My Halloween Playlist!

Well, the big day is almost here! Got your costume? Great! Got your friends coming over for your Halloween party to partake in spooky activities? Awesome! Some fun recipes for spooky treats? Excellent! But you're missing something. No not the guy who's still dressing like the Michael Jackson zombie from Thriller. He can wait outside. In fact it's prolly best if you just tell that guy you're not even having a party. He'll just take over the iPod and play Thriller 3 times in a row just so he can do that weird zombie dance over and over again. Besides, it's all about David Bowie or Prince this year. Expect to see a lot of Goblin King or lavender suits running around. But if you see someone with ass-less pants, you may wanna kick him out too. Unless you have plastic covering up your couch.

Either way, butts and bad zombie dancing aside, you need some good music for your party, otherwise it's just gonna be a lame middle school party all over again. You know the one. The one where you farted and scared off the girl you had been building up all that time to talk to. Wanna relive that? No? Good, then listen to me. I've got you here. Consider me your DJ. If you use these awesome songs, you'll get your party hopping!

1.) Dance Magic Dance by David Bowie 



Confession: I've never seen Labyrinth all the way through, but I do know the song "Dance Magic Dance" and love it. It's hard not to. Not only does it give you some mandatory Bowie, but it gets everyone dancing.

Except that guy dressed like Michael Jackson.

Speaking of which...



2.) Thriller by Michael Jackson



Ok, give the guy his chance to put that Thriller costume to good use. BUT JUST ONCE.

In all seriousness, this song just screams Halloween. It's the eerie music, the lyrics and Vincent Price. It's so flawless. In fact, I'd say it's not a Halloween party without it. Bonus points if you can somehow get the entire room to do the zombie dance. It's a darn fine Halloween tradition!

But like I said earlier, just once. Otherwise Michael won't let it go. And you'll be thee by yourself with a crazed zombie until 5 am while everyone else tweets about how lame your party is. Sucker. I warned you!


3.) Man Behind The Mask by Alice Cooper



Some solid rock can always kickstart a party and when it comes to Halloween, no one represents Halloween better than Alice Cooper. Hands down. So what happens when Alice sang about Jason Voorhees for the soundtrack of Jason Lives? MAGIC THAT'S WHAT! I'm a huge fan of Alice and this may be my favorite song of his, so there's absolutely no way I couldn't include this song. It just reminds me of Halloween and I can't help but think you'd agree as well!



4.) All I Gotta Do Is Dream by The Elm Street Group





You know Freddy can't let Jason have all the fun!

Looking for a little lighter fare and something that just gets people smiling and laughing? This works! Yup, from the Freddy's Greatest Hits, which was just a bunch of covers featuring some random pop singers and Robert Englund reading a bunch of goofy lines and laughing hysterically.  It's a pretty nice addition to your playlist and provides the fun.


5.) This Is Halloween by Marilyn Manson



So, I really love this cover of This is Halloween from a Nightmare Before Christmas tribute album. And who better to sing it than that rascal Marilyn Manson? I gotta tell you, I'm not the biggest fan of the movie's actual soundtrack itself or Marilyn Manson but I'm totally all in on this version. It just works better for me, but I'm sure others prefer the original. But hey, you asked me for my advice!



6.) On Our Own by Bobby Brown



Albeit, it's not very Halloween-y but in all honesty, I'm not the biggest fan of the Ray Parker Jr. theme song. Mainly because it sounds like a jingle from a 1980s Hardees commercial for a Halloween burger or something. I'm not saying I don't include it on my list, but I think outside the box when it comes to Halloween playlists. Bobby Brown's music still holds up and just makes me wanna dance my butt off and I'm sure some of the old school pop fans at your party could appreciate it too! I mean, I'm sure you'll have to explain it's connection to Ghostbusters 2 but it'll be worth it. Especially with the opening rap.


7.) Monster Rap by Elvira



If Alice Cooper is the king of Halloween, Elvira is grand high priestess. Elvira put out her awesome "Monster Rap" featuring shoutouts to Freddy, Roger Corman, Frankenstein, Chucky and countless others in a fun song. And quite frankly if I have to continue and try to convince you why playing something that features Elvira rapping about monsters then I'm afraid there's no saving your party. Or you. You're a failure.


8.) Maniac by Michael Sembello


Known more for it's appearance in the iconic dance scene in Flashdance, this actually does have ties to horror! In writing the song, Sembello actually used the horror movie, Maniac to give him inspiration for the title and lyrics. Which ties this movie to two great 80s movies and Halloween forever!


9.) Dead Man's Party by Oingo Boingo



The title says it all. Plus...Danny Elfman, son.



10.) Anything Can Happen On Halloween by Tim Curry




First off, I don't care what role it is, Halloween isn't fun without Tim Curry. Second, this is from the fun movie "The Worst Witch" which stars Mrs Garret, Fairuza Balk and Diana Rigg. Third, the song is ALL ABOUT HALLOWEEN. Tim sings his heart out about how great Halloween is and it's super infectious. Listen to it once and you'll be taken to a place filled with candy corn and Reese's. And so will your party guests!


11.) I Eat Cannibals by Toto Coleo




Looking for some new wave cheese? Good because the British new wave band Toto Coleo has a fun song for you. I'll give you this, it's a corny song but what do you expect when a bunch of British rockers sing about eating people?


12.) Vampira by the Misfits



No way I couldn't include those freaks from NJ. Of all the songs from the Misfits, I gotta suggest this the most. Singing their loving tribute to legendary horror host Vampira is a surefire way to get that horror mood to stick around. Ya know, for only a minute.

13.) Pet Semetary by the Ramones



My all time favorite Ramones song. From the Pet Semetary soundtrack, this song is unlike any of their other songs. And I don't mean in the sense that you can actually tell what they're saying either. It's a good, spooky rhythm with haunting lyrics. Plus, it has that Stephen King connection! Win!



14.) Monster Mash by Bobby Boris Pickett



You've got one more song on this playlist and quite frankly, you're not getting out of this without playing the Monster Mash. Some think of it as the official Halloween theme song. And ya know? They're right. It just reminds all of us of our class Halloween parties and our teachers playing it on a record while we dig into cupcakes and candy corn! This song will live on forever at Halloween parties and our hearts forever.



So there it is! 14 songs for your Halloween party. Or, if you're like me play this all year round! It gets you in the mood for Halloween when you need it!


-Chad

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