Dead Man's Party - Oingo Boingo

What would Hallowe'en be without a little Dead Man's Party?

Originally formed in 1972 by Richard Elfman as a musical theater troupe a la Spike Jones and called The Mystical Knights of the Oingo Boingo, they performed songs ranging from Cab Calloway covers to Russian ballet music as well as original compositions. Richard became more interested in film making and passed the leadership of the band over to his brother, Danny. In the late 1970s, the band shortened their name to simply Oingo Boingo. Around 1991 they shortened it even more to Boingo, reverting back to Oingo Boingo in 1995 when they disbanded after the Hallowe'en concert of the same year.

This is the title track from Oingo Boingo's fourth album, released in 1985.

This is Hallowe'en - Marilyn Manson

Originally written (and performed by) Danny Elfman for the 1993 animated movie "The Nightmare Before Christmas", Marilyn Manson adds his own creepy touch to the song in this 2007 cover.



Marilyn Manson's official website

Wytches' Brew - Omnia

Wytches' Brew by Omnia from the album "Alive!" released in 2007.

From the Netherlands, Omnia's music is all accoustic and many of the instruments are handmade by the band themselves.



Omnia's official webpage

AND

Omnia's MySpace page

The Carp - No Blood to Spare

No Blood to Spare is one of the most innovative bands I've ever had the pleasure to know. The guys are not only incredibly talented and creative, they're just plain ol' nice guys. And they let me sing with them sometimes. Bonus! In fact, I had the pleasure of performing with them this past summer at the Utah Arts Festival with Chimera. It was FABulous!

No Blood to Spare is playing tomorrow night (Hallowe'en) at Alchemy Coffee in Salt Lake City. If you happen to be in town, I'd highly recommend you checking them out.



No Blood to Spare's official page

AND

No Blood to Spare's MySpace page

AND

No Blood to Spare's Youtube channel

Two Heads - Alabama 3 (live)

This song makes me giggle.

"I got two heads.
I'm gonna bang my heads together.
I got one leg.
I'm gonna hop to heaven's door.
I got three eyes.
I'm gonna pluck one out for Jesus.
And I ain't gonna have no troubles anymore."

Pollywog in a Bog - Barenaked Ladies

WARNING: This one will get stuck in your head and you'll find yourself sitting in a business meeting, singing it under your breath.

Pollywog in a Bog by Barenaked Ladies from the 2008 album "Snacktime".



Click here for Barenaked Ladies official website.

House of the Rising Sun - Odetta

Nobody knows for sure who wrote House of the Rising Sun. It's almost as if it's just always been. In September of 1937, Alan Lomax recorded 16 year old Georgia Turner singing it and gives her credit for the lyrics in his book "Our Singing Country" which he published in 1941.

Odetta was born New Year's Eve 1930 in Birmingham, Alabama. She is known as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement." Operatically trained from the age of 13, her repetoire consists mostly of blues, gospel, jazz and American folk songs. She is still touring today at the age of 77.



Click here for more on Odetta.

God's Gonna Cut You Down - Johnny Cash

I wake up with this song in my head quite often. The first time I saw this video for it, I was stunned. It was - and still is - one of the most intensely emotional visual interpretations of a song I've ever seen.

God's Gonna Cut You Down is a traditional folk song also known as Run On. It has been performed and recorded by many artists including Odetta (1956) and The Blind Boys of Alabama (2001) as "God's Gonna Cut You Down", and as "Run On" by Bill Landford and the Landfordaires (1943, remixed and released by Moby in 1999) and Elvis Presley (1966).

The Johnny Cash version of the song was released posthumously in 2006 on the album American V: A Hundred Highways.



The Official Johnny Cash Website

Egil Saga - Faun

Faun - from Munich, Germany. I absolutely LOVE this band! Besides incredible vocals, they play some of the most intriguing instruments including Celtic harp, nyckelharpa, lyres, bagpipes, Japanese taiko drums, cister, Pagan zither, flutes and even Arabic instruments like dombra, rebab, riq, oud, darabukka and bendir.


Faun's official MySpace page

Faun's official webpage



And the same song LIVE! This band is amazing and one of my new favorites.




For more on the Egil Saga:
Wikipedia on Egil Saga
AND
Translation by Rev. W.C. Green, trascribed by Jess Frazier

Aberdeen Mississippi Blues - Booker White

This man's playing makes my jaw drop everytime.

B.B. King's older cousin, Booker T. Washington White was born in 1909 near Houston, Mississippi. He did his first recordings in 1930 for Victor Records. In 1937 he was arrested for shooting a man. He was incarcerated in the Parchment Farm Prison, and released in 1940. In 1942 he enlisted in the Navy and served for 2 years. He died in 1977 in Memphis, Tennessee at the age of 67.



For more information on Booker White, go to cascadeblues.org.

Rain Dogs - Tom Waits

Rain Dogs by Tom Waits

What can I say? This man is pure genius!

The album "Rain Dogs" was released in 1985 on the Island Records label.

This song (and footage) was also featured in the concert movie (and live album)"Big Time", released in 1988, also by Island Records. The movie is part concert movie and part play, incorporating aspects of "Frank's Wild Years" (released in 1987).

Official Tom Waits website

Medicine Man - Nico Vega

Medicine Man by Nico Vega from the 5 song EP "No Child Left Behind" released in October 2007 on Myspace Records.

Click here for Nico Vega's Myspace page

Song the first

Hey, if it was good enough to launch MTV a gazillion years ago, it's good enough to launch this blog.

Video Killed the Radio Star by The Buggles. Written by Geoff Downes, Trevor Horn and Bruce Woolley and released in 1979 as a 7-inch single by Island Records.




Fun Wikipedia blurb about the song: Clicky here