Alice Cooper photo by Epic Records
Halloween is one of the most looked forward to events of the year for the young and the young at heart. It is the one night wherein you can get creative and let loose and not think of the opinion of others while going house to house collecting candies and all kinds of sweets. Almost everyone in that night comes dressed up in his costume of choice… either to scare or to be part of an ongoing trend.
On a more important note, since I am a music aficionado, it is also the perfect occasion for me to tally songs from the decades past that I believe best represent the “Halloween spirit.” Trust me when I say there are a ton of songs out there that are perfectly suited for this list of mine but I got to narrow it down to a select few based on my own preference.
Below are My Top 3 songs for Halloween.
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1) “Poison” by Alice Cooper – Alice Cooper–for the much younger readers–is the pioneer of shock rock. This man came before the likes of Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie, and Slipknot. In fact, he inspired them all and they have humbly acknowledged this several times in the past.
Alice Cooper was way ahead of his time in terms of pushing the limits of what could be categorized as artistry while also testing the board of censorship with what he could get away with in his music videos. Despite being already up there in age, Alice Cooper still performs on occasion and for special events. “Poison” is always included in his set list as it is a favorite among his longtime fans and one of his most requested songs.
“Poison” was released in 1989 and quickly became a certified hit single. By that time Alice Cooper was already an elder statesman of rock. Although this song was commercial in nature and was suited for more listeners, the ‘Alice of old’ was still there… what with selected lyrics in “Poison” that could make the hair on your arms stand and put the fright in you.
2) “More Human than Human” by White Zombie – The second song that is in my list comes from the “post-apocalyptic man” himself, Rob Zombie. “More Human than Human” was released in 1995 when Rob Zombie and the rest of his former bandmates in the now defunct White Zombie were still one cohesive unit and did not hate each other’s guts like they still do now.
I remember that when I was a kid when the music video for this song first played on MTV ASIA a long, long time ago, I was not quite sure what to make of it. But I sure liked the melody of the song and portions of the song were quite catchy. The music video itself was bombarded with so much random images like pumpkin heads, the “creature from the black lagoon,” witches, robots, and so many others that it did make it such a bizarre music video as seen from a pre-teen’s eyes.
Looking back now, I can laugh and say I did not know then I was not only enjoying watching a montage of classic horror flicks in a music video but the lyrics coming from lead singer Rob Zombie were so messed up that they nary made sense ! Yet, “More Human than Human” is the most recognized song from Rob Zombie as an artist. Try listening to it and watch its music video, too, and you will without doubt like it somehow.
Currently, Rob Zombie has been more focused in his directorial duties for a number of box-office-
hit horror movies which were released in the last decade. He was also the one responsible for the successful reboot of the ‘Halloween’ movie franchise with his re-envisioning of the central character, Michael Myers… you know, the guy who wears all-black, a freaky white mask, and wields a long kitchen knife stabbing everyone in sight. Stuff of nightmares, indeed, perfect for Halloween !
3) “Salvation” by The Cranberries – This is not a knock on The Cranberries but even when I was very young, they always had a look about them especially during the mid-90’s that made them look like they secretly belonged to some cult ! “Salvation” was primarily about the wasted youth who find themselves in a dangerous and life-threatening situation caused by drug abuse and cannot find a way out of it. When you get to watch the music video of “Salvation” which has some disturbing images that will stay stuck in your head for some time, you will rethink some of your ill-fated life decisions.
How could the music video itself not be effective in discouraging drug use ? You have the more twisted version of the clown from the Stephen King classic horror movie ‘IT’ appearing in various scenes of the music video influencing the young to go down the wrong path. I know some people who have a phobia with clowns and to incorporate that clown in the music video was a smart move as it could also serve as a deterrent for anyone–and not just the youth–to stay away from drugs! Otherwise, you will have the clown injecting a lethal dose of heroin into your vein while “Salvation” by The Cranberries is being played in the background. Which reminds me: Kids, stay away from drugs!!!