Pop Music for Halloween

Light Meter by Lisa K. Berton

Last week I promised an overall review of my Labor Day weekend visit to Walt Disney World. That’s going to be a little late as both my friend Terri and I aren’t up to par for different reasons. In the meantime, enjoy a little Halloween treat.

Walking into work, one will find very large and many cotton cobwebs adorned with plastic spiders along with various ghostly decor. Skeletons of varying size adorn walls and cubicle entrances. String upon string of orange and purple lights dangle over 5′ 8″ walls. My area? You know I put up cutesy Disney Halloween cardboard cutouts featuring the Fab 5 and Pooh and friends. I got each package at Walgreens for $1.99.

While my decorations might be fewer in number and not so scary (curtsy), I have one other trick up my sleeve…my MP3 player. Come Halloween, my cute little pink Archos 104 will fill the air…up to 3 feet from my desk…with a concoction of dare I say…pop tunes and soundtracks that work for my favorite holiday.

I will share my complete list even those non-Disney songs in case you too want to be totally awesome and party at your own desk. Also, these songs are kid-safe and can be played around the little Tinker Bells and Tow Maters in search of candy.

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In no particular order other than the order I am typing them in right now as I type this.

The Munsters theme song
The Addams Family theme song
Addams Family Groove – MC Hammer (balloon pants optional)
Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves – Cher
Oogie Boogie’s Song – Nightmare Before Christmas
This is Halloween – Nightmare Before Christmas
Gremlins main theme – Gremlins
Grim Grinning Ghosts – let me think, maybe one of those rides at Disneyland or Magic Kingdom in Florida
Prince Ali (reprise by Jafar) – Aladdin, my boyfriend
Dreamweaver – Peter Frampton
Maneater – Hall & Oates
Thriller – Michael Jackson
To the Moon and Back – Savage Garden
Pirates of the Caribbean tunnel music (with 2 real drops) – Disneyland soundtrack
Great Pumpkin Waltz – It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown
Beetlejuice theme – Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice
Shake, Shake Senora – Beetlejuice
Black Cat – Janet Jackson
Be Prepared – The Lion King
Black Magic Woman – Santana
Hazard – Richard Marx
The Simpsons Halloween Special (Treehouse of Terror) – Songs in the Key of Springfield
Shake Your Bones – Disney’s Halloween Songs & Sounds
Haunted House – Elvira cuz it’s not Halloween without the queen of cheese
Heffalumps & Woozles – Winnie the Pooh
Ghostbusters – ditto
She Wolf – Shakira
Do You Believe in Magic? – Shaun Cassidy What? He’s cute!
Thieves in the Temple – Prince
Boo to You – Magic Kingdom Event Party Music
Men in Black – Men in Black or on Will Smith’s compilation
Hungry like the Wolf – Duran Duran
Jaws theme – Finding Nemo just kidding
Prologue- Little Shop of Horrors
Witch Doctor – Alvin and the Chipmunks
Les Poissons – The Little Mermaid (that is one sick song)
Cruella De Villa – 101 Dalmations
Time Warp – Glee cast cuz Glee makes scary things tolerable and I’m a wuss
Laundry Day – Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along
Spiderwebs – No Doubt
Somebody’s Watching Me – Rockwell (Did we ever find out if that’s Michael Jackson singing the main line?)
Maxwell’s Silver Hammer – Steve Martin via Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club soundtrack
Star Trek main theme
The Purple People Eater – Sheb Wooley
Monster Mash – Bobby “Boris” Picket & The Cript Kickers
Davy Jones (song not the person) – Pirate’s of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
Coconut – Practical Magic soundtrack
Feed My Frankenstein – Alice Cooper I heard this for the 1st time a week ago…cornyyyyy.
The Nights the Lights Went Out in Georgia – Vicki Lawrence (surprisingly good choice, huh?)
I Put a Spell on You – Hocus Pocus
Nightmare on My Street – DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince (aka Will Smith pre-movies)
Star Wars theme by John Williams – shout out to the former Boston Pops Orchestra conductor

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Have a safe and fun Halloween. Save me some Twix bars and Twizzlers!!

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9 Replies to “Pop Music for Halloween”

  1. LOL OK, you get some points for Bohemian Rhapsody but watch it again for Alice’s song. It’s fun to watch him perform it! And my 6 yr old likes Alice Cooper, it’s his “normal” stuff!

    Lisa responds: Thanks! At 6 I would have been terrified of Alice Cooper. Heck, I’m still afraid of clowns and women who wear too much makeup. 🙂

  2. For an absurdly poppy Halloween song, find a recording of ‘Halloween-lo-ween.’ I heard it first on a Disney podcast but can’t find any background information on it (e.g., release date or singer [I suspect Miley Cyrus and her father but have no proof]). It’s a bit of an earworm, for better or for worse!

    Lisa responds: That sounds familiar. My research shows it originates from Disneyland Paris. I’m thinking they use also use it, with different singers, at the Magic Kingdom in Lake Buena Vista or at Disneyland because after finding it on YouTube, I can say I’ve heard it before. Good tune!

  3. What fun! For additional music I would like to recommend the Mannheim Steamroller Halloween CD (American Gramaphone AG1031-2). Although most widely known for the Fresh Aire Christmas franchise, Chip Davis “deranges” several classical music pieces into his 18th century rock ‘n roll style along with some original compositions for all hallows eve. “But what’s the Disney connection?” you may ask. Well, for all you (we) “Fantasia” aficionados, among these gems are included J. S. Bach’s “Toccota in D minor” (the opening abstract piece), Mussorgsky’s “Night on Bald Mountain” (the big demon) and Dukas’s “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” (need you ask?). And a special treat for T.o.T. fans everywhere: “The Rite of Twilight” a clever mash-up of Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” (the dinosaurs) with the theme music from “The Twilight Zone” by M. Constant.

    Lisa responds: Thanks for your very detailed recommendation.

  4. Love your choice of songs! A new one you need to check out, I know you will love. It is called, “Calling All The Monsters.” sung by China Anne McClain. It is from the Disney Channel show A.N.T. Farm. Cool Halloween dance tune. “Boo to you & boo to you, sing along. Happy Halloween!”

    Lisa responds: Boo to you, too! Thanks for sharing your song suggestion.

  5. Hi Lisa,
    You said your list is kid friendly but how can that be with what Maxwell does with his hammer? How can I get a copy of Steve Martin’s version? I love that version.

    Lisa responds: I understand your concern and it’s nice to see good parenting. My personal opinion is that kids see and hear far worse on TV and at school. Maybe this song is pre-teen friendly. Steve Martin’s rendition is on the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band soundtrack.

  6. Incase you really didn’t know, yes that is Micheal on Rockwell’s Somebody’s Watching Me. Great picks and I have to say- you never heard Feed My Frankenstein? He performs it in Wayne’s World (the first one, cause MY MEN are in the second one- hint: a famous ride in HS).Happy Halloween!!!

    Lisa reponds: I was joking about Michael Jackson on Rockwell’s song. Sometimes my jokes don’t go over. No, I don’t listen to Alice Cooper and although I’ve seen Wayne’s World, I don’t recall the song. Any points for remembering Bohemian Rhapsody?

  7. Hi Lisa! Great list!
    As far as I know, that is Michael Jackson singing with Rockwell.

    Lisa responds: Thanks & I was kidding about Michael Jackson. You know me, always a wise gal.

  8. Awesome playlist! I actually have most of these on mine, though I wouldn’t say “Feed My Frankenstein” is appropriate for kids to hear…I dunno, it’s mostly double entendres so hopefully it goes over their little heads. 🙂

    Lisa responds: Hmm, maybe I should pay closer attention. LOL