Bobby "Boris" Pickett & The Crypt Kickers ~ 1962 Monster Mash Party Mash Up

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Happy Halloween!

I thought it was time to remix the greatest Halloween dance party song of all time, the "Monster Mash" from 1962 by Bobby "Boris" Pickett and the Crypt Kicker Five. It was such a strong single it spent two weeks at #1 in 1962 then was re-released in 1970 when it peaked at #91 and then again in 1973 and this time it went all the way up to #10 nationally.

Bobby Pickett was born February 11, 1938 in Sommerville, Massachussetts. He was deeply interested in Elvis Presley and the movies, particularly the horror films of Boris Karloff. Bobby was able to duplicate his distinctive voice and used it in various talent contests after a stint in Korea as part of the Signal Corps. He won many contests and that gave him the confidence to move to Los Angeles to try his hand at acting.

He moved with three friends from Sommerville and formed a singing group called the Cordials with them. One of his friends Lenny Capizzi, suggested that Bobby use his Karloff voice for the monologue in their version of "Little Darlin'". Afterwards, he told Pickett that his Boris vocals would make a great subject for a novelty record. Bobby quit the band to concentrate on acting and signed with an agent who died two weeks later of a heart attack.

That was when Bobby called Lenny and decided to write a novelty song. Bobby had already written a song called "Monster Twist" after the twist fad of 1960-1961 when Chubby Checker's version of "The Twist" hit #1 twice, once in September of 1960 and then again in January of 1962. Lenny felt that a newer dance step The Mashed Potato would be a better fit as the twist fad was dying out and suggested "Mean Monster Mashed Potato".

Gary Paxton produced the song and the sound effects that set the scene for a joyous Halloween themed romp. For example, he created the sound of an opening coffin by pulling a 2" nail out of a 6" piece of wood, dropping chains on the wood floor, and the bubbling sounds by blowing air in a straw that was in a glass of water. When he arrived at the studio, he crossed paths with Herb Alpert who had just finished a session. Gary had run the song through his head so many times that it took just one take to get it on tape, with one overdub. Famed musician Leon Russell played the piano for him.

Gary then went about promoting the song but was turned down by four major labels before he had pressed 1000 copies and began dropping them off at various radio stations in California. By the time he was done, the song was already a local hit and London Records reconsidered their decision and signed Bobby to release the song nationally and it was sitting pretty atop the Hot100 for two weeks starting October 20, 1962 making it the #1 pop song on Halloween.

A complete album of Halloween themed songs followed, like "Monster Mash Party" and "Me & My Mummy". Here I have mashed up Monster Mash Party with Monster Mash for this special extended version of my favorite Halloween song. Happy Halloween!