This is somewhat spooky, I suppose

Well, I’m stretching things a bit by making this Halloween-related, but here we go…

In 1980, Jim Carroll, famous poet and subject of the film the Basketball Diaries, released an album called Catholic Boy. That album featured a song called “People Who Died.” The song was a near-hit, and most fans of indie rock and alternative radio (or indie radio and alt. rock, if you wanna phrase it that way) are fairly familiar with the song.

It’s a litany of folks dying from horrible things like hepatitis, and suicide by pills, Drano, jumping in front of a train, slicing a jugular, and so on and so forth. However, it’s damn upbeat and catchy, which makes it a great Halloween song. You’ve got the death theme, and I always prefer my spooky songs to hang a sing-along quality to them (i.e., “The Monster Mash”, anything by the Misfits, etc.). I’m none too fond of the black metal school of thought when it comes to All Hallows music.

Plus, to really tie in to the whole Halloween / horror theme, they did use it in the end credits of the Dawn of the Dead remake. So, that should be a strong enough endorsement to get it on all of your Halloween party mixes. I couldn’t find the Jim Carroll version anywhere online, so here’s a cover version by the Drive By Truckers.

Drive By Truckers – “People Who Died

What this Halloween party needs are some sexy costumes and a room full of nuthouse punks to get this party turned up. Make sure the music is maximum rock-n-roll and everybody has Halloween costumes that get noticed. Couples costumes have some of the most tongue-n-cheek themes sure to get some laughs or raised brows from the crew. If you just can’t bring yourself to dress
to the nines grab some Halloween masks and keep everybody guessing who is underneath it. If nothing else make sure you have some fun listening to Catholic Boy and watching Dawn of the Dead.