halloween song

Night of The Demons

TRACK #109:

Night of the Demons by 45 Grave

Great Pumpkins are few and far between, so to stick two so close together is indicative of the kind of block where in here toward the center of our hallowed playlist.

At last count there were four total; two tried and true Halloween Pumpkins, one Monster Song Pumpkin and another by way of Devilish Track. That’s the bases covered, doubly so in that The Monster Squad is also a Monster Rap.

This one though, this one is the gold standard. This is the one which inspired the category. This is the one by which all the others are measured, and even they fall short of the Shindiggery on display here. If the playlist had its own theme, it would probably be this song.

It’s not necessarily may favorite song on the Shindig (though it would definitely be up there), nor do I mean to suggest it is the best, but it’s so exemplary of what this playlist is all about that it beggars belief. Horror Movies, the music from them, the referential Rock ‘N Roll about them and of course Halloween, all succinctly served in a 4 minute sonic stew.

Is it any surprise that such a song should come from 45 Grave? Not to this guy it doesn’t, and when I first heard it back in 2010 my jaw dropped and I immediately shouted “Holy shit does this song need to be on the playlist.”

But because nothing could be that perfect, naturally, there’s a catch. In this case (and it’s perhaps a bit of my own prejudice rising to the surface) it is the caveat that the song is that comes from the the Night of the Demons remake. Which is a solid soundtrack, to be sure, but a terrible remake. Moreover, it was a terrible movie in its own right. However, as a remake to one of my favorite Halloween movies of all time, it’s even worse.

So, to balance out that factor, I’ve book-ended it with samples from the original, because, how could I not? This song could have been on the original soundtrack. It should have been on the original soundtrack . So let’s just pretend it was.

And with that, 45 Grave and I invite you to drink, get stoned and party all night, for the demons come alive on Halloween.

 

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Halloween

TRACK #100:

Halloween by The Misfits

Is it the ultimate Halloween song? Well, in certain circles, I’m sure it is.

While The Shindig isn’t quite sold on its top billing, there are a few things we are sure of:

  1. It’s one hell of a Halloween jam.
  2. It’s been on The Shindig since its very first 700mg CD incarnation.
  3. It belongs on every Halloween party playlist ever created. Period.  I don’t even care if you don’t like The Misfits. Include it.
  4. It’s easily one of the 5 greatest Halloween songs ever recorded.

Danzig’s trip down memory lane hits all the high points of Halloween; pumpkin faces, brown leaves, kids trick or treating in costumes, candy apples and razor blades. Plus some other stuff about dead cats and burning bodies hanging from poles.

Now, while I’ve certainly never encountered such as this on any Hallow’s Eve I’ve ever lived through, that’s not to say they aren’t Halloween staples, especially not for Glenn Danzig. Guy remembers Halloween a little different than you and me. Or guy just parties a little harder. Or hell, maybe that’s the sort of thing that happened on October 31st in Lodi New Jersey during the 60’s, I dunno. Whatever the reason, it’s a pretty Halloweeny ass image none-the-less.

So, let us enter the triple digits, and kick off this, a most grand and seasonal block of Halloween Shindig with The Misfits and Halloween.

I remember Halloween.

 

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Anything Can Happen On Halloween

TRACK #90:

Anything Can Happen On Halloween by Tim Curry

If you thought you’d only get Tim Curry singing as Dr. Frank-N-Furter here on the Shindig, then boy are you in for a treat.

From the 1986 shot-on-video oddity The Worst Witch comes this ridiculous tune about Halloween itself, sung by Grand Wizard (did they seriously call him Grand Wizard?) Tim Curry to Mrs. Cackle’s Academy for Witches.

Anything Can Happen On Halloween reassures us that anything can happen on Halloween, like a dog turning into a cat, or a toad appearing in your bass guitar. You know, crazy shit. Demonic shit.

A YouTube viewing of this drug-induced mass hallucination is definitely advised. Here it is if you’re feelin’ lazy.

Crazy gif-blast to follow. They’re good ones too.

 

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It’s Only Halloween

TRACK #86:

It’s Only Halloween by Butch Patrick

Show business can be a bitch. One day you’re a hit, the next day you can’t find work as extra in a retirement home theater production of Our Town. What’s an actor to do?

Well, it’s even worse if you’re a child star. Not every Richie Cunningham can turn lemons into Backdrafts.

So, what’s Butch Patrick left with? Well, when your 1983 hit Whatever Happened to Eddie fails to make enough waves to buoy your career, I guess you take another stab at referentially cashing in on your former success.

In 2007, Butch cut the seasonal track It’s Only Halloween, where he does his best Shanter impersonation over a requisite Halloween beat.

Say what you want about this song, but I like it and given it’s a Halloween song recorded by Butch Fucking Patrick, I can’t think of a more fitting place for it than right here, with every other spooky, bizarre and otherwise unwise track on Halloween Shindig!

 

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Halloween (She Get So Mean)

TRACK# 80:

Halloween (She Get So Mean) by The Ghastly Ones (feat. Rob Zombie)

If White Zombie was a garage band in the late 60’s, they might have sounded a whole lot like our next divisible by 20 track.

From the Zombie A Go-Go released holiday mix Halloween Hootenanny comes this great Halloween track from perennial spooksters The Ghastly Ones.

Providing some uncharacteristic lyrical accompaniment for the Ghastly’s this time around is the man himself, Mr. Rob Zombie.

Since the song is titled Halloween (She Get So Mean) I’ve led the track in with every Halloweener’s favorite Halloween avenger Rhonda from Trick R Treat, as she schools us all on the sinister origins of our Hallowed holiday.

Enjoy!

 

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Trick Or Treat

TRACK #71:

Trick Or Treat by Fastway

Once in blue Moon (or maybe 3 times in roughly 230 tracks) a song comes along so awesomely perfect that it defies my categories. It flagrantly rebels all, encompasses, and becomes more. It demands representation and it’s exclusion from any Halloween playlist is a crime against the holiday, so perfectly suited is it.

It’s a +1 to the trinity; it’s from a horror movie, its about the movie, it’s the movie’s fucking Title Track, and against all odd, it’s about Halloween too.

Are you kidding me? Nope. It’s a Referentially Inclusive Halloween Title Track, or a Great Pumpkin. I’d call it the Holy Grail, but there’s a couple of these fuckers on the Shindig.

While Trick Or Treat isn’t the ultimate example of such a song, it does appear before that track, so it gets the lead-in.

That’s not to say it’s any slouch though. Lets look at the stats:

It’s a Title Track, already 3 shots to it.

In that it’s called Trick Or Treat, is played live by an undead rock star in the movie, at a Halloween party, on Halloween, while he’s killing teenagers with a guitar that shoots lightning, is effort enough to earn it’s keep at the top of the heap.

You have a Halloween playlist and it doesn’t feature this song, you’re doing it wrong.

I love Trick Or Treat and it’s definitely an annual watch somewhere between October 1st and 31st.

Metal head dork Eddie Weinbauer accidentally resurrects his recently deceased rock hero Sammi Curr by unwittingly playing his final and unreleased album backwards.

At first Sammi aids Edward in his game of revenge, but when Sammi’s game becomes too real, Eddie pussies out and Sammi takes matters into his own hands. Awesomeness ensues.

The soundtrack, presented in the form of Sammi Curr’s music, is provided by butt-rockers Fastway, whom I’m not sure achieved much notoriety beyond this Soundtrack.

Either way, it all adds up to a pretty fantastic Heavy Metal Halloween. Enjoy!

 

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The Halloween Dance

TRACK #70:

The Halloween Dance by The Reverend Horton Heat

I love the Rev, so I’ve always appreciated the fact that I could include him on the Shindig, via this made-to-order Halloween song compliments of Rob Zombie’s Halloween Hootenanny album.

Not only is this upbeat spookster a great Halloween song but it also features a pretty referential verse where he shouts out Psycho, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Stepford Wives.

There’s even a brief musical nod to The Munsters, all wrapped up in the Rev’s customized psychobilly sound.

Halloween never sounded so swingin’.

 

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Happy Halloween

TRACK #60:

Happy Halloween by Zacherley

Perhaps the granddaddy of all Horror Hosts, John Zacherle donned the guise of Roland (later Zarcherley in New York) as Philadelphia’s host of Shock Theater in 1957.

In addition to being one of the most iconic personalities of the genre and one of its earliest originators, Zarcherley also released tons of spooky music during his career as a Horror Host.

Just in time for #60, here’s the Cool Ghoul himself wishing us all a very Happy Halloween.

 

 

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Halloween

TRACK #40:

Halloween by Kay Lande and Wade Denning

Divisible by 20? That must mean it’s time for another Halloween song.

When it comes to straight up Halloween music, few songs pack as much adolescent cheer and Halloweeniness than this track from spookster Wade Denning and children’s performer Kay Lande.

It’s catchier than all get out and set to the tune of Saint-Saëns’ Danse Macabre, which itself used to be on the Shindig, until I came across this little ditty some years back.

Go ahead, try not humming this song to yourself for the next 72 hours.

H-A-DOUBLE L – O – W – DOUBLE E – N spells Halloween!

 

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This Is The Night (Trick Or Treat)

TRACK #21:

This Is The Night (Trick or Treat) by Lou Rawls

I don’t know bout y’all, but when I was a kid, only one thing meant Halloween and that was Garfield’s Halloween special.

6 years before The Simpsons would forever lace itself in my brain to this Eve of the Dead, Garfield was digging through costumes in John’s attic, trick or treating with Odie, and getting lost in a row boat.

The most memorable aspect of Garfield’s Halloween Adventure, other than those goddamn ghost pirates scaring the living shit out of me, was the music.

The first cut from this classic holiday cartoon is the opening number by Lou Rawls, lead in by our old pal Binky The Clown. Enjoy.

 

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Halloween (Betty Grable)

TRACK #20:

Halloween by Betty Grable

There are so many songs on the Shindig simply titled Halloween, that one appears roughly every 20 songs.

So, up at #20 is this vintage Betty Grable ditty from the 1950 film entitled My Blue Heaven.

The film, while not itself about Halloween, does feature this rather bizarre song and dance number. Stranger still, the movie is actually about a married couple (Dan Dailey and Grable) both radio personalities, that are expecting their first child. After a car accident, Grable miscarries and the couple look in adoption. Yeah, that sounds pretty light, let’s turn that into a musical. Shit, and while we’re at it, let’s throw in this completely unrelated song about Halloween!

Hey, if you’re singing about the Eve of All Hallo’s, the Shindig don’t judge, particularly when you have lines like “Hot jack-o-lantern it’s Halloween!”

 

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Spooky

TRACK #17:

Spooky by Classic IV

Ash might call it “Groovy.”

I’ll call it a Shindigger, cause with a verse like…

Just like a ghost, you’ve been a-hauntin’ my dreams,
So I’ll propose… on Halloween.
Love is kinda crazy with a spooky little girl like you

…this song’s gotta get some Halloween props.

 

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Halloween

TRACK #3:

Halloween by King Diamond

With the first 2 tracks simply serving as atmosphere, the the unofficial start to Halloween Shindig is here. And what better herald is there than King Diamond to usher in our festivities? Halloween (or our Shindig) doesn’t truly begin until King Diamond fucking says so.

But to King Diamond, every night is Halloween, and he looks damn prepared for it…always. Check it out.

Anything anyone who looks anything like this 90% of the time has to say about Halloween is probably true, so we should just listen.

But, I’m not sure how that works exactly. If Halloween is just constantly occurring, what’s all the fuss about? What are any of us doing here? Why is there a party, and why do you need music for it?

That’s because, in deference to whether King gets his sack out and goes trick-or-treating every night, Halloween is still Oct. 31st, and you’ve got a party to host. A party King Diamond will most likely not be attending…at least not physically anyway.

So, in the true spirit of Halloween, the eve of the dead…..crank it up, and let the spirit of King Diamond make an appearance at your Shindig.