Five Monster Hits—and Nearly 200 Ways to Haunt Your Playlist
Halloween falls on Saturday, October 31, giving radio stations a perfect excuse to get a little weird. For one weekend, ghosts, witches, monsters, devils, superstition and things that go bump in the night can invade the playlist—and the Music Director can blame Halloween.
It’s one of those rare occasions when a song that hasn’t fit the music strategy for the other 364 days suddenly becomes perfectly logical programming. So, what are the best-known Halloween hits?
- “Thriller” — Michael Jackson
If Halloween had a national anthem, this might be it. Michael Jackson’s 1982 classic has everything: monsters, an iconic video, a creepy Vincent Price performance and one of the few dance routines where pretending to be undead is considered excellent choreography. The opening alone tells listeners: Halloween has arrived.
- “Ghostbusters” — Ray Parker Jr.
The 1984 movie theme became a smash hit on its own and remains instantly recognizable more than four decades later. And radio loves a song with a built-in audience response: Who ya gonna call? You already know the answer. Please don’t say the request line.
- “Monster Mash” — Bobby “Boris” Pickett
Recorded in 1962, “Monster Mash” is the grandfather of Halloween novelty hits—and somehow refuses to die. Which, considering the subject matter, seems appropriate. It’s campy, silly, instantly familiar and still turns up every October. Sixty-plus years later, they’re apparently still having that party in the laboratory.
- “Somebody’s Watching Me” — Rockwell
Rockwell’s 1984 hit delivers paranoia with a dance beat, helped considerably by Michael Jackson singing the unforgettable chorus. It’s an ideal Halloween record because the premise is genuinely creepy: Somebody’s watching me. Rockwell was paranoid in 1984 because he thought somebody was watching him. Today, he’d just assume he drove past a Flock Traffic Camera.
- “Superstition” — Stevie Wonder
“Very superstitious, writing’s on the wall…” That opening immediately establishes the mood. Stevie Wonder’s 1972 classic provides Halloween attitude without becoming a novelty record. And that famous clavinet riff is considerably funkier than anything you’ll hear coming from a haunted house.
More Frightfully Familiar Favorites
The Halloween cupboard contains plenty more treats:
“Werewolves of London” — Warren Zevon. Ah-hooooo! Possibly the only Halloween song to inspire listeners to howl along in their cars.
“Witchy Woman” — Eagles. A natural Halloween fit that doesn’t require explaining why you’re playing it.
“Dead Man’s Party” — Oingo Boingo. If the dead are throwing a party, apparently Oingo Boingo got the catering contract.
“Evil Woman” — Electric Light Orchestra. Not technically a Halloween song, but on October 31, we’ll allow it.
“Psycho Killer” — Talking Heads. A wonderfully strange record for a wonderfully strange holiday.
Don’t Stop at Five—or Ten! Halloween programming doesn’t have to mean playing “Monster Mash” once and declaring the job finished. Think beyond the obvious titles. There are songs about ghosts, devils, witches, monsters, magic, black cats, superstition, nightmares, evil, screams, danger, the moon, midnight, graveyards and things generally best avoided after dark.
That creates opportunities for:
- Halloween theme hours.
- Spooky song sweeps.
- “Trick or Treat” music features.
- Monster-song countdowns.
- Halloween weekends.
- Special imaging and sweepers.
- Morning-show trivia.
- Listener requests and voting.
- “Songs That Scare Us” features.
And don’t forget the personalities. A good Halloween weekend should sound different from an ordinary weekend. Give the air staff Halloween trivia, local haunted-house information, scary movie facts, community trick-or-treat schedules, and plenty of opportunities to have fun with the music. Just don’t let the morning show arrive dressed as the competition. That’s too frightening.
The Lund Lesson
Special occasions give radio permission to temporarily break routine. Use it. Halloween is an opportunity to surprise listeners with familiar songs they don’t normally hear, create memorable features and make the station sound like it’s participating in the same holiday as its audience. The trick is selecting songs that still fit the station. The treat is making the playlist more entertaining.
Nearly 200 Halloween Songs
Lund Media has compiled nearly 200 Halloween-themed songs across multiple radio formats, giving programmers a much deeper menu than the same five songs everybody plays every October. Choose the titles that fit your format, audience, and era—and build a Halloween weekend that sounds special without scaring away your P1s. Because there’s one thing more frightening than ghosts, goblins, and things that go bump in the night: A listener reaching for the seek button. For the complete Lund Media Halloween song list, email John@LundRadio.com. Happy haunting!
Pic AI generated using Gemini.
John Lund is President of the Lund Media Group, a radio programming, broadcast consulting, and research firm with specialists in all mainstream radio formats.