Halloween Songs: Monster Mash

Monster Mash is a Halloween song that has continued to be a hit since its release in 1962.

One night while Bobby “Boris” Pickett was performing with his band, he decided to do a monologue imitation of horror movie actor Boris Karloff to the song “Little Darlin” by the Diamonds.   The monologue was such an audience hit that he was encouraged by his band members to continue more Karloff imitations.

Pickett and his band member, Lenny Capizzi, composed Monster Mash.  The song was partially inspired by Gary S. Paxton’s hit Alley Oop and the Mashed Potato dance craze of the time.

“The song is narrated by a mad scientist whose monster, late one evening, rises from a slab to perform a new dance. The dance becomes “the hit of the land” when the scientist throws a party for other monsters.”

The musicians that recorded the song, which included Gary Paxton, were credited as The Crypt-Kickers.

The song was released as a single on and the LP The Original Monster Mash.  It reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart just before Halloween in 1962.

Monster Mash has been recorded by various artists over the years and continues to remain a Halloween classic.

Pictures from Pixabay.com