thevoid99's Halloween Party Mix
Oct 31 '01
The Bottom Line These are some of my favorite songs to listen to during Halloween. A day of great costumes and lot and lots of candy!
Halloween, what a great holiday for children. Wearing costumes and eating candy like Sweet Tarts, Starbursts, Skittles, Snickers, Butterfingers, and many more delicious types of candy. Parents don’t give children raisins. They’re not nature’s candy, they’re nature’s crap. Halloween is a great time to watch scary movies and TV shows like the classic Peanuts cartoon of “The Great Pumpkin” where Linus every year makes a joke of himself waiting for the Great Pumpkin. Give it up Linus, there’s no such thing as the Great Pumpkin. Another great thing about Halloween is the music. Music that is a great reminder of the great holiday known as Halloween. Here is a list of songs that I like to hear during Halloween.
1. The Rolling Stones-“Sympathy For The Devil”
The Rolling Stones 1969 classic song is a very controversial song by these rock legends. The song a mix of blues and African tribal beats that which features bluesy and wailing vocals from Mick Jagger singing, “Please to meet you, hope you guess my name/ What’s puzzling you is the nature of my game”. Jagger’s wailing along with Keith Richard’s (who is partially dead) bluesy guitar riffs is the highlight of this classic especially when the Stones played it at the ill-fated Altamont concert in December of 1969 where an audience member was killed by the Hell’s Angels biker club that made the Stone not play that song for years. Whenever I hear this song, I think of the little devils dancing around in a fire with men playing African drums as if they’re celebrating death.
2. Alice Cooper-“Welcome To My Nightmare”
Now you can’t have a Halloween mix without the king of shock rock. Mr. Vincent Furnier aka Alice Cooper. Alice’s 1975 hit song from the album of the same name is the first song Alice made as a solo artist without his original band back in the early 70s. With producer Bob Ezrin, Cooper’s “Welcome To My Nightmare” is a campy and theatrical number where Cooper takes the listener into his world. With a throbbing bass and a powerful brass section on the song, Cooper brings in a classic Halloween song that included a famous video of dancers (one of them is his future wife Sheryl) wearing weird masks and costumes such as a bat or a snake. Alice says “Welcome to my nightmare/I hope you’re gonna like it” and at the end of the song, he calls someone on the phone about his nightmare. Alice Cooper, one of rock music’s most underrated forces.
3. Nico-“The End”
Though she only appeared in the Velvet Underground’s legendary debut album, Nico wasn’t truly considered a true member of the alternative rock pioneers. Though her solo career was often obscured by her addiction to heroin, she did however, create a very interesting solo career until her death in 1988. One of the most shining moments in her solo career was a haunting and spooky cover of the Doors’ classic “The End”. While the Doors’ version is haunting and dark on its own, Nico’s version takes the darkness to new levels. Performed only with a keyboard and organ, Nico’s version highlighted by her monotone vocals where the story of a serial killer killing his loved ones is taken to new depth by her vocals. Her version makes Jim Morrison’s vocals look like a schoolboy. Forget the Doors’ version, Nico’s version is the song that makes the story more darker and more suitable for Halloween.
4. Blue Oyster Cult-“Don’t Fear The Reaper”
This classic rock ditty is a regular staple behind rock radio. Blue Oyster Cult has been known for such great songs as “Burning For You” and “Godzilla”. Their most famous classic is the hard rocking “Don’t Fear The Reaper” which is a part love song/part horror song that features references to “Romeo & Juliet” and the Grim Reaper. During the middle of the song, there’s a lovely guitar solo in the middle that starts out melodic but then turns into a full-blast of hard rock that makes you feel like the Grim Reaper has arrived to take your soul away. This song was played in the 1993 cult classic “The Stoned Age” where a kid gets hit by a laser at the BOC show during “Don’t Fear The Reaper”. 70s Rock at its best.
5. David Bowie-“Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)”
A huge icon among rock fans, Bowie has been favorites for costumes whether he’s Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, or the Thin White Duke. In 1980, Bowie released “Scary Monsters” what many considered to be his last great album. The title track to the song is a hard rocking synthesizer track that would be a prototype for industrial rock. Backed by Robert Fripp’s manic guitar playing, Bowie uses his mastery as a lyricist to tell the story of a girl who could be a serial killer or a monster that featured a catchy chorus of “Scary monsters, super creeps/Keep me running, running scared”. Another connection with Bowie and Halloween is his starring role in the cult classic “The Hunger” where played a vampire along with Susan Sarandon, Catherine Devenue, and Goth rock icons Bauhaus.
6. Bauhaus-“In The Flat Fields”
Now you cannot have a Halloween mix collection without some Goth music. Groups dressed in black and singing horror tales are definitely an essential piece for Goth music. The first band to represent the Goth genre are Goth pioneers Bauhaus. Though the obvious choice would be the classic single “Bela Lugosi’s Dead”. I thought that would be too predictable in a list of songs for Halloween, especially from Bauhaus. Instead, I decided to put the title track to their 1979 debut album “In The Flat Fields”. The song is brooding and haunting due to Peter Murphy’s ominous vocals backed by a throbbing rhythm from bassist David J and drummer Kevin Haskins along with a powerful guitar noise from Daniel Ash. Murphy’s vocals are spooky and haunting which contains power and would play a huge role in his solo career while the rest of the band would find success as Love & Rockets.
7. Sisters of Mercy-“This Corrosion”
Another famous Goth band from the 80s, Sisters of Mercy had a more powerful approach to their music thanks to deep-voiced leader Andrew Eldritch. From their 1987 masterpiece “Floodland”, the band collaborated with former Meat Loaf collaborator Jim Steinman. Steinman gives the band a more powerful approach along with lush productions on their album. Their most famous track “This Corrosion” is famous for its brooding bass and Eldritch’s powerful deep vocals especially on the chorus of “Hey now, hey now now” where he’s backed by a powerful chorus that is an essential song from the Goth rock era.
8. Joy Division-“Dead Souls”
Though three of its members would be famous as the electro-pop group New Order, they did achieve fame early as part of the post-punk/Goth band Joy Division. Led by singer Ian Curtis, Joy Division came to fame with their brooding sound of dark times from their home of Manchester, which was the antithesis of the New Romantic movement in London. “Dead Souls” is a powerful rocker led by Curtis’ deep and low tenor vocals where he sings in the chorus of “They keep calling me” about the dead coming to him backed by the melodic guitar work of Bernard Sumner and the pulsating rhythm of bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. Sadly, on the eve of the band’s U.S. tour, Curtis hanged himself to death, which killed Joy Division while the rest of the band carried on as New Order.
9. Screamin’ Jay Hawkins-“I Put A Spell On You”
Covered by many artists such as Diamanda Galas, Marilyn Manson, and Bryan Ferry, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put A Spell On You” is one of the most haunting and hilarious songs of all-time. The bluesy and burlesque song is filled with humor of a man saying “I love you I love you I love you” to his woman in a howling vocals from the late Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. His powerful plea to his woman is funny yet confrontational that wasn’t heard a lot in 1956 release. And to think, he’s had seventy-five children after he died and some of them don’t know that he’s their father.
10. Taco-“Puttin’ On The Ritz”
Ok, I bet you’re wondering what this song is doing on this mix. Well sure, Taco is a novelty act but his cover of Irving Berlin’s “Puttin On The Ritz” does have a cool Halloween vibe. Electronic synthesizers and drum machines mainly dominate the cover while Taco sings the song as if it was a Halloween song including a part where he sings a line in a vocoder. The video for the song featured him in a tux with a glowing stick that is pretty hilarious and cheesy. Sure, it’s not the best song in the world but it’s a funny song that I would put in this list.
11. Marilyn Manson-“Dope Hat”
Now Marilyn Manson of course, is suitable for Halloween. For a guy who wears prosthetic breasts, he is definitely someone you can’t overlook. Now of course, the obvious choice would be something like “Sweet Dreams”, “Beautiful People”, or “The Dope Show” but I decided to go a little further into the discography and pick a famous single from his early days. “Dope Hat” from 1994’s “Portrait of an American Family” is a powerful industrial tune that features hard-hitting drums and powerful bass hooks along with grinding guitars and a haunting theremin solo from Madonna Wayne Gacy while Manson sings the song as if he is a madman or something. What made this song memorable among fans was the video, which parodied the boat scene from the movie “Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory” that included dancing Oompa Loompas. That’s the Manson song I would put in my list.
12. White Zombie-“I’m Your Boogie Man”
This cover of the KC & The Sunshine Band was done by White Zombie for the 1996 sequel to the 1994 film “The Crow” called “The Crow 2: City of Angels”. While the KC version was fun and danceable for discos in the 70s, White Zombie’s version takes the song into a harder rock territory. With singer Rob Zombie bringing in growling vocals, the song’s hard rock makeover still has a disco vibe with its horns and throbbing rhythm. White Zombie’s is campy and full of joy just like the original KC & The Sunshine Band song. Great track for a horror movie, especially a comedy film.
13. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds-“Red Right Hand”
Now when people think of creepy, they think of people like Marilyn Manson, Ozzy Osbourne, or Alice Cooper. Well, they’re creepy onstage but Nick Cave however, is creepy by nature. From his early days in the Birthday Party to his solo career with the Bad Seeds, Nick Cave has amassed himself a glorious career as an alternative rock icon. From 1994’s “Let Love In”, he released a classic single called “Red Right Hand” that had all the creepy vibes from his deep vocals along with bell samples and ominous keyboards including a creepy organ solo that is suitable for Halloween. The song has been used in soundtracks including the 1996 movie “Scream” where it achieved its fame as a classic horror tune.
14. Squirrel Nut Zipper-“Hell”
This hilarious track is from swing-revivalists Squirrel Nut Zipper. “Hell” is a hilarious swing tune that features references to hell and the afterlife where there’s going to be hell to pay. Layers of horns along with powerful drum tracks makes this song danceable yet gives you images of hell. Recently, my local radio station has dedicated this song to the evil *sshole known as Bin Laden. Right now, Satan has already created a room just for Bin Laden so he can BURN there for the rest of eternity.
15. Ozzy Osbourne-“Bark At The Moon”
To complete this collection, we go to the one man who represents Halloween at its best. Heavy metal godfather Ozzy Osbourne. From his legendary days as the singer of Black Sabbath to his glorious solo career, Ozzy Osbourne is a true king when it comes to horror music. He’s also notorious for his antics like biting the heads off of doves and bats, urinating on the Alamo, snorting ants in a desert, and licking Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx’s urine on the floor. From his 1984 album “Bark At The Moon” is the title track where Ozzy talks about his manic problems backed by a powerful guitar solo from Jake E. Lee in the middle of the song. The video for that song was about Ozzy as a professor who takes a drink of some potion where he becomes a werewolf. That’s Ozzy for you. Gotta love that man.
Now these are some of my favorite tunes for Halloween. Kids, enjoy those candies and make sure you don’t eat too much or you get a stomachache. Ghosts, goblins, and Halloween cartoons are the things that make this holiday so great. Really, this day is about costumes and candy and there’s two more months for Christmas shopping. Don’t forget that parents. In the meantime, have some fun and eat candy. Also make some suggestions for songs you would like to hear for Halloween. Not “Thriller” or any Michael Jackson related tune. He’s highly overrated and he’s done. End of story. Have fun now!
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