By LARRY McSHANEAssociated Press Writer
He does the "Monster Mash" no more. Bobby "Boris" Pickett, whose dead-on Boris Karloff impression propelled the Halloween anthem to the top of the charts in 1962, making him one of pop music's most enduring one-hit wonders, has died of leukemia. He was 69.
Pickett, dubbed "The Guy Lombardo of Halloween," died Wednesday night at the West Los Angeles Veterans Hospital, said his longtime manager, Stuart Hersh. His daughter, Nancy, and his sister, Lynda, were at Pickett's bedside.
"Monster Mash" hit the Billboard chart three times: when it debuted in 1962, reaching No. 1 the week before Halloween; again in August 1970, and for a third time in May 1973. The resurrections were appropriate for a song where Pickett gravely intoned the forever-stuck-in-your-head chorus: "He did the monster mash. ... It was a graveyard smash."
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As a tribute, here's five versions of The Monster Mash --
1. Bobby 'Boris' Pickett (new stereo recording)
2. MISFITS
3. Sha Na Na
4. Stephen Bishop w/ Linda Ronstadt, Karla Bonoff & Andrew Gold
5. The Count, Zoe & Telly Monster (from Sesame Street)
Click below to download
--> The Monster Mash <--
5 comments:
How sad. His song was one of the first Halloween themed songs I ever heard. Another great talent gone. RIP Bobby.
Nice tribute, Erick. Thanks for the compilations. Now if only someone could track down the Boris Karloff version!
For another version, Vincent Price, take a look here.
You need to register first, but it's free.
Once you do that, it's in the folder "Vincent Price Sings".
http://voices-in-the-dark.anagkh.net/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1
@Dave - Very sad indeed.
@Stephen - I sure would like to hear the Boris version.
@Filmpac - Last month I made a 'Halloween In March' compilation that included that version. Check the archives for it :)
And thanks to everyone else that has visited my blog. I really appreciate it. Please leave a comment if you see something you like (or don't like).
A nice tribute to Pickett, Erick.
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