On this not-so-chilly October evening, our second Halloween 2024 collection (which is why I call it "Halloween 2024, Pt. 2"--seems logical enough). We start out with a marvelous 1945 recording of Miklos Rozsa's Spellbound theme, which Camden credits to Harold Coates, though it's really conducted by the Ukrainian-born Alfred Goodman. The theme was famous for its use of the Theremin, and I think I hear a brief appearance of same on this recording, though my ears may be mistaken.
Until I figured out that "Harold Coates" was Al Goodman, my Google searches kept taking me back to Memorable Music From The Movies (shown above, with Jim Flora art). There was, in fact, a real Harold Coates, so I don't know if RCA's Camden label goofed, or if RCA was mad at Al, or what. The correct ID appears at a Miklos Rozsa page. However, no mystery in regard to Harry Lubin's One Step Beyond track, Weird, which is definitely by Lubin and very recognizably from that very show (One Step Beyond),where it was constantly used.
In fact, both Weird and the OSB title music were reworked into the second-season Outer Limits title music--unfortunately. Lubin's OL music hardly compared to Dominic Frontiere's amazing first-season offerings, but he did an uncharacteristically terrific job on the famous Demon With a Glass Hand ep, plus the score for my favorite second-year OL, The Duplicate Man. I wish Harry had worked at that level more often. At any rate, Lubin will always be known for the rather lame 1959-1961 OSB, a show hosted and directed by John Newland, allegedly featuring true (yeah, right) tales of the paranormal. Because I only knew Newland for OSB, I always figured the man was something less than a masterful horror director, and so I was stunned to discover he'd directed what might be the scariest episode of the Boris Karloff-hosted Thriller series, "Pigeons From Hell," along with some other genuinely excellent entries. He also directed the famous 1962 Bus Stop episode, "I Kiss Your Shadow," which Stephen King calls "the single most frightening story ever done on TV." At the moment, that ep is still up on YouTube, and it is quite creepy (hence, perfect for Halloween). But not quite the equal of Thriller eps like "Pigeons,""The Hungry Glass," or "The Cheaters."
And, courtesy of SPC's (Synthetic Plastics Co.) Promenade label, two budget knockoffs by John Logan: 1958's Dinner With Drac and The Witch Doctor. From SPC, also, is 1965's Saturday Evening Ghost, performed by Frankie Stein and His Ghouls. I can't believe I didn't hang on to my copy of the original LP version (which preceded this 1977 {?} Peter Pan EP release).
Rod McKuen's 1959 The Mummy features Bob McFadden and Dor (Rod), and is derived from a folk tale I know from childhood, which was featured in the same year's The Thing at the Foot of the Bed. My book copy is packed away at the moment, so I can't quote from the text, though it employs the same story formula, only minus any mummies.
And... three sides shared with me years back by my dear e-friend, the late Pete Grendysa, one of the leading R&B-history experts: Steve Gibson and the Red Caps doing their version of Charles Grean's The Thing (note that Grean recorded our version of Josette's Music Box); The Four Tunes'Ballad of James Dean; and Mr. Ghost Goes to Town, sung by the 5 Jones Boys. The Four Preps'The Sphinx Won't Tell and the Liverpool Five's The Snake are maybe titles you're not likely to hear elsewhere, but with all the recordings available on YouTube these days, who knows?
DOWNLOAD: Halloween 2024, Pt. 2
SLAYLIST
Spellbound (Rozsa)--Harold Coates (Al Goodman) and His Orch.; 1945
Weird (Harry Lubin, From "One Step Beyond")--Harry Lubin; 1960
Dinner With Drac--John Logan (Promenade; 1958)
Theme From "Man of a Thousand Faces"--Wayne King Orch.; 1958
Deserted Ballroom (Gould)--Morton Gould, piano; 1940
Funeral March (Chopin)--Mark Andrews, Pipe organ solo; 1928
Josette's Music Box (From "Dark Shadows")--The Charles Randolph Grean Sounde; 1970
Saturday Evening Ghost--Frankie Stein and His Ghouls; 1965
My Friend the Ghost--Jill Whitney; 1954
The H Man--Theatre Lobby Spot (Columbia Pictures; 1959)
Graveyard Blues--Earl Fuller's Rector Novelty Orch., 1918
Witch Doctor--John Logan (Promenade; 1958)
Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte--Al Martino, Orch. c. by Pete King; 1964
The Thing (Grean)--Steve Gibson and the Red Caps; 1950
The Quest for Bridey Hammerschlaugen--Steven Freberg, with June Foray; 1956
Ballad of James Dean--The Four Tunes; 1956
Mr. Ghost Goes to Town--The 5 Jones Boys; 1936
The Sphinx Won't Tell--The Four Preps; 1962
The Snake--The Liverpool Five; 1965
The Black Hole--End Title (Barry)--Andre Kostelanetz; 1980
Mountain King--Lawrence Welk and His Orchestral; 1961
The Addams Family--Frank De Vol; 1965
The Mummy (Rod McKuen)--Bob McFadden and Dor (Rod McKuen), 1959
Man From Mars--Ferrante and Teicher, 1956
Three Hauntovani Waltzes (Lee Hartsfeld)--Your blogger; 2010
