When going over what to do for October’s blog post and comparing that to my love of Halloween, I knew exactly what I had to do. Halloween comes and goes with new traditions, but one stays every year; The Monster Mash. Born in 1962, Monster Mash has taught generations all about the monsters of Halloween. Though most know the song, many don’t know its history.
The song was released in 1962 as a single for Garpax records and was sung by Bobby “Boris” Pickett. Pickett sings the song in the voice of famous Frankenstein actor and horror icon, Boris Karloff. Pickett and his band got the idea to create the song after Pickett did an impression of Boris on their tour, and his bandmate urged him to keep it going. Boris said that it only took a half hour to write, and a half hour to record, which he did himself. The storyline of the song follows a scientist’s monster who awakes at night to see his monster dancing, which is inspired by the mashed potato and alley-oop. The dance then becomes famous when other iconic monsters who come to his party love it. The song ends by encouraging the listener to join in and come to the party.
The song is extremely creative and on theme, but the best part arguably is the sound effects and audio production of it. Throughout the background of the song we hear background singers singing along, but did you know that they are actually saying the word tennis shoe over and over? Also, the sound effects we hear are not what one would think they are. The cauldron that bubbles, for example, was made by someone blowing bubbles in water through a straw. The beginning sound of the coffin opening and creaking was made by someone pulling a rusty nail out of wood. The chains though, were made by actual chains. The song’s mix of spooky and pop is a killer combination if you will.
Overall, the Monster Mash is a Halloween must. The song is something that everyone no matter how young or old knows, and has a much more interesting history than meets the eye. It deserves a listen and appreciation this October, or any month of the year honestly. It truly is… a graveyard smash.
References: https://tedium.co/2018/10/25/monster-mash-history/ https://www.smoothradio.com/news/music/monster-mash-bobby-pickett-meaning-video-lyrics/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monster_Mash