Monster Mash – Bobby “Boris” Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#1 for 2 weeks); 1962
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
As “Skip” of Skip & Flip, Gary Paxton reached #11 twice with It Was I in 1959 and then Cherry Pie a year later. Next he recorded a little number called Alley-Oop, released under the name Hollywood Argyles, then went on to form Garpax Records.
Prior to his rendezvous with Gary at Garpax, Bobby Pickett had moved from Massachusetts to California to pursue – what else – an acting career. There he wound up singing with fellow Mass buddy, Lenny Capizzi, in the Cordials, where Bobby used his Boris voice during the spoken break in Little Darlin’.
Bobby and Lenny knocked out Monster Mash (originally called Monster Mashed Potato after the 1962 dance craze) in a couple of hours. With Bobby doing his best Boris, producer Paxton pulled a rusty nail out of a 2 X 4 for the coffin sound and blew air into a glass of water for the bubbling cauldron. With Leon Russell tinkling the ivories, Mash became a monster hit and an annual October 31st graveyard smash.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
- Gary S. Paxton
Lyrics Written by:
- Bobby Pickett
- Lenny Capizzi
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).