Pop Shots – The 5 Scariest #1 Songs of Halloween
Welcome to your weekly dose of pop world musings. Covering all things pop culture, with Halloween coming up this weekend – even if it may look a little different due to rules surrounding COVID – I’m dedicating this edition of Pop Shots to my favorite spooky holiday. Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be the same tired list of Halloween songs every site trots out this time of year. Instead, I combed through 40 years of Billboard Hot 100 history and chose the five scariest songs/music videos that were #1 on October 31st.
Here are my top five, in chronological order, and since this is Pop Shots you know everything is seasoned with a little bit of attitude.
Sure, every other Halloween column will be talking about “Thriller,” but “Bad” was the Michael Jackson song that was actually #1 on Halloween, and let’s be honest, what’s scarier – Michael Jackson turning into a dancing zombie, or Michael Jackson dressed in all leather, rhythmically thrusting his crotch in a parking garage? Actually, I’m pretty sure under normal circumstances the latter is a felony.
For a significant number of folks, simply bringing up the name Vanilla Ice sends shivers down their spine. His era of pop-rap was one that introduced many people to hip-hop, but was also a horror to hip-hop purists. The man’s impact was huge, as his debut album sold over 15 million copies worldwide, and speaking of copies, he inspired a nation of white suburban kids to attempt to look the part of their favorite rappers … and not just on Halloween.
While this song is only scary in that it’s scary good, the video, which is based on Beauty and the Beast, and The Phantom of the Opera, is a Halloween gem. I’m not sure if that’s why the song was #1 on Halloween in 1993, but it’s a match made in Heaven.
As an aside, can we please talk about how Meat Loaf is one of the most underrated artists of the past half century? The man’s voice is incredible, and his performances were so high energy that he damned near died for his art on a nightly basis (btw, his autobiography is a great read).
If you weren’t around in 1996 you may not understand why Los Del Rio’s “Macarena” qualifies as a scary song. As someone who was a freshman in college at the time, lemme tell ya – the “Macarena” craze was terrifying! We all had to learn the dance, we all had to do it every time the song came on, and much like the The Electric Slide, it will be done at weddings until the end of time … which is a bit weird considering the English language lyrics of “Macarena” are about a woman cheating on her boyfriend by having a threesome with two of this friends. Seriously. Have you ever actually listened to this song? There’s even a laughing implication that she may have murdered said boyfriend! So yes, “Macarena” is a scary song, a very scary song!
I don’t think any of us would consider “Smooth” a scary song, so why did it make this Halloween list? Because it’s scary how quickly it gets stuck in your head. Heck, the opening lyric is probably already on the tip of your tongue, and the chorus is seeping its way into your brain, making a home there for at least the next week and a half, and you haven’t even clicked play yet … but you’re going to click play … because you can’t resist it. Click play, and give me your heart, make it real or else forget about it.
That’s all for this edition of Pop Shots, but come back next Monday for more shots on all things pop.
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