

Atta boy, Buck!

Night of the Vampire

TRACK #244:

Night of the Vampire by Roky Erickson and The Aliens

Speaking of folks who haven’t made an appearance at the plate for a couple season, here comes Roky Erickson and The Aliens, who haven’t taken a swing in about 6 years, 7 months and 18 days. About.

Ole Roky will probably end up as an All-Star eventually, but he already should be and I’ve neglected adding another one of his songs for far too long.

So we’re gonna line up and Vampire double-header here with Roky’s cautionary ode about a night of a generic vampire.

Or is it? What clues can we unearth?

Well, its all fairly unspecific. That is until Roky tells us a little bit about this vampire. Why, he’s from Transylvania! So, we could easily conclude he’s just talking about Dracula, of course!

Well, wait a minute. Not so fast, cause apparently this Vamp was also born on St. Swithin’s Day.

What in the Sam Hell is St. Swithin’s Day?

Good question. But don’t worry, I’ve already looked it up for us.

St. Swithin’s Day is a British holiday. It’s July 15th. It’s kinda like Groundhog Day, in that it purports to predict how the weather will shake out in it’s aftermath. Seems if it rains on St. Swithin’s Day, you’re lookin at 40 days of more rain to follow.

Got some sunshine? Well, you got some clears skies coming at you for the rest of July and August.

It even has a little limerick:

St Swithun’s day if thou dost rain

For forty days it will remain

St Swithun’s day if thou be fair

For forty days ’twill rain nae mare

Aces. But, what the fuck does that to do with Vampires?

Search me. Roky Erickson was a weird cat, man. God knows what all that electroshock therapy did to his noodle.

Wait, maybe Dracula was born on St. Swithin’s Day?

Well, since Dracula got his name from real life Romanian Aristocrat and gnarly sunofabitch, Vlad III, lets start there.

Vlad was a Prince, and his father, the king, was known as Vlad Dracul, which meant Dragon. That name is what they call a “sobriquet,” and that’s basically just a formal nickname that becomes more popular than your real name. Like Tricky Dick, or The Sultan of Swat, or the King of Pop. You know exactly who I’m talking about and I never needed to say their names. Unless you don’t, which probably just means your younger than shit.

Well anyway, Vlad III had one of these sobriquets too; Vlad Tepes, or Vlad the Impaler. Cause that’s what happens you you shove a fuck-ton of giant pikes through people – you get named for that shit.

Now, since his dad was Vlad Dracul….Little Vlad came to have another nickname, Dracula, which is like the equivalent of what calling a guy around here Johnson or Peterson used to be.

Ok great, but weren’t we taking about his birthday. Yeah, but the problem is that nobody’s really even sure what year Vlad Tepes, was born, much less the day. General consensus seems to be 1431. That’s as good as we can get on that front.

So, how about fake Dracula?

Same. And the novel was published on May 26th, so no winky references there.

Well, how about the guys who played fake Dracula? Let’s see…

Max Schrek? September 6th.

Bela Lugosi? October 20th

Carlos Villarías? July 7th. Man that’s close.

John Carradine? February 5th.

Christopher Lee? May 27th.

Jack Palance? February 18th.

Klaus Kinski? October 18th.

Frank Langella? January 1st.

Udo Kier? October 14th.

Judd Hirsh, maybe? Naw. March 15th.

Duncan Regehr? October 5th.

Gary Oldman? March 21st.

Gerard Fuckin’ Butler, even? November 13th.

That guy from Argento’s 3D shit show? That was Thomas Kretschmann. And nope, September 8th.

What about that new guy? It’s way too late for Roky at this point, but what the hell, right?

Luke Evans was in Dracula Untold. He was born April, 15th,

William Smith? Wait, really…William “Normad” Smith? Yep, he played ole Drac in The Erotic Rites of Countess Dracula in 2001. But no. March 24th.

Claes Bang most recently play him on Netflix. April 28th.

Fuck, really?

I dunno, Leslie Nielsen maybe? Nope. Februrary 11th.

Jesus, was anyone interesting born on July 15th?

Sure…

Hall of fame Basketball player Frank “Pop” Morgenweck, Country Singer Lloyd “Cowboy” Copas, Airwolf’s Jan-Michael Vincent, Painter and toothpaste spokesman Rembrandt, Linda Ronstadt, Filmmaker DA Pennebaker, Jesse “The Body” Ventura, Johnny Thunders, Terry “The Step Father” O’Qiunn, Lolita “I Have the Coolest Last Name Ever” Davidovich, Forrest “What’s Really Goin On With My Eye?” Whittaker, comedian Eddie Griffin, Brian “The Peach Pit” Austin Green and current Portland Trailblazer Point Guard Damian Lillard.

..were all born St. Swithin’s day.

From my extensive research however, I have found that only Brian Austin Green and Cowboy Copas were actual Vampires. Brian was born in 1973, which probably makes him a bit too young for the honor. So, I can only conclude this song is about legendary Vampire Lloyd “Cowboy” Copas.

So beware, or your death might be Signed, Sealed and Delivered.

Nosferatu

TRACK #243:

Nosferatu by Blue Öyster Cult

It’s been roughly 7 years, 6 months and 16 days since Blue Öyster Cult has made an appearance on The Shindig. Roughly.

Back then, it was their contribution to John Carpenter’s 1978 classic Halloween, (Don’t Fear) The Reaper, which afforded them an early nod on The Playlist.

Well now they’re back, all these years later, with the less inclusive, though infinitely more referential, Nosferatu.

This one was the final track on their 1977 release Spectres, an album which opens with the much more celebrated (though no less referential) Godzilla. As it happens, Nosferatu was actually the B-Side to Godzilla, making for one very referential 45.

Being horror fans, Nosferatu is a word I’m quite sure you are all fairly familiar with. But what hell is Nosferatu?

Well, it’s a word that for sure appears in Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula, though Ole Bram claimed he got it from Emily Gerard’s Transylvania Travelogue The Land Beyond the Forest. However, Emily seems to merely claim it’s a Romainian word which means “Vampire,” although no such word really seems to exist in Romanian.

Some claim the word came from the Greek “nosphoros” which meant “disease-carrying.” Others say it takes root in the old Romanian term “necurat,” meaning “unclean.” It was the kinda thing you’d say so you didn’t have to say “vampire,” lest speaking it’s name called the creature to you.

Lotta ideas. No concrete answers.

At any rate, occultist producer Albin Grau and screenwriter Henrik Galeen liked the word so much, they used it to evade securing any rights for their unauthorized 1922 adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

They were unsuccessful however, as Bram Stoker’s widow, Florence, sued the shit out of them, bankrupted their fledgling occultist studio Prana-Film, and almost had every copy of the FW Murnau’s film Nosferatu burned into oblivion.

So, for almost 100 years now, “Nosferatu” has directly related to not just vampires, but specifically, Dracula.

And Blue Öyster Cult, like Grau, Galeen and Murnau, are clearly referencing Bram Stoker’s classic novel. So much so that some of the lyrics directly reference passages from the book.

But, since the 1922 Nosferatu is a silent picture, I’ve added some samples from Werner Herzog’s awesomely unsettling 1979 remake, just for a little ambiance.

So get unclean with Klaus Kinski and the disease carrying cultists of the Blue Öyster with…

Nos-fer-a-tu!

Goblin Girl

TRACK #222:

Goblin Girl by Frank Zappa

Some of you may be familiar with 2 time Face/Off contestant and Shindig Radio personality Graham C. Schofield. What you may not know, however, is that he is also a massive Frank Zappa fan.

What you may also not know is that I have known him for over 13 years. In all of those 13 years I have been compiling, in various forms, the playlist you’ve come to know as Halloween Shindig.

In fact, the first Halloween I ever spent with him took place in my old backyard in Van Nuys, CA. At this Halloween gathering, an older version of The Shindig was playing to everyone’s delight.

So why, you might ask, did it take until a random pool gathering in 2019 for Graham to casually mention that Frank Zappa had a Halloween song?

It’s a solid question, and one I’m not sure he provided a satisfactory answer to when pressed. Probably something about plants.

Whatever the reason, late is definitely better than never, as we can now add Frank Zappa to the list of very famous and accomplished musicians that can stand proudly among the greats of true Halloweendom here on the Playlist.

While we all might clearly know (or can at least quickly gather) what Frank is actually talking about here, on the surface, Goblin Girl offers a fun and festive groove that tips its hat to the Eve of All Saints. All clear over here, kid.

So take a moment to bop along with Frank and the gang and their Goblin Girl.

She’s black and green,…cause it’s Halloween!

Interesting festive side note: This album was originally release in October of 1981 on Barking Pumpkin Records!

Dr. Beezar, Soul Frankenstein

TRACK #217:

Dr. Beezar, Soul Frankenstein by Captain Dax

Roughly 5 years and 26 days ago we posted a song called Soul Dracula by Hot Blood.

Mostly a funked-out disco instrumental, we filled that track with some fun samples from Blacula and called it a day.

Now, the soul returns with Dr. Beezar, Soul Frankenstein!

True to form, it’s mostly a funked-out disco instrumental, so this time so we shoved in a bunch of samples from Blackenstein.

Unfortunately, Blacula Blackenstein is not.

What could have (and probably should have) been a fun, campy and exploitative horror romp like its predecessor, slowly unfurls into a dull, plodding and joyless affair that isn’t funny, scary or entertaining.

The Dr. Frankenstein character (here called simply Dr. Stein) isn’t even Black! What kinda sense does that make?

Featuring a plot that resembles something more akin to The Island of Dr. Moreau, you’re getting limited horrific goings-ons and even less Blacksploitation from Blackenstein. It’s as if the filmmakers were neither familiar with Mary Shelley’s classic tale or even the concept of Blacksploitation.

But enough about this crummy movie, because Captain Dax will make all of it worthwhile.

One of several aliases used by The Lafayette Afro Band, this track was a big hit in Japan in 1976. So yeah, these guys were quite literally big in Japan. I guess that’s really a thing people can be.

This boogie-down creepster features so much synthy 70’s goodness, it feels right at home among the spooky ranks of Halloween Shindig.

While I typically recommend staying away from things lightly, because most movies are at least good for a single watch, I wholeheartedly advise avoiding Blackenstein at all cost.

I do not recommend, however, avoiding Captain Dax’s funked out, Franked-up, Moogin’ groove Dr. Beezar, Soul Frankenstein!

Don’t Meet Mr. Frankenstein

TRACK #216:

Don’t Meet Mr. Frankenstein by Carlos Casal Jr.

Here’s an interesting Frankenstein song, in that it makes the strange delineation of referring to him as Mr. Frankenstein and not Dr. Frankenstein.

Okay, fair enough. But who the hell is Mr. Frankenstein?

Well, it’s Victor Frankenstein, right? He is a Mr. Frankenstein. But why specify an honorific different then the one typically associated with this classic literary character? Don’t make no sense.

So, does he mean the monster? Could you refer to the monster as Mr. Frankenstein?

Sure, why not, right? Dr. Frankenstein is technically a kind of father, so the surname could carry over. The monster has no medical degree to speak of and is himself not a doctor. So if you were going to make the distinction, you’d make it for that reason, right?

No, no, I’m not talking about Dr. Frankenstein, I’m talking about his monster, Mr. Frankenstein.

Oh, ok then.

Well, how bout the lyrics? Surely they’ll provide some clarification.

Well, at one point this Mr. Frankenstein character (whomever he may be) opens his mouth and bites the head off the singer, thus causing him to die. Does that sound like something Dr. Frankenstein might do, or is even capable of doing? Not in my book.

Honestly, it doesn’t really sound like anything the monster would do either, but c’mon, he is a monster, so he’s probably more liable to do such a thing.

So, this song is either about unnaturally bitey Frankenstein’s Monster, or some cannibalistic jerk named Frankenstein who just happens eat people at local cafes.

Either way, horrifying.

The Creature from the Black Lagoon

TRACK #215:

The Creature from the Black Lagoon by Dave Edmunds

Because there seems to be a serious shortage of songs specifically about The Creature from the Black Lagoon, we’re gonna spin you a twofer for the old Gillman.

This one comes from Welsh singer/songwriter/producer Dave Edmunds, who had a pretty solid career performing in several different rock acts in the late 60’s and 70’s while also producing a number of different artists.

The story behind this album is a little goofy, because by all accounts, this is an album by the band Rockpile.

You see, after several years of limited success with different bands and a solo album, Dave hooked up with notable singer/songwriter Nick Lowe. Together, with guitarist Ed Bremner and drummer Terry Williams they formed the band Rockpile. However, Lowe was signed to Stiff Records at the time and Dave was signed to Led Zeppelin label Swan Song. This caused a bit of confusion for recording and releasing albums.

What followed was a series of solo releases that actually featured the entire band as background accompaniment. These included Edmund’s 1978 Tracks on Wax 4, Lowe’s Labor of Lust and this album from 1979, Repeat When Necessary.

Offically, the writing credits for this tune belong to Ed Bremner. Now, why Ed decided to write a strange toe tapper about a 25 year old soggy monster, we may never know exactly. Why they all decided to slip it among the rest of the tracks on a fairly standard Pub Rock album, we may also never know.

My guess? Well, it’s a pretty fun tune that’ll quickly worm its way into your head.

This has been in the Shindig Bullpen for years, as it appears on Elvira’s compilation Haunted Hits. The bullpen is a secondary playlist I have filled with songs yet to get officially added or songs that I’m considering for addition. I listen to it throughout the year. I add songs, remove songs, play around with order, see what fits together nicely. That sort of deal.

For years this was a song I kinda hated. Slowly but surely though and against all odds, it finally weaseled its way into my head and I’ve come to enjoy it quite a bit. Perhaps you may find yourself having a similar response. Though, I certainly wouldn’t blame you if this one never comes around for ya like it did for me. I get it.

However, since there is that shortage I mentioned earlier and Lagoony is one of the Big 5, Dave Edmunds and his strange by the numbers rock song about a classic monster get their chance to swim.

(I’m In Love With) The Creature from the Black Lagoon

TRACK #214:

(I’m In Love With) The Creature from the Black Lagoon by Hans Conried & Alice Pearce

Long before Guillermo Del Toro won Oscars and appalled your Grandma by having a mute girl fuck a fish man, people have been musing about what it might be like to engage in some inter-species monster sex.

While not nearly as explicit, this old time ditty comes courtesy of an unlikely duo with whom you may be at least vaguely familiar.

For some reason (perhaps other than it seemed like a solid move in the late 50’s) comedians Hans Conried and Alice Pearce released the creature feature album Monster Rally. This classic Halloween LP from 1959 features tons of fun songs and another great album cover from the legendary Jack Davis.

Let’s take a moment here to just appreciate what an awesome artist and influence on horror imagery Jack Davis was. Here’s the full painting for the Monster Rally LP.

Now, if you’re a Bewitched fan, you may recognize Alice Pearce’s name and cadence, as she played nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz to Samantha and Darrin Stephens. Here she is:

Though it doesn’t seem like Conried makes much of an appearance on this particular tune, Alice sings up a storm detailing a brief and heartbreaking affair with our titular lagoon lurker.

In the end though, he leaves her for a sexy young flounder that swims passed. It’s all a little sad, really.

Hans Conried probably just provides some background sound FX here, but I couldn’t say for sure. Whether present or not, Hans may sound familiar to you as he is not only the voice of Dudley Do-Right antagonist Snidley Whiplash but also Captain Hook in Walt Disney’s classic Peter Pan.

More significantly (at least to the Shindig) he was the voice of Dr. Dred on The Drak Pack, and is the narrator for The Dr. Seuss Halloween Special Halloween is Grinch Night. Pretty neat. Plus he cut a fun novelty monster album? This guy’s batting 1000 right here.

So let’s take another brief moment here, amidst all of the very wholesome fare, to enjoy this short number and imagine what monster we might like to have sex with.

I’ll take the entire cast of Hammer’s Vampire Lovers.

You can take Audrey II.

(I’m The) Mummy

TRACK #213:

(I’m The) Mummy by Long Tall Ernie and The Shakers

While we may not be entirely sure who the fuck The Wolf Man actually is, we can safely say we know exactly who The Mummy is, and his name is Long Tall Ernie.

Dutch rockers Long Tall Ernie and The Shakers started out life in The Netherlands in 1968 as a band called The Moans, which they later changed to simply Moans.

These guys were all a bunch of jokers I guess, because during live performances The Moans would go offstage halfway through the set and re-emerge as a sort of spoof act called Long Tall Ernie and The Shakers. As The Shakers, The Moans would play traditional Rock ‘N Roll from across the pound…as they probably don’t say over there because that’s a definitely a British phrase.

Whatever they say, these guys never found much success as The Moans, but people seemed to love Long Tall Ernie and his Shakers. No problem for them, they just said “fuck it” and changed the band completely to Long Tall Ernie and The Shakers and started knocking out albums.

One of the last of those albums, from 1979, was Meet The Monsters. While maybe a little late in the game for this brand of Shock Theater styled rocking , being a direct goof on 50’s Rock ‘N Roll sensibilities, it only makes perfects sense that these jokesters might eventually release a full on novelty Monster album.

And god bless ‘em, because they threw on a song about the Mummy, and those aren’t exactly spilling out of the sarcophagi.

The Mummy is a bit underrepresented in the Monster Song game, at least when compared to Bash Brother’s Dracula and Frankenstein. Even the Wolf Man, or at the very least, Werewolves, are getting more at-bats than The Mummy.

And rightfully so. Of the Big 5, you’d have to slot this bozo 4th.

The Wolf Man-Dracula-Frankenstein lineup is a veritable Murderer’s Row when it comes to Monstering and popularity. Them’s just the breaks, kid. These dudes are batting 1000, mercing fools left and right and you’re over there lumbering around all slow, reaching at people, looking for some a lost lover or purloined artifact or some shit.

You don’t think you belong 4th, band-aid breath? Come at me. I’ll take you the fuck out, Rudy style, without even breaking a sweat. Frank’s tossin’ me straight into a river, I got nothing for a walking corpse quilt of those measurements. The Wolf Man’s probably ripping my gentials straight off and God help me if Dracula’s got any of them bimbo’s in tow, cause I’m a goner. You? You’re getting unwrapped up quick.

But enough calling out of probably imaginary Monsters. Let’s get back to Long Tall’s take.

For some reason, The Mummy here sounds like any numbers of novelty Dracula’s or weird Igor fashioned character. Seriously, why does The Mummy sound like this? I understand these guys are Dutch, but surely they realize this is not a voice associated with The Mummy, right?

But maybe that’s the problem. Is any voice really associated with The Mummy? What is he supposed to sound like? Egyptian I’ll wager, at the very least. You do have Karloff just Ardath Bey-ing it up, and maybe that’s what they were going for here, cause you could claim this is a voice approaching Boris.

Either way, this is a fun Novelty Monster song about a guy we don’t get to hear too much about. And in regards to Meet the Monsters, it’s a great Monstrous album that deserves a full listen, if you’re into that sort of thing. An album we certainly haven’t heard the last from around here.

I’m The Wolfman

TRACK #212:

I’m The Wolfman by Round Robin

For our next nerve racking number, we have a rockabilly classic of monstrous proportions.

This moon lit hit is attributed to a fella named Round Robin. Problem is, there seems to be some debate among Rock ‘N Roll aficionados as to whether this song was actually recorded by Round Robin or by its author, Baker Knight.

This doesn’t concern us however, as we aren’t that kind of nerd. We’re a different sort of nerd. So, let’s just say it’s Round Robin, a sort of Chubby Checker wannabe who tried to start his own dance craze out of The Slauson, which some of you may know as a street in downtown L.A.

Unfortunately for Robin, The Slauson (in any of its forms) failed to capture the American public’s imagination the way Chubby’s Twist had. But it certainly wasn’t for a lack of trying. Robin gave it a go with Do The Slauson, Slauson Street, Slauson Shuffletime, Slauson Town and Slauson Party.

What can I say, dude loved him some Slauson.

However, if you listen to any of Round Robin’s catalog and then give I’m The Wolfman a spin, you’re liable to come to the same conclusion as our Rock ‘N Roll Nerd contingency…

“Yeah that’s not the same guy at all.”

…because they sound totally different.

Either way, whoever is really rockin’ the mic here, I’m The Wolfman is a surefire Shindig inclusion that’s sure to get some hairy feet a-movin’.

The Monster Club

TRACK #211:

The Monster Club by The Pretty Things

On the surface it might seem like The Monster Club and Halloween Shindig would go hand in hand; a horror anthology starring such genre vets as Vincent Price, John Carradine, Donald Pleasence and Britt Ekland, that has tons of fun monsters and masks plus numerous monster related musical numbers? It’s a no brainer, right?

And it’s true, we love The Monster Club. It’s kinda like Night Train to Terror, only it’s coherent and cuts back to different and actual songs. It has a fun premise, with 3 solid monster vignettes and a spooky, synthy score.

So what’s the problem? Where’s the “but” that has kept this blog for talking about it for 7 years now?

That, dear readers, is my own prejudice against those same monster related songs. I kinda hate them. I don’t want to, but I kinda do. I want to love them. I want to include them all and have wanted to since the beginning. But I’m just not a huge fan.

I’ve tried, over the years, to warm up to them but the love just never seems to flows out of me. They have this late 70’s/early 80’s British new wave, pseudo-reggae, Clash meets The Police vibe that neither suits the movie, the songs or me, despite their monstrous leanings.

Because I think it needs to be represented and because I do quite enjoy the film, Halloween Shindig has decided to include the tune I’ve warmed up to the most. Performed on camera by The Pretty Things, it also happens to be (perhaps not so incidentally) the film’s Title Track.

After discussing over 30 different Title Tracks across 6 or so hours on the podcast, how did we not mention this one? Well, as we noted, there’s a mountain of Title Tracks and we had to keep some in our pocket, no? Leave a few surprises for the blog still, right? And we may even have a few more up our sleeve this year.

Additionally, this seemed like an appropriate way to kick off the season and usher in a monster block of Monster Songs, which have been sorely under represented as of late.

Lead in here with Vincent Price’s overly long (and overly awesome) laundry list of solid reasons the Human Race deserves to be represented in a club full of horrible monsters.

So, fellow Shindiggers and Humans…

Welcome to The Monster Club.

The Salem Witch Trial

TRACK #186:

The Salem Witch Trial by Kiriae Crucible

Since Christopher Lee’s over here talking about The Salem Witch Trial, let’s follow that up with a song about The Salem Witch Trial, aptly titled The Salem Witch Trial.

This rockin’ piece of obscure psychedelia comes from none other than Kiriae Crucible, a band (or hell, even just a lone dude) that I can seem to find absolutely no information about at all.

Any web search for Kiriae Crucible will undoubtedly return this song, an seemingly only this song, the various compilations that contain this song, or places in which you can hear…this song.

Well, Halloween Shindig now proudly joins the ranks of places at which you can also hear this song but find no other information regarding Kiriae Crucible. If you were led here looking for such information (though I sincerely doubt it) then I apologize for being just another repository with absolutely nothing new to offer.

I will say this, though. The 45 above is curiously adorned with the name “Erickson,” which might lead you (as it did me) to wonder if it was not penned (and perhaps even performed) by Halloween hero, Shindigger and all around way-out-cat Roky Erickson.

Beats me though, as a cross-reference of the 2 also returned no results for me.

Bummer.

Anyway, if you do happen to be reading this and actually have information regarding Kiriae Crucible or this song, please leave a comment below or forward said info to ed@halloweenshindig.com. Thanking you in advance, your assistance is greatly appreciated.

For everyone else, just sit back and enjoy this random-ass song about The Salem Witch Trial by a random-ass band (or dude) known simply as Kiriae Crucible, a name which I’m still not even sure how to pronounce exactly.

I Put a Spell On You

TRACK: #184

I Put a Spell On You by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins

Here’s a Halloween staple the blog has managed to avoid for, oh I don’t know, 5 years or so. Which is odd, considering it’s an original member of the very first Shindig CD from 2002.

Perhaps Rock ‘N Roll’s first Shock Rocker, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins used to be just plain, old fashioned Blues singer Jay Hawkins. In fact, I Put a Spell On You was originally written and recorded as a love song. It was producer Arnold Maxin at Colombia Records who can take the initial credit for creeping things up, deciding the song needed a darker tone. He proceeded to get everyone shit hammered drunk during the session and Hawkins has stated he has no memory of even recording that 1956 version. Man, that’s a little bizarre. Is some more music industry warlocking afoot?

Famous Cleveland DJ Alan Freed can probably be blamed for the rest, offering Jay $300 dollars to emerge from a coffin on stage. Jay didn’t like the idea, reportedly saying “No black dude gets in a coffin alive…they don’t expect to get out!” But alive he went, and out he came just fine, with all the voodoo accoutre ma that came to define his on-stage persona. Jay Hawkins was now officially Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and the rest was history.

Or was it?

Despite being edited by Colombia Records, many stations banned I Put a Spell On You for what was perceived at the time as overt sexuality. This was 1956 after all. And despite ultimately selling over a million copies, the record failed to break onto the billboard charts. The song itself would be a bigger hit for just about every other singer that covered it than it was for Hawkins himself, with white artists making the charts on it’s back only 10 years later. This was 1956 after all.

When coupled with friction Jay found with the NAACP regarding his “racially stereotypical” appearance, one can understand and appreciate Hawkins satirical album “Black Music for White People,” which should probably be in the running for one of the greatest album titles of all time. Though many found it to be the opposite, it could be argued that Jay’s reticence to conform to an acceptably “white” appearance was itself in fact transgressive and confrontational to the white audiences that reveled in his performances. Stereotyping and the NAACP be damned, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins wasn’t gonna whitewash his act for anyone.

Still, Jay harbored bitterness toward the fact that these schlocky gimmicks were what ultimately brought him notoriety, and often blamed them for why people wouldn’t take him seriously as a vocalist. He would re-record this track on several occasions over his long career, each time shifting the tempo and either dialing back or amping up his vocals. But, it is the 1956 version (honestly, not even the most outrageous and oft-heard version) that we include here on the playlist.

However Hawkins felt about his fame, or whether or not he received it for the right reasons, he remains a massive influence on not only Shock Rock, but on hundreds of artists, not the least of which being Shindiggers like Alice Cooper, The Cramps, Nick Cave, The Misfits and Screaming Lord Sutch. And not simply for his outlandish stage persona or appearance, but for his unique talent and that wholly original and genre-defining (and defying) style.

Jay Hawkins died following an aneurysm on Feb. 12th, 2000, exactly 44 years,…to the day…that he recorded this version of I Put a Spell On You. Ya know, that strange drunken session he couldn’t remember…

A spell indeed.

Spooks

TRACK #181

Spooks by Louis Armstrong

Welcome back Weeners! It’s been a while. Well, that is unless you happen to be reading this in 2021 or something and just moved on to the very next post. Chances are you’re not reading this at all though, so that really doesn’t matter that much.

Anyway, the Season of the Witch is upon us once again!

And here to kick off the march to Halloween is Louis Armstrong with some words of warning to all of us this holiday season.

He’s serving up one swinging haunted boogie that just gets my foot tapping. Seriously, I love this song. It’s got a great spooky vibe and some really fun word play, all delivered with Louis’ famous throaty growl.

Now, if you’re finding it a bit difficult to enjoy a song from 1954 where a black man repeatedly belts out a popular racial epithet, I’m not exactly sure how to assuage your feelings of unease.

All I will say, is that apparently Louis didn’t have a problem with it, and I’ll wager that slur was actually used toward him directly, perhaps even many times, during his life in early 20th century America. That’s good enough for me.

It’s perhaps a bit easier to understand in context. Back then, the word “spook” found much more association with ghosts and horror than it does now, no doubt because of it’s offensive application.

This was in part because of The Midnight Spook Show, a precursor to the Midnight Movies and Horror Hosts of the 60’s and 70’s. But we’ll talk about that more a little further down the road.

For now…

Beware a dem spooks…spooks…spooks!

The Monster Mash

TRACK #171:

The Monster Mash by The Krypt-Keeper 5

Born from the same scuzzy streets, Foodland chipped ham and shitty, 3-story apartment building in “downtown” Monessen, Pennsylvania that also gave birth to Halloween Shindig, The Krypt-Keeper 5 and this playlist go together like apples and caramel.

A band of bored FX students joined forces in the winter of 2005 to cut a Christmas album. Deck My Balls: Seasons Beatings from The Krypt-Keeper 5 was a substantial, 28-track package of punk covers, originals, re-workings and Christmas classics.

Featuring the vocal stylings and ivory work of a man you may be familiar with; sculptor, mask-dork, punch-technician and friend of The Shindig, Mikey Rotella.

Rhythming it up behind him were bassist and 4th Keeper Chuck Hendershot (aka Klaus Satan Von Chudberg), Timmy “Tiny Timminy Grinch” Estes slinging a six-string, and Todd Russell Parker McCulloch filling in with drum fills, guitar licks and just about anything else required.

They even played a couple of shows which, for any of the poor souls trapped in the Monongahela Valley, was probably the freshest air they’d ever breathed. Unfortunately, The Shindig never got to see them perform live, as it had moved on to the good life out in California’s beautiful San Fernando Valley by 2005. However, we can all pretend like we were there thanks to the miracle of modern video.

Yeah, that’s great an all, but the last time I checked this was Halloween Shindig. Why the fuck are we sitting here, 3 days before Halloween, talking about a goddamn Christmas album?

Well, that’s because buried deep within this seasonal offering is another kind of festive shanty, and it’s the 5’s take on a Halloween Classic, The Monster Mash.

And when Monessen’s own sons, The Krypt-Keeper 5, take on All-Star Boris Pickett’s seminal Halloween hit, there’s nothing but room for them on Halloween Shindig.

So, c’mon Weeners! Join Dracula, his son….and the wolfmaaan…for this take on the timeless graveyard smash.

Hauntedween

TRACK #150:

Hauntedween by Ernest Raymer

What better place to bring our Haunted House Rockin’ block to an end than here, at the Berber House with Hauntedween, a Haunted House Halloween Title Track?

While not a real haunted house, The Berber House is just a festive Haunted House, or rather a Haunt, which has hitherto been unrepresented in our block.

A staple of the season since well before I was brought to this plane of existence, The Haunted House is as much a part of Halloween as Trick-or-Treating, Jack O’Lanterns and slutty costumes.

High school kids in rubber masks weave through a thick mist of dangling limbs and fake fog, looking for their next mark.

Disorienting lights strobe to the beat of pneumatic pistons firing foam jump scares.

A chainsaw is perpetually chugging somewhere, sometimes roaring to life, but from where, you couldn’t say.

Grown adults tip-toe around dark corners, weary of things they know aren’t really out to get them.

The nervous shriek, the tough guys almost instinctively punch and the weirdos laugh uneasily.

Some are good and some are terrible, but they all have that same smell, that same vibe, the same excitement, and you should always treat yourself to at least one visit a season.

If you live around Southern California, I highly recommend Reign of Terror in Thousand Oaks. Skip Universal, Knotts and The Griffith Park Hayride, and check that place out.

Hauntedween is a low budget affair filled with that same sort of passionate home-town charm and love for the holiday you find in local Haunted Houses, and it features a killer lying in wait at just such a local Haunt. You can read The Shindig’s write-up here!

This Title Track (which it is gracious enough to give us) plays over a montage of the Sigma Phi frat boys rebuilding the old local Haunt in preparation for a holiday fundraiser to save their fraternity!

It may be awkward to say, and it may not make one bit of sense, but here it is all the same…it’s Hauntedween!

Someone’s dying to start the show.