My Halloween Playlist For This Year!

Spooky season has once again arrived! With Halloween being just a few weeks away, I thought I'd share my Halloween playlist this year. This 1 hour of spooky music I have prepared will be played shortly at Fall Fest at PPHAC, as I am DJing there. Two 1-hour shows in less than 24 hours, I truly am a professional DJ! But, here are the 18 songs, and a brief description of why I like them as some good spooky songs for this year's Halloween.

1.) Monster Mash by Bobby "Boris" Pickett and The Crypt-Kickers

We begin our list with a true Halloween classic, dating back 60 years to 1962. I'm a sucker for novelty songs, and this one is no different. It honestly seems you can't have a Halloween playlist without this song, so I might as well kick it off with this.

2.) Zombie Jamboree (Back to Back) by Harry Belafonte

You know, I would probably be playing the Rockapella version from "Do it Acapella" if it was on Spotify, but alas, it is not. So, I will be playing the calypso version from "Mr. Day-O" Belafonte. And you know what, the song is quite well-suited for him as well!

Rockapella's "Zombie Jamboree" is something else, though.

3.) Werewolves of London by Warren Zevon

For this song we go to 1978... it's a fantastic novelty rocker about the hairy, hairy gent who ran amok in Kent. Or the little old lady who got mutilated. But mostly, it's about those werewolves of London. AWWOOO!!! Fun fact, I posted a lyric video of this on YouTube 10 years ago.

4.) The Purple People Eater by Sheb Wooley

Again, if you're a fan of old school novelty songs, your Halloween playlist simply isn't complete without this song right here. This rock and roll ditty dates back to 1958, and would later lend its name to the Minnesota Vikings' defense of the 1970s.

5.) The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by The Monotones

The Monotones have had their famous song "Book of Love" referenced in Don McLean's "American Pie" and Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll". I'm guessing neither artist had heard of this song though, truly the spookiest doo wop song you'll find out there!

This song was better than "Book of Love", if you ask me.

6.) Superstition by Stevie Wonder

For those who need a palate cleanser after having no idea what that last song was about, I got you covered. This 1972 #1 hit is obviously quite the well-known song, and its themes of "7 years of bad luck" fits in quite well with the spookiness of Halloween. It's a classic, and a worthy addition to the list.

7.) Frankenstein by The Edgar Winter Group

Okay, now this 1973 instrumental isn't the spookiest song per se. But I'm including it on my list for a few reasons. First of all, it's called "Frankenstein", which is really cool. Secondly, I saw Edgar Winter play with Ringo last month, and he was an excellent performer.

Keyboard Jesus gets some street cred!

8.) (Don't Fear) The Reaper by Blue Öyster Cult

This 5-minute song from 1976 is a staple of classic rock radio. Lead singer Buck Dharma wrote this spooky sounding song about the inevitability of death. But despite such a grim message, SNL has forever made us associate this tune with "more cowbell!". 

Will Ferrell and I got a fever... and the only cure is diet and exercise.

9.) Hells Bells by AC/DC

Despite being a strong Bon Scott truther, I greatly admire what Brian Johnson did immediately filling in his shoes for the amazing 1980 album "Back in Black". And with its tolling bells and haunting opening guitar line, "Hells Bells" has deservedly become one of the group's most iconic songs.

10.) Dark Horse by Katy Perry and Juicy J

We're not going too far back for this one, as it was released in 2013 and I remember it being a major hit in early 2014. When I'm doing my Fall Fest playlist today, I figured I had to appease some of the fans of newer music, and that this decent song would do the trick.

The music video... it's a trip.

11.) Maxwell's Silver Hammer by The Beatles

Of course, there had to be a Beatles song on my playlist. The question is, which Beatles song is really "spooky" and would fit the theme? Well, after doing some generic research for "Halloween songs", I figured this 1969 ditty about an hammer-wielding murderer fit in well.

12.) Runnin' With The Devil by Van Halen

Released in 1978, this hard rock song is another staple of classic rock radio. And man, it is a badass song indeed. Eddie Van Halen proves his guitar virtuosity on this one, while the bass player... plucks the same note over and over again. Quite a talent gap there, if you ask me!

🤘

13.) Boris The Spider by The Who

I've seen various spider web decorations so far during this Halloween season. So really, would Halloween be complete without Boris, the most legendary of spiders? Yes, this 1966 song was used by my Dad to torment my brother and I when we were kids. Great parenting!

14.) Luigi's Mansion from Mario Kart DS

I have incorporated a couple video game songs into my playlist, including the spookiest of all the Mario Kart songs. Luigi's Mansion is quite the popular video game franchise, and it was well-incorporated into the even more popular Mario Kart franchise back in 2006. 

Mario Kart DS is one of the best games in the series.

15.) Spooky, Scary Skeletons by Andrew Gold

Released in 1996, this song originally faded into relative obscurity. But the magic of internet memes bought it back to life in the 2010s, to the point where it's now one of the most iconic Halloween songs out there. So now, I simply feel compelled to put it on my list.

16.) The Devil Went Down to Georgia by The Charlie Daniels Band

When it comes to novelty country songs, it doesn't get much better than this 1979 country song. And yes, it's proof that country and Halloween can indeed mix! We have a song about betting your soul against the Devil... and what is more spooky than that?

17.) Witch Doctor by David Seville

For our penultimate song we stick in the novelty category, but go back to 1958. David Seville, known for his Alvin and The Chipmunks characters, puts on the whole sped-up voice act here. It's not the spookiest Halloween song, but it sure is funny when Quagmire puts his spin on it.

18.) Zombies on Your Lawn by Laura Shigihara

What an absolute childhood classic this one is. Plants vs. Zombies was my life back in 2009, and this was the satisfaction you got for beating the game. You got to hear this totally catchy song filled with great humor. There ain't nothing like hearing a zombie complain, "There's butter on my head!"

Enough said!

So because that song concludes the original Plants vs. Zombies, I figure that'd be the perfect song to conclude my list. What are some of your favorite Halloween songs? What's missing from the list? Feel free to drop me a comment and let me know.

7 GREAT Short Songs That Are Less Than 2 Minutes Long

Just because a song is short doesn't mean it can't be really impressive. Case in point, these 7 songs get their points across quite solidly in less than 2 minutes. A lot of short songs can often be filler in my opinion, and I often judge those shorter songs as crappy attempts at throwaway songwriting. But you can't entirely judge a book by its cover. When you see a song is less than 2 minutes, give it a chance. After all, what's the worse that can happen, you waste 1 minute and 45 seconds of your life? With these 7 songs, you'll only be wishing that the song was longer.

1.) How Do You Do It?

Gerry and the Pacemakers were the #2 group in Liverpool in the early 1960s... you can probably guess who #1 was. But, there is one thing they certainly did better than the Beatles. And that was their performance of this particular song. The Beatles recorded a not-so-spirited version of this song, as they were unenthusiastic about recording this song that management wanted them to. They were not yet world famous, and felt their original songs like "Love Me Do" were better for them. But in 1 minute, 55 seconds lead singer Gerry Marsden put forth a much better performance than Lennon-McCartney. It's just as great as a lot of Beatles songs from 1963. Listen to the two versions, compare them, and tell me I'm wrong. 

Gerry and the Pacemakers were huge in Britain, but never quite conquered the world like The Beatles.

2.) The Letter

In 1967, the music world was mostly moving past the 2-minute song. That was more of a late 50s/early 60s thing. But not for the Box Tops in their famous song. Lead singer Alex Chilton sounded like a gruff and grizzly man despite being just 16 when he recorded this song. It's a 1 minute, 53 second ditty that has blue-eyed soul elements. It's one of the shortest songs to ever hit #1 on the Billboard pop charts. By the way, do you want to know what the shortest one was? It's the doo wop song "Stay" by Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs, released in 1960. Just 1 minute, 36 seconds! But "The Letter" is certainly another short but sweet song.

Give me a ticket for an aeroplane!

3.) Love You Most Of All

The Persuasions have fantastic a capella songs of many lengths from "Women and Drinkin" (6:52) to "Three Angels" (1:43). But my choice for this list is a fantastic cut from the album "We Still Ain't Got No Band", with this Sam Cooke cover. The Persuasions put a super enthusiastic spin on this song... "With the way you're walking down the street, all the fellas go OOOH-weee!". At 1 minute, 53 seconds it should seem like a filler song on an album with so many other great tracks. "Steal Away" comes next. "Dance With Me", and the aforementioned on this blog "Send Me Some Lovin" are after that. And yet, with sheer balls, this song still manages to stand out!

I should beg Spotify to put this 1973 album on their platform!

4.) I'll Follow The Sun

Hmm, what Beatles song shall I pick for the list? Maybe something from the Abbey Road medley that really stands out? Perhaps the beautiful McCartney track "I Will"? Nope, I've decided to go with one of the very first Beatles songs that ever stood out to me. I loved it many years before I became a diehard Beatles fan... I was just a little kid, and yet I still found the emotional beauty in this 1 minute, 49 second song. It's an acoustic song that features some fabulous Lennon-McCartney harmony, as well as Paul singing solo for a bit. It's honestly one of the true highlights of their early career, and is probably in my Top 30 Beatles songs despite being so short and simple.

It's one of the best tracks on this underrated 1964 album, "Beatles For Sale".

5.) Mercedes Benz

Janis Joplin didn't need any instruments besides a tapped beat for this song (and really, she didn't need that). And she didn't need any more time than 1 minute, 48 seconds to get her point across. Released in 1971, after Janis's death, this song has been interpreted as a rejection of consumerism. I listened to Janis's 1971 album "Pearl" as a consideration for my Awesome Albums show, and I can tell you "Me and Bobby McGee" is the true gem of that album. However, despite its short length, Mercedes Benz might very well be the second best. Janis's vocals are strong and piercing, powerful enough to carry a song all by itself. And that's a very special talent in a singer.

Janis took a piece of our hearts with this powerful song.

6.) Little Honda

The Beach Boys had a whole lot of short songs during their early career. At 1:51, "Shut Down" comes to mind as a short but fantastic burst of energy. But, my choice for the list is the 1:54 song "Little Honda". It's a pretty typical Mike Love era early Beach Boys song, with him singing the lead on a fun Summer song about driving around in his epic ride. But perhaps the most notable aspect of this song (at least for me) is drummer Dennis Wilson shouting "Go!" in the beginning of the song. When I was younger, my Dad used to troll my brother and I by replaying the beginning of the song constantly when it was on a CD. So all we heard was "Go!" "Go!" "Go!".

The critics will tell you their peak was "Pet Sounds", I'll still say it's 1964.

7.) "C" is for Cookie

Why not end the list with my most ridiculous choice? Why not end it with my shortest choice? (1:29) Yes, we're going to go with this 1971 song from Sesame Street, sung by the legendary puppeteer Frank Oz. Well, you might know him better as Cookie Monster! This song is what we call pure id. It's pure impulse... it's all about cookies, because that's good enough for me! And really, as a sweets lover, cookies are good enough for me. Cookie Monster offers such legendary insight as "You know, a round cookie with one bite out of it looks like a C. A round donut with one bite out of it also looks like a C, but it is not as good as a cookie. Oh, and the moon sometimes looks like a C. But you can't eat that!". Enough said.

Oh boy!

What short songs do you think I was missing from this list? Feel free to let me know some of your favorites, but remember, the rule is 2 minutes or less! These songs are certainly short, but they're certainly sweet in my opinion. Yes, even "C is for Cookie".

7 Songs With An EPIC Ending

There's something that always gets me in music. I love it when a song builds up in excitement and intensity, and you feel the jubilation when the song has a fantastic release at the end. These seven songs are prime examples of this. They might not catch your attention right away. They might not start out super flashy. But by the end, you're blown away by how strongly it ended. So, I picked seven songs from across the musical spectrum that I believe are strong examples of this. Seven songs where it ain't about how you start, but how you finish!

Bridge over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel

This 1970 song was the original inspiration for the list, especially considering I'm playing its namesake album on my show next week. In my mind, this is the perfect example of a song that builds up in intensity. It goes from 0 to 100 over the course of a song, and does so brilliantly. Art Garfunkel's tender vocals carry us through the first two verses in a very delicate manner. But then you can hear the orchestra start to build up by the time he harmonizes with Paul Simon. And the ending? An absolute burst of energy. Garfunkel is punching high notes, and you can hear a percussive "boom" at the end that gets me every time.

Simon and Garfunkel's fantastic 1970 song has one of my all-time favorite endings.

A Day in the Life by The Beatles

The critics certainly love this Beatles song, as it's consistently rated as one of their all time best. While it's not one of my personal favorites, I will always love the ending. Well, not the very ending with all the weird noises. I'm talking more of the epic orchestral buildup to the final note. By 1967, The Beatles could basically afford anything they wanted musically. And so, George Martin had quite the interesting musical idea for his group. What if his orchestra would either randomly go from their highest to lowest note, or from their lowest to highest note? What kind of chaos would ensue? The brilliant result was the ending of this song (and also the middle right before Paul's part). But it's even more effective at the end, given the release of that final note.

The 1967 Beatles... Paul never looked right with a mustache, in my opinion.

My Prayer by The Platters

With their fabulous lead singer Tony Williams, the Platters had plenty of great endings. "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" is another one that comes to mind. Much like that song, most of "My Prayer" is a mellow slow jam. But it builds up quite brilliantly. By the middle, you start to feel some tension at the "tonight, while our hearts are aglow" section. However, the best is certainly saved for last. Williams hits a fantastic high note on "Prayer" right at the end and holds it out. Quite simply, it's singers like him that are the envy of fellow tenors like me! But even then, I saw a talented a capella group at Lead East cover this song recently, where the lead singer did that final note justice.

This 1956 song is one of the group's best.

Love Story by Taylor Swift

Perhaps this is a bit surprising, but we're only traveling back to 2008 for this one. It's a popular misconception that I think all pop music from the past 20 years is bad, I only think most of it is bad. Because there's iconic songs like "Love Story" that I did indeed grow up with as a 6-year old kid. The song starts out very mellow, with Taylor setting the scene and meeting her man on a balcony in summer air. The song does a great job of building excitement as it goes along, as it follows the forbidden "Romeo and Juliet" format. By the time it gets to the "I got tired of waiting", tension is all built up. What will happen? But then the man asks her to marry her, and that tension is released in a beautiful ending.

She's the biggest pop star of my generation... Her best song was still 14 years ago, though.

White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane

So here we have another psychedelic song from 1967. And this song is quite psychedelic, indeed. It starts with images of Alice in Wonderland and of course... pills. The beginning is quiet, but you can already feel the song building towards something greater with its drum rolls. Then lead singer Grace Slick guides us through having "some kind of mushroom" in the middle, tension is only getting greater. Finally, the release comes at the end with the refrain of "Remember what the dormouse said, feed your head!". The song has been described by Slick, who also wrote the song, as one long crescendo. Well, that more than qualifies it for this list.

I have played the song on one of my shows before and dedicated it to my Aunt Peggy.

Highway to Hell by AC/DC

This iconic 1979 rock song shows off the Young brothers' immense guitar talents quite well at the end. Unlike most of the songs on this list, it does not start off soft. I mean, it's AC/DC, do you expect their songs to be quiet? I can name one quiet AC/DC song, "Ride On", that's it. Now as I mentioned, the best moment for "Highway to Hell" comes at the end, with Bon Scott's growling vocals. All the while, Angus is shredding it on lead guitar, while brother Malcolm follows along on rhythm. It's a very satisfying ending to one of the group's most iconic songs. 

The Amish were NOT fans when Peter played "Highway to Hell".

Miami 2017 (Seen The Lights Go Out on Broadway)

We conclude our list with this fabulous song from Billy Joel, featuring one of my all-time favorite piano parts courtesy of the Piano Man. Back in 1976, Billy wasn't the mega star he was in the 80s, and was still kinda the starving artist type coming up with beautifully fresh ideas. And that includes this dystopian song that has a phenomenal ending. Billy pounds out the piano, and "tells the world about the way the lights went out". All the while, the orchestra is at its peak buildup. But after that, the quiet and pretty piano from the beginning is reprised. Turnstiles will eventually be played on Graeme's Awesome Albums, and this song is the biggest reason why.

1976 Billy Joel was entering his career peak.

What other songs do you think have amazing endings? Let me know in the comments.