Showing posts with label Nightmare on Elm Street. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nightmare on Elm Street. Show all posts

Saturday, October 27, 2018

HORROR MOVIE MUSIC IPOD PLAYLIST


I'm going to start off this post by telling you something that the snobby "timeless love song/Great American Songbook" crowd doesn't want you to know. One of their favorite "standard" songs, that was a favorite of our grandparents and parents, was introduced in a HORROR FILM.

The song, "Stella By Starlight," first appeared in the 1944 film The Uninvited, about a woman named Stella, who is possessed by a ghost. In the movie, Ray Milland plays a composer, who tries to woo Stella by composing the song for her on a piano, while she stands by an open window.  The song has been recorded by many artist since it was first introduced, but most of those familiar with the song would probably never guess it was from a horror film. The Uninvited was also groundbreaking in that it portray ghost and the paranormal as serious, instead of a criminal gimmick or for comedy purposes.

I brought up ghost and comedy, because one of the biggest songs of the 80s, was from a comedy about ghost and demons. Of course, that was Ghostbusters. That song dominated radio in the summer of 1984, but some would say Ghostbusters is a comedy not a horror film.

That is why this is a Ipod playlist, because 1)) doing a really educational "countdown-of-the-greatest-ever" post would lead to hairsplitting and Internet bickering about what I should consider a "real" horror film or horror comedy or a mystery thriller or science fiction movie or an original composition for a horror film or using a previously recorded song. So, I'll just give a playlist with the movie the song was featured in and you can decide for yourself what category it belongs in, 2) I haven't done one in a while, and 3) it's quick and easy.

I have left out orchestral scores, in favor of pop & rock songs, featured in the film. Some were hits before the film came out or "oldies" used to memorable effect in the film. I tried to give the name of the original version or version in the film, if I use a substitute, I'll mention why.

Stella By Starlight - Andre Previn (This is a piano instrumental, as in the movie) - The Uninvited - 1944
The Blob - The Five Blobs - The Blob 1958
The Web - Abie Baker - The Brain That Wouldn't Die 1959
Bird Is the Word - The Rivingtons - The Crawling Hand 1963
Look For a Star - Gary Miles - Circus of Horror 1960
Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte - Al Martino - Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte 1964
My Son, The Vampire - Alan Sherman - Vampire Over London 1952/My Son The Vampire 1964
That's The Way It's Got To Be - The Poets - Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster 1966
That's All That I Need You For - The Birds - The Deadly Bees 1966
Shadows - The Electric Prunes - The Name of the Game Is Kill 1968
Green Slime - The Green Slime - The Green Slime 1968 (The title of the song, movie and the band are all Green Slime)
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face - Roberta Flack - Play Misty For Me 1971
Season of the Witch - Donovan - Season of the Witch 1972/Dark Shadows 2012
Ben - Michael Jackson - Ben 1972
Tubular Bells  - Mike Oldfield - The Exorcist 1973
Popcorn - Hot Butter - Shriek of the Mutilated 1974
Daybreak - Harry Nilsson - Son of Dracula 1974
Science Fiction/Double Feature - Richard O'Brien - Rocky Horror Picture Show - 1975
Time Warp - Richard O'Brien, Patricia Quinn & Cast - Rocky Horror Picture Show - 1975
Sweet Transvestite - Tim Curry - Rocky Horror Picture Show - 1975
Don't Fear The Reaper - Blue Oyster Cult - Halloween 1978
I Love The Nightlife - Alicia Bridges - Love At First Bite - 1979
Bad Moon Rising - Creedence Clearwater Revival - American Werewolf in London -1981
Moondance - Van Morrison - American Werewolf in London - 1981
Blue Moon - The Marcels - American Werewolf in London - 1981
Cat People (Putting Out the Fire) - David Bowie - Cat People - 1982
Bela Lugosi's Dead - Bauhaus - The Hunger - 1983
Ghostbusters - Ray Parker Junior - Ghostbusters - 1984
Weird Science - Oingo Boingo - Weird Science - 1985
Wanted Man - Ratt - Weird Science - 1985
Tesla Girls - Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark - Weird Science - 1985
Pretty Woman - Van Halen - Weird Science - 1985
Blue Kiss - Jane Wiedlin - Night of the Creeps - 1986
The Stroll - The Diamonds - Night of the Creeps - 1986
Teen Beat - Sandy Nelson - Night of the Creeps - 1986
Good Times - Inxs with Jimmy Barnes - Lost Boys - 1987
People Are Strange - Echo & The Bunnymen - Lost Boys - 1987
Who Made Who - AC/DC - Maximum Overdrive -1986
For Those About To Rock - AC/DC - Maximum Overdrive - 1986
Dream Warriors - Dokken - Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors - 1987
Into the Fire - Dokken - Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors - 1987
Youth of America - Birdbrain - Scream - 1996
Red Right Hand - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Scream - 1996
Who's Gonna Mow Your Grass? - Buck Owens - House of 1000 Corpses - 2003
Turn Around, Look At Me - The Lettermen - Final Destination 3 - 2006
Nights In White Satin - Moody Blues - Dark Shadows - 2012
I'm Sick of You - Iggy & the Stooges - Dark Shadows - 2012
Ballad of Dwight Frye - Alice Cooper - Dark Shadows - 2012



Tuesday, October 8, 2013

"DO THE FREDDY" - FROM BRITISH INVASION DANCE CRAZE TO 80s HALLOWEEN SONG

Last week, I posted a list of my favorite British Invasion hits of the 60s. My sister, Villanova, who was in elementary school when the British Invasion started, ask why I left off Freddie and the Dreamers. My first thought was to say "Because they suck," then I thought I would be fair to the group and bring up a forgotten Halloween song of the past.


Freddie and the Dreamers had about five charted hit singles in America. Their biggest was the number one hit "I'm Telling You Now" in 1964. Their last record issued in this country was 1966, which made them a short lived phenomenon in the United States. Part of their problem was the novelty of their act. Other bands simply played songs and either made it by being cute and nice (The Beatles, Herman's Hermits, Dave Clark Five) or bad boys (The Animals, the Stones). Freddie and the Dreamers not only looked like nerds, but they hopped from leg to leg when they sang. Lead singer Freddie Garrity wave his arms like a skinny, bespectacled bird trying to take off for the clouds. Freddy also had a wacky, goofy laugh like a drunken witch that he worked into songs.

The group's second big hit was a 1965 dance number, based on the group's unusual stage movements, called "Do the Freddie." Here is video of them performing the song on TV in 1965.




Flash forward to Halloween of 1987. Some mad genius somewhere decides to create an LP to cash in on Hollywood's hottest monster, Freddy Krueger of the Nightmare on Elm Street movie series. The LP, entitled Freddy's Greatest Hits, featured a studio group, referred to on the cover of the LP as the Elm Street Group, recorded covers of several oldies ("In the Midnight Hour", "All I Have to Do is Dream") and some original songs inspired by the Nightmare on Elm Street films. On each track, Robert Englund, the actor who played Freddy Krueger, would growl or make some of Freddy's trademark bad puns or threats.

The song that was released as a single from this LP was "Do The Freddy." The spelling of the name was changed, but it was the same song. I might be wrong about this, but I don't believe the LP was ever issued on CD, because, at the time, CD's were new and this was a Halloween novelty LP aimed at kids. Here is the Elm Street Group version of "Do the Freddy."



This has to be one of the oddest covers of a hit song ever, but I'm sure child of the 80s played this at a Halloween party. Nothing like going from Freddie and the Dreamers to Freddy's nightmares. 

 
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