29 Oct Ten Awesome Songs on My Halloween 2022 Playlist
by Marisa Torrieri Bloom
I feel like October’s gone by like a manic whirlwind, with barely a moment to stop and smell the flowers, or, in this case, head to the pumpkin patch with my kids in tow. So this year I decided to magnify the spooky season magic in the musical sense: I created my first ever Rockmommy Halloween playlist on Spotify.
This one’s full of old tunes and new ones that are mostly family friendly, including these top 10 favorites:
#10: “Monster Mash” (Bobby Borris Pickett, The Crypt-Kickers)
I mean, this one should be obvious. “He Did the MASH!” The what? “The MONSTER MASH!” This 1962 classic never gets old. Listen: “Monster Mash”
#9: “Spooky Scary Skeletons” (Andrew Gold)
I love dance music and was delighted to discover this gem of a song when I caught my older son, now 10, dancing to the techno version of it (the undead tombstone remix) during the shelter-in-place phase of the pandemic in April 2020. I’m still nostalgic for that time, when he was unafraid of weirdo dance moves and dorky things. And I’m totally addicted to this song. Listen: “Spooky Scary Skeletons (Undead Tombstone Remix)”
#8: “Hallo Hallo Halloween” (Lucy Kalantari & the Jazz Cats)
My NYC girl and fellow rockmommy Lucy Kalantari’s new song is a festive, colorful, bilingual party song with zero spook factor. It’s perfect for pregaming for trick-or-treating fun with the kiddos. Listen: “Hallo Hallo Halloween”
#7: “Homemade Halloween” (Esther Crow)
This rockin’ psychedelic tune makes me not want to succumb to my fast-fashion addiction. And the ideas for costumes within the song are great. Listen: “Homemade Halloween”.
#6: “Skeleton Crew” (Marisa Mini and Anna Lee)
Yes, this rockabilly Halloween romp, which tells the story of a woman finding love in a cemetery after stumbling upon a band of skeletons, is written by yours truly. But it’s also super fun, too, so take a listen! Listen: “Skeleton Crew”
#5: “Every Day is Halloween” (Ministry)
This bouncy track from one of a sinister industrial-rock band is unexpected and takes me back to my college goth days. Listen: “Every Day is Halloween”
#4: “Come Little Children” (Passing Strange cover)
I’ve never seen ‘Hocus Pocus,’ but Passing Strange singer Kate Mirabella’s breathy vocals, layered over a pretty, creepy piano melody, and Anthony Paolucci’s subtle drumming come together in a cool, chilling cover tune. Listen: “Come Little Children”
#3: “The Days of Swine and Roses” (My Life with the Thrill Kill Cult)
This song was everything to me in the ‘90s on goth clubbing nights in the winter. And while it’s not a Halloween song in the traditional sense, the little spooky touches woven throughout give it that eerie, Halloween vibe. Listen: “The Days of Swine and Roses”
#2: “Ghostbusters” (Ray Parker, Jr.)
This classic ghoulish tune isn’t a Halloween song, but who cares?! It’s one of the greatest movie theme songs of the 1980s and possibly of all time. Listen: “Ghostbusters”
#1: “Thriller” (Michael Jackson)
No song is spookier and cooler than “Thriller.” From the first few seconds of door creaking sounds to that zombie spoken word breakdown, this is the best of them all, the GOAT of Halloween songs. Listen: “Thriller”
Marisa Torrieri Bloom is the editor and founder of Rockmommy.
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