Wait, wait wait. What? You got second song about a fuckin’ hop? And it’s a whole other song actually called TheMonster Hop?
Yep.
Well, I mean, if you wanna be annoying about it, this isn’t technically another Monster Hop. Bert Convy’s 1958 tune is The Monsters Hop, and Jack and Jim’s 1959 diddy is Midnight Monsters Hop. But yeah, there is yet another hop with monsters in attendance and that’s a little weird.
A hop, by the way (in case you were at all curious, or are under the age of 70, which is statistically most probable) was an informal dance mostly held at schools. It’s actually a shortening of Sock Hop, which they were called because all the kids were made to take off their shoes as not to scuff up the gymnasium floors.
You may be familiar with the song At the Hop, by Danny and The Juniors, which hit number 1 on the billboard charts in early 1958. So, Bert Convy and Jack and Jim seem to be right at the cutting edge of adding monsters to this particular event. Shock Theatre + Popular Teen Activity apparently = 3 goddamn songs basically called the same thing in 4 years, because this particular Shoeless Monster Dance is from 1962, the same year as Boris Pickett’sThe Monster Mash.
So how does the 3rd installment in our Monster Hop Trilogy differ from its predecessors?
Well, for one, there aren’t many monsters on the roll call here. We get a vampire woman and a Frankenstein eating people’s blood. There’s some Grave Robber named Harry (question mark, am I hearing that right?) and he’s there with a Sasquatch lady. That’s it? Ok then, I guess. Cool party, bro.
Both Jack and Jim and Bert’s hops are much better attended than Jimmy’s here. Jimmy’s hop, in fact, sounds like kind of a drag, the way he describes it anyway. I will say, there does appear to be a monster band though, much like in Midnight Monsters Hop, and that’s definitely a plus. There’s a werewolf on drums, some guy in a hood I guess, and maybe a zombie playing a saxophone? I dunno. It’s hard to tell, cause Jimmy’s song’s a bit lacking in the “making me give a shit about this party at all” department. I’m practically falling asleep over here. What gives? This is a monster party, buddy. Why am I so bored?
Anyway, like Bert, Jimmy says he’s scared of this party, but I don’t buy it. Nothing about this song is scary, nor is Jimbo’s reaction to any of it all that appalled. Bert Convy is horrified by what he sees, and I believe him. This guy? I feel like he ain’t even at this party the way he’s so nonplussed about it all. Oh, fuckin Draculas or whatever? Yeah they’re dancing, I guess. What?! That’s crazy, Jimmy. Why you acting like it ain’t fuckin bonkers to see a Frankenstein eating blood. Even if you’re ok with seeing a Frankenstein, why the fuck is he eating people’s blood? That’s not what he does, Jimmy! There’s no reason to be this nonchalant about this shit.
Jack and Jim on the other hand, now they’re some cool customers. They’re cold chillin at their party. I don’t think they’re perturb at all by what they’re seeing. In fact, they seem kinda into it and what they’re describing sounds like a great time.
Now, I can appreciate that we just came off of a pretty whack monster party. I apologize for serving up two in a row. But, Jimmy Dee’s party, lame though it may be, is a far sight cooler than Earl’s. He’s got a monster band, a larger roster, more monster happenings; it’s just better. But maybe that says more about Earl’s Hop than it does about Jimmy’s.
Either way, they’re both prime examples from the golden age of Monster Songs that should definitely appear on The Shindig, however uneventful they might be.
We’re gonna say goodbye to the witches for now and lay down a little Monster Song block for you here to wrap up the 420s.
And our first moldy oldie comes from the year 1959. Yep, it’s another example of a monster party that pre-dates The Monster Mash by 3 whole years. It’s from Texas songman Earl Patterson, who only appears to have released one single. On the b-side is a track called Ready for Love, but we don’t care about that, do we? No, we’re only interested in the a-side, a rockabilly monster tune called Nightmare Hop.
We know from monster parties around here, don’t we gang? Sure we do. One might even say we’re all amateur scholars on the matter. So, how does this one stack up against the others? Is it worth attending, let alone writing an entire song about? What’s happening over at Earl’s shindig?
Well, not a whole helluva lot, I can tell you that.
In Earl’s tune, a Teenage Werewolf (released 2 years prior in 1957) takes Dracula’s Daughter (released over 20 years prior in 1936) to the hop. Her name is Betty Vampire, which I have to admit is a weird choice on Dracula’s part. Betty’s fine I suppose, given it’s 1959. But Vampire? Why would Dracula name his daughter Vampire? It’s like you naming your son Jimmy Human. You just wouldn’t do it.
But I digress.
At this hop, they dance (which is to be expected) but they also eat goulash sandwiches and drink tequila from a pot. Now, contrary to, well my belief anyway, those are very real sandwiches. Goulash is real, sure, but it’s basically a stew with big chunks of beef and vegetables like onions and carrots. Now, that seems a strange thing to put between two slices of bread, but apparently they do. It’s a much thicker version of the soup that’s tossed into a crusty bread and sometimes topped with a slaw. It sounds pretty good, honestly. I’d eat that shit right now.
This makes sense in the context of the song too, as goulash is a traditional Hungarian dish. What’s crazy is that we have a version of it in the United States which they call American Goulash.
Now, apparently American Goulash is called American Chop Suey specifically in New England, and I had no idea the 2 dishes were connected. Growing up, American Chop Suey was basically the only thing my father knew how to cook. So every Saturday, like clockwork, he’d get to chopping and boiling and whipping up some American Chop Suey. I wasn’t the biggest fan. Didn’t care for all those onions as it made it hard to just shovel in by the spoonful. Had to pick around ‘em. But I probably ate that stuff every week for what feels like 18 years straight. Always hated those onions though, but he’d never take them out.
Wait, what the hell were we talking about? Oh yeah, this boring party. Did they have anything more frightening than sloppy beef sandwiches?
No. Not really. Frankenstein and The Mummy show up, and maybe that could be scary, but here it’s definitely not. The Teenage Werewolf sees them on his way to the door, which he heads for after eating his goulash sandwich cause I guess the chunky beef, or maybe all that pot tequila, had him needing some fresh air. Guest are actively heading for the exits?Jesus, this party is a bust. I’d head for the door too.
Anyway, he sees the monsters strolling across the floor, which you might just interpret as another boring ass thing happening here at this snoozefest of a party, but The Stroll was a popular dance at the time. But don’t worry, cause it’s one of the most boring dances conceived and fits this party like a glove.
Basically, because 1950, a line of girls and a line of boys would face each other on the dance floor. The first boy and girl would step into the middle, take each other by the hand and walk-dance down to the end and then rejoin their respective lines. Wash repeat.
Jump back! White people are getting wild on the dance floor everybody! They’re slowing walking while holding hands. Holy shit.
Apparently, Link Wray’sRumble was a number that used to get a lot of action during The Stroll, so there’s that. It’s a sleepy kinda tune though, so it makes sense I guess, but fuck. Could they pick a more Thorazined dance for this Monster Party, the fuck is happening over there?
So anyway, Earl mentions from the outset that this Teenage Werewolf was interested in doing The Stroll, so seeing these 2 abominations performing the dance reminded him of why he was there I guess, so he goes back to Betty instead of going outside. The end.
That’s it? That’s all you got Earl?
I guess.
So, that’s what’s goin on at this party. I will say, despite all that, I still like the tune, which I think is the important part. Monsters are mentioned, albeit not many and none doing anything terribly monstrous, but they’re there. Also, we got those American Chop Suey sandwiches, which reminds me of being a kid, so that’s a plus.
All and all? I think it’s a Shindigger for sure, cause we like to rock ‘n roll, and we didn’t want to stop!
Well, there’s certainly no shortage of songs simply titled The Witch. What can I say? Despite the reputation and all the, ya know, creating, musicians don’t seem terribly creative sometimes.
All that aside, our 4th witch tune of the week is perhaps the most explicit depiction of a straight up evil witch we’ve yet heard.
A black eyed queen who’s the devil’s machine, with icy fingers flying through the night is what The Casuals describe to us. The phrase “hocus pocus” is used, there’s some cackles talked about and even a classic reference to MacBeth is tossed in for good measure. Also, she’ll bewitch anyone that’s not inside. Thanks for the heads up, gang!
Now, this is a pretty rocking song for The Casuals. Formed in the early 60’s, this British Pop band performed more mellow, dare I say casual, listening music. They saw a lot of personnel changes over the years, recorded in Italy for a bit and had a pretty bit hit in ‘68 with their song Jesamine.
By 1974 though, they’re releasing this tune, which one YouTuber described as “proto-Iron Maiden” and once I read that I couldn’t unhear it. The commenter also suggests it would have been cool if Maiden had covered it, and I agree. This tune rocks and hearing Steve Harris gallop his way through that bassline while Bruce belts out “the witch will bewitch you if you’re not inside!” would be killer.
As it stands though, we got The Casuals doing it and that’s plenty good enough for our Halloween purposes.
While a touch less ambiguous in its witchery than The Sonic’sThe Witch, tonight’s The Witch is no less…vague? I dunno. There’s an argument to be made it’s more vague than October Country’sWitch, but I still think we’re dealing with an evil entity.
There’s not much to this one. In fact, the lone entry for it on songmeanings.com is literally someone opining:
“I think this means about someone running from a witch”
which reads like Homer explaining to Bart what he thinks “Gabbo” means. Well, that’s insightful, pal. I really hope that’s just a joke.
In that astute analysts’ defense, this is about all The Rattles are offering up lyrically. But this visceral and spooky Witch song should be no stranger to any Halloween playlist, and I probably should have added it years ago.
But I should preface it by saying this version of the song is visceral and spooky. See, German psych rock band The Rattles originally released this tune in 1968 with Male singer Henner Hoier.
But I much prefer this second version from 1970, with vocals by Edna Bejarano, despite some randos on YouTube claiming the original is clearly superior. One goofball even suggested it’s better with a male singer because it makes more sense for a Witch to be chasing a male protagonist, as if it was utterly nonsensical to depict a Witch attacking a female. Insanity.
But that’s pretty generalized. A couple of commenters actually suggested the song needed Grace Slick, and that Edna Bejarano is no Grace Slick. Jeesh! The internet really is a just place for people’s unfiltered and unsolicited opinions…myself included I suppose.
But honestly, the majority of the commenters, across multiple videos, overwhelmingly praise Edna and prefer this version of the song. I do like the original, don’t get me wrong, but I find this one sounds more raw, and with its creepy strings and all that witch cackling, is clearly the more seasonal choice.
So, let’s continue HalloWitch Week with an eerie and appropriately Halloweeny installment that’s a long time coming. Here’s The Rattles, running from, The Witch!
When we did our classic monster run last year we not only left out a classic icon of monsterdom, but also a classic icon of Halloween itself – The Witch.
But that was OK, cause I was teeing up that Hallo-Women block and I could surely drop a Witch in there somewhere. And initially, I did. But I opted to put her off simply because I had too many Witch songs to cram in at the end of the season. So rather than do that, I decided to hold off until this year and just take everyone out of that Hallo-Women block and into Hallo-Witch Week!
So, we’re gonna kick off the new season with a whole block of Witch tunes. Sorry Graham. But hey! Who knows, maybe you’ll like a couple of these. I’d argue they’re all better than Witches’ Brew, but of course (just like everything of this nature) that’s all pretty subjective.
As we talked about last year, when speaking on Mr. Hyde’s The Witch, there’s a good number of songs about Witches that simply appear to be songs about regular women that the singer just doesn’t seem to like too much. Cool story bro.
Similarly, there’s a bunch of songs about Witches that aren’t really about Witches at all (especially in the late 60’s and early 70’s) but are rather about bohemian free spirits with a generically mystical vibe. You see these fuckers pop up all over Halloween playlists too. Rhiannonby Fleetwood Mac comes to mind here. And certainly no disrespect, I love that song and I know she used to introduce it as a song about a Welsh Witch, but not only do you not need to hear that song anymore than you already do, but you certainly don’t need its vaguely adjacent renfaire vibery stinkin’ up your Halloween.
Same goes for other woo-woo offenders like The EaglesWitchy Woman or Santana’sBlack Magic Woman (incidentally, also a Fleetwood Mac song) which are all Halloween staples for some reason. You look up any random Halloween playlist and you’ll probably find one, if not all of these songs, represented. Not only are they overplayed rock standards that possess a decidedly unspooky vibe that you’re just as likely to hear on any old afternoon in April, but their Witchery is of a metaphoric and non-Halloween variety. What are we doing here? Kick this shit to the curb. At least that’s what I’m doing anyway. Of course, feel free to listen to these songs at Halloween or deposit them on your own Halloween playlists, but you ain’t gonna find ‘em here, and that’s why.
Now, I say all this to preface tonight song, not only our first of the season but the first of Witch Week, because it’s a song you could potentially level the same exact criticism toward. I don’t, but one could.
Firstly, The Witch by The Sonicsdoesn’t really possess a terribly spooky vibe, I’ll give you that. But it’s also not a standard that’s getting smeared around all over the place. You’re not liable to hear this on some random summer evening. In fact, you’re not liable to hear it being played at all, which is why it’s being played here. So, there’s that.
Secondly, I think it’s a bit less vague about its Witchery. Now sure, is this some
green-faced, cauldron stirring, cackling concubine or the night? No, but she’s definitely not some radiant nymph in a paisley shawl, twirling in the midsummer sun and delighting your senses with her free spirit. Nope. She’s evil. She’s got long black hair. She’s got a black car. And she’ll make you itch and that’s good enough for me.
Is there a less literal read here? Is this itch of a seductive nature? Is this basically another case of “Oh singer’s got a boner so the woman is bad?” Yeah, maybe. That’s why I said one could level this exact criticism here. But I won’t, because I think it’s direct enough to be taken at face value and c’mon this song rips.
From 1964, this was The Sonic’sdebut single, and it probably hits harder than anything else 1964 was serving up. In fact, this 5 piece outfit from Tacoma could be considered some of Punk’s earliest forebearers, with even Proto-Punk forefather himself, Iggy Pop, claiming the group to be the originators of the very sound of Garage Rock. That’s not to mention the countless artist over the years who have held them up as influences.
And when the legends consider you a legend, the argument is over. And you know how The Shindig feels about adding legends to the ranks.
So it gives us great joy to not only include The Sonics on The Shindig, but to have them jumpstart the 2026 season with their game-changing classic…The Witch.
It’s be over 4 years since Shindig Radio dropped it’s needle into the wide groove of Monster Raps and a lot of classic cuts have hit the playlist since then.
So, join DJ Radio D, Biz-E G, Mic E , and Monster Rap rookie – Mr. Auto-Matt-ic – MC MGM as they hop through old skool hits from the birth of Monster Rap in 1983 to it’s eventual peak in 1987.
You’ll hear monster tracks from legends like Grandmaster Flash and Edgar Winterright along side one “hit” wonders from the likes of Cagé (Drac E. “D”) and EJ Rock!
From Freddy to Frankenstein, to Igor and Mr. Hyde, it’s more horrifying hip-hop to hype your haunted house on…
The Wolfman by The Chaz Jackson Band featuring Rudy Gleason
There’s not much I can really say about Charles “Chaz” Jackson. There’s even less I can say about Rudy Gleason, but we’ll get to that in a moment. Sometimes that’s just the way of it.
Chaz’s discogs profile talks about him being in love with a trumpet and buying a guitar at 18 while stationed in Japan with the Army. Doesn’t mention him playing those instruments, mind you, just that he loved one and bought the other. Alright then.
It goes on to talk about all the different musicians he went to see. It’s like a paragraph of different famous musicians. Not musicians he performed with, but rather acts he just saw perform. Ok, I guess.
It’s a strange little blurb that speaks not to his talents or achievements, but to encounters and influences. Perhaps it is no surprise, then, to see Chaz only has 2 singles and about 5 songs to his credit.
Now, credited alongside Chaz’s band on each release is Rudy Gleason. So is Rudy the guy singing? If so, why isn’t he just covered under the umbrella of the “band” like the other players here? Is it because Rudy had a prolific career of his own and The Chaz Jackson Band was just a side project for him? Well, not that I can tell, as these tracks (and all of them, it appears) seem to be the only official music Rudy Gleason ever had to his name. So that’s a little strange.
But despite this curious write up and the limited output, every one of these tunes is kinda slappy , including tonight inclusion, The Wolfman.
Thing about this song is, well 2 things really. One of them is that it was a little long and repetitive, so I kinda trimmed it down a smidge. I know, a little sacrilege, a little presumptuous, a little shitty, but hey, I took the liberty all the same, justified or not. Call it a Shindig Special Cut.
But really the thing about it is, despite being called The Wolfman, it kinda gives off more of a Red Riding Hood vibe really, no doubt aided by this guy (Rudy or otherwise) literally saying “The Big Bad Wolf is gonna get you.” So, I dunno. Should I not have included it? It’s called The Wolfman. They’re certainly saying “The Wolfman” but really nothing about this songs feels Wolfman-like at all.
I kinda like it though despite. At least, when it’s not pushing 6 minutes, which this song definitely doesn’t need to be pushing. It has a decidedly 80’s dance floor jam quality, which I appreciate. If I didn’t know any better and you tried telling me this fucker was on the Teen Wolf soundtrack (as it should have been) I wouldn’t bat an eyelash. And hey, at the end of the day this is supposed to be a party playlist, and sometimes a little jiggle juice is just what the doctor ordered.
So, let’s inch a little closer to 400 with our next Monstrous inclusion, however unmonstrous it may actually be, with The Wolfman from The Chaz Jackson Band Featuring Rudy Gleason.
Spooky Shindig Post Script. SSPS? Yeah, I guess.
Tonight is a Full Moon! The Harvest Moon – and a Supermoon – to be precise. That’s a little weird. And while I’d love to say I orchestrated such a thing consciously, I did not purposefully place The Wolfman song on the Full Moon. That happened purely by coincidence.
Phantom of the Opera by Long Tall Ernie and The Shakers
In an effort to flesh out our Classic Monster Block, we’re gonna lean on our old friends Long Tall Ernie and The Shakers.
These guys should probably already be Shindig All-Stars by now, as their 1979 album Meet the Monsters plays like ready-made, 8 track Shindig Mini-playlist. However, this is only the second time we’re pulling from that album. And the last time we did? 2019! That’s 5 seasons ago! That’s enough time for us to have added most of this album.
But who knows, maybe one day Long Tall Ernie’ll suit up with the All-Star Team, lord knows he could.
For today, we’re just gonna let them fill the Phantom of the Opera sized hole, not just in this block, but in this entire playlist. evidently. Seriously, is this really the first legit song we’re getting about the Phantom of the Opera? In 13 years? That can’t be true. Hold on.
Ok, yep. It’s true, I guess.
You get Title Track goofballs Phantom of the Mall and Phantom of the Ritz showing up in 2022 and that’s about it. You could argue Phantom of the Paradise made an appearance back in 2017, but I still don’t think that qualifies as a legit Phantom of the Opera tune.
Man, that’s crazy. The Phantom of the Opera is a a huge iconic character to have just roundly ignored like that. I mean, you have Lon Chaney, not even Jr. mind you, but Big Daddy Chain, pulling out all the stops to create one of Hollywood’s original movie-magic monster transformations. And the whole thing it’s about music! How have I seriously hit on this subject ‘til 2025? I guess there’s just not that many songs about the Phnatom? I dunno if that’s true. I’m sure it’s not. I just don’t think I was looking, for whatever reason. But hey, what are ya gonna do? We’re here now, ain’t we?
If you’re a real big Phantom fan that’s been patiently waiting for this blog to finally drop a Phantom of the Opera mini-playlist, I don’t know what to tell you. You never spoke up, I’ll say that much. I’ve yet to get one complaint about the lack of representation for Erik, The Phantom of the Opera, on this playlsit.
But, if that was you, quietly suffering like I’m not a DM shimmy slide away, tonight is your night. So let’s let Ernie and his Shakers introduce us all to…The Phantom of the Opera!
For every Shindig All-Star with multiple songs on the playlist, or even huge stars with one-off additions like Michael Jacksonor Chuck Berry, there’s probably 10 tracks from guys that never cut another record in their entire careers. Hell, some of them never even released another song.
The Zane Brothers, whomever they may be, are just such fellas.
Now, thank the maker though, because with their one musical life they choose to make a song about Dracula. It’s quite probably the very reason they only got to shoot one shot, but it’s definitely what I’m looking for, and (by extension) what you’re looking for, as a person reading these words.
It’s a humdinger of Drac Track too, one that ought to get your feet moving. At least if you’re already in a dance-friendly environment that is, like maybe a Halloween party, expecting to hear dance worthy songs about Dracula. If you’re just driving in your ‘83 Ford Fiesta on your way to a double shift at the diner, perhaps a song about Dracula just gets shut the fuck off, who knows?
Me? I’m keepin it on, rolling down the window and leaning on the volume knob just pumped that any station is broadcasting a song about Dracula through actual radio waves. And that’s not simply because I’m the kinda guy who would compile songs like that onto an unnecessarily and obnoxiously long Halloween playlist for the past 13 years. I mean, that certainly doesn’t hurt, but it’s not the only reason.
Naw, it’s cause this song is cool. Trust me! I’ve waded through a several pints of Dracula songs that aren’t even worth mentioning, much less listening to, and this is definitely not one of them. Not at all. This one grooves and it’s even, dare I say, kinda funny.
And I still have a capes worth of Dracula songs sitting in the bullpen, but I’ll leave it at just the one this year. Maybe next year I’ll drop another full on Dracula block, cause man, they are seriously piling up.
For now, let’s let The Zane Brothers spin their unique yarn about that age old Halloween song staple, Dracula.
When my 4 year old daughter first heard this song while driving around in my car this summer – which opens as it does with background singers proclaiming “Frankenstein is a great big friend of Dracula” – she very innocently asked me “Is that true, Daddy?”
So obviously I told her, “Of course they are! They hang out all the time.”
She accepted that answer, but I quickly realized that wasn’t gonna be quite enough for the internal nerd that was now silently screaming inside my head “Oh yeah, smart ass? Are they? Are they fuckin’ boys?”
So now, of course, I had to investigate.
So, Dracula and Frankenstein, the novels at any rate, both received the silent film treatment as far back as 1910 for Frankenstein (by Thomas Edison, no less) and 1922 for Drac, though German and totally unauthorized, as Nosferatu. They remained separate entities (as well they should have, they are completely unrelated characters) for the next 20 years of so.
The first time I think they even exist in each other’s realities is in Universal’s first full monster rally attempt in 1944, House of Frankenstein. But that movie sucks and they don’t actually share the screen together.
The following year, Universal tried again (and fucked up again) with House of Dracula, which also kinda sucks and again features no real interaction by these two characters, friendly or otherwise.
Now in 1948, Universal finally got the Monster Rally formula right with Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. This entry, in addition to finally being good, also featured actual Bela Lugosi Dracula reviving an actual Frankenstein’s monster in the form of Glenn Strange. Now those particulars are somewhat beside the point, but it is cooler than if it wasn’t them. Also, it establishes a long standing tradition of Dracula endeavoring to control Frankenstein as a means to his own ends, much like in Monster Squad or Van Helsing – two other instances where they’re together but I wouldn’t really consider the relationship friendly.
Things got pretty quiet for the dynamic duo through the 50’s and 60’s though, what with Hammer taking up the monster mantle but producing no crossover rally efforts of their own.
Then however, the early 70’s offered up 3 distinct versions of the two, but decidedly at odds with each other. At least, conceptually anyway.
First up, from 1979, was Germany’s Assignment Terror, where aliens hatch a Plan 9–esque scheme to take over the world using monsters. It’s not really Dracula and it’s not really Frankenstein, but it doesn’t really matter cause they’re not really friends. They’re just kinda there. This one got retitled Dracula Versus Frankenstein for US distribution, but they don’t really fight either, so, while it’s cool and totally worth watching, it’s kind of a bust for our purposes.
The following year, trash auteur Al Adamson unleashed his own Dracula vs Frankenstein on the world and everybody rejoiced.
Well, not really, but maybe they should have cause that shit is wild and absolutely worth watching. What’s more, Dracula finally squares off against Frankenstein and it’s pretty damn great. Seriously, if you’ve never seen Dracula Vs. Frankenstein (1971) I highly recommend a viewing. Well, I recommend it for a certain kind of viewer, cause it’s bad. Like bad, bad.But it’s also awesome cause Dracula has a laser ring and he basically dismembers Frankenstein, and that credit sequence! Oh boy. It’s a winner for sure.
But then, not to be outdone (or at least not to be left out maybe) good ole Jess Franco joined the party and offered up Dracula Prisoner of Frankenstein in 1972. Now this one kinda flips the script and sees Dr. Frankenstein using Dracula to further his plan for world domination. It’s got something to do with creating an Army of Shadows using Dracula blood or some shit. It doesn’t really make any sense, but it is kinda fun to watch. Frankenstein rolls around in a weird ass Van-Hearse, there’s a tiny bat with a giant stake through its heart, and then The Wolfman shows up for some reason and just fucks shit up. Its pretty cool. Unfortunately it isn’t helping us pin down this idea of platonic love between these 2 monsters.
But hold on, what if we step away from the movies for a moment and talk about some television? It may have been quiet at the movies in the 1960’s, but the television featured lots of the monsters interacting in a friendly capacity.
First up is probably no surprise, but 1964 gave us The Munsters, turning the family sitcom formula of the late 50’s on its head by inserting Monsters into the mix as an average suburban unit. Now, it’s not exactly what we’re talking about, but it’s certainly on the right track.
A closer approximation is not a TV show, (though certainly worthy of note at this point in the timeline) but Rankin and Bass’ 1967 feature Mad Monster Party. The stop motion animation from the team that gave us Rudolph and The Year Without Santa Claus delivered a full on Monster Party of friendly fiends.
After that, we got the Groovie Goolies from 1970, which was purposely fashioned as an animated Laugh-In for monster kids growing up with Aurora kits and Famous Monsters of Filmland. Dracula, a Frankenstein’s monster and the Wolfman all hang out in Horrible Hall, making jokes and performing monster songs. It’s pretty goddamn great and I’m sure you’d assume we’re fans over here at The Shindig – and we are.
Similarly, in 1976 we got the live action Monster Squad TV show, featuring wax versions of Frankenstein, Dracula and the Wolf Man coming to life to fight crime. If that sounds awesome to you, that’s because it is and you should watch it.
Then the early 80’s followed suit, bringing such things like Scooby Doo’s A Halloween Hassle at Dracula’s Castle and Hanna-Barbera’s Drak Pack, which almost plays like an animated version of The Monster Squad show, with the trio fighting crime in an attempt to redeem themselves for their former evil deeds. Weird.
Now, that’s a lot of examples of them being friends, but where did television suddenly get this idea?
While it certainly seems like we can point a finger squarely at The Munsters, I think the lion’s share of the responsibility falls on the shoulders of…and maybe you’ve already guessed it… but Monster Songs! Do we even get a prime time sitcom like The Munster’s if not for the popularity of The Monster Mash? I doubt it. But The Monster Mashdoesn’t just spring up outta nowhere, and as avid visitors here can attest, it’s not even close to being the first Monster Party Anthem that suggests monsters might hang out.
So, somewhere between Universal’s Monster Rally pictures of the late 40’s and the 70’s homage-oddities from around the globe, we have a very interesting phenomenon, and it’s the Shock! Theater revival of the late 50’s.
In October of 1957, Universal bundled much of its back catalog into a syndicated packaged known as Shock! Theater. Suddenly, TV stations all across the country were playing classic horror movies while meteorologists dressed up like Draculas and Monster Mania took a nation by storm.
And wouldn’t you know it, 1958 seems to be the precise moment that we start seeing bona fide Monster Songs. And not just run of the mill monster songs about a Dracula or a Wolfman, but full-on, Monster Rally-style gatherings of monstrous proportions.
There’s A Screaming Ball (At Dracula Hall) from The DuPonts, Bert Convy’sThe Monsters Hop, Big Bee Kornegay gives us At the House Frankenstein, and well, well, well…look at what we have here, also from 1958. It’s tonight song, Frankensteinby Bart Lewis, the song which posits that these 2 dudes might be friends.
So where did everyone get this idea, we ask? Well, hell…it might have just come from this very song itself. How about that?
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.
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.
