This Is Me--2024 A to Z Theme

My A to Z Themes in the past have covered a range of topics and for 2024 the theme is a personal retrospective that I call "I Coulda Been" which is in reference to my job and career arc over my lifetime. I'll be looking at all sorts of occupations that I have done or could have done. Maybe you've done some of these too!

Tuesday, October 15, 2024

Scare Time!!!! ( #BOTB )

        It's a-coming!  That time of scary stuff and silly stuff and lots of candy.  That is if you can afford it. I have been a non-participant in Halloween ever since I stopped working.  I eat the candy, but I don't answer the door and keep the lights off.  Bah Humbug!  Now how about some Halloween music fun...


Battle of the Bands

        Battle of the Bands is the blogging event started by Far Away Series and now hosted by StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands.   This event happens each month on the 15th and on some there is also a Battle on the 1st of the month.  My blog is one of of with a second Battle excepting over these summer months.   The premise is simple:  Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it.  Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.

  Songs from my Youth

     When I was a kid I was totally into Halloween.  It was one of my favorite times of the year.  As I grew more interested in music, I became more interested in scary music that was good for Halloween.  Here are two songs that I got a kick out of when I was a kid.  Have you heard of either of these before?  Which do you like best?

Frankie Stein and his Ghouls  "The Creep"  (1965)

        This group had a series of albums with the horror theme and I had most of them.  I loved the artwork on the covers and since I was into Beach Music at that time, this music was right up my lane. One funny thing about the series is that the same songs were sometimes repeated with new titles.  Probably most people didn't notice since the music was all pretty similar.  This was one of my favorite tunes from the band...





Jeff Barry   "The Face from Outer Space"   (1960)

       I can remember seeing this song performed on a TV show in about 1960 and it impacted me.  I thought it was just the scary kind of fun that I was into.  Though I cannot recall hearing the song on the radio, the song stuck with me for years.  I found a copy of the song on a 45 disc in around 1965 and had it for a number of years until I gave my 45's to my friend Marvin to use as target practice.  I wish I hadn't have done that, but the song is preserved on YouTube.  Here it is for you to listen to...


 





Time to Vote!

         Don't be a creep.  Vote!  This is all just for fun.  Listen to the songs then tell us which song version you like best? 
  Hopefully you have an opinion of some kind.  You don't have to know about music to have an opinion since it all comes down to your own personal taste.

        Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours. I don't know if anyone else will be doing a Battle this time around, but you can still check out these sites.


Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts:

 StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands

'Curious as a Cathy'

Sound of One Hand Typing

Jingle, Jangle, Jungle 






Results on Monday October 21st

          Hope you have a great week.  See you soon.






22 comments:

  1. The first one was a bit repetitive, but I'll take it over the second one.
    Barely two and a half minutes long. Songs were so short back in the day.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alex, a lot of music is repetitive, but I guess that is partly what makes it music. It's a good thing that a lot of songs were short. I mean, how much can you take of certain things?

      First vote goes to Frankie Stein.

      Lee

      Delete
  2. Poor Jeff Barry probably won't get a single vote. He won't get mine, at least!

    Sixgun

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 6-Gun, but Jeff Barry? Any idea who he is? Okay if that's what you think...

      Another vote for Frankie Stein.

      Lee

      Delete
    2. Ha! Well, this ain't no "Leader of the Pack"! This one is weirder than bat guano, IMO. But, I've already been proven wrong with a couple of votes. I remain perpetually surprised by musical tastes, and it all comes out in these battles.

      Six

      Delete
  3. These were both fun! My vote goes for Frankie Stein and The Creep - that scream made me spill my coffee ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Diedre, yeah! Let's party! I loved the sound effects when I was a kid.

      Frankie Stein.

      Lee

      Delete
  4. R. Lee Boid ~

    I don't believe I'd ever heard either of these recordings before. And I definitely preferred 'THE CREEP' because I've always been a fan of the surf guitar sound. Plus, I liked that little cork bottle "pop" sound at the end. Let the good times pour!

    ~ D-FensDogG

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. STMcC, I figured you'd like that surf sound. These are both rather obscure records, but I still enjoyed listening to them.

      Frankie Stein.

      Lee

      Delete
  5. VOTE = JEFF BARRY

    So fun! Love the inflections and the 'hip' vocabulary! ~Ed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ed, to the rescue! Glad you were hip to the jive...

      At last, a vote for Jeff Barry

      Lee

      Delete
  6. I'm going with Frankie Stein and the Ghouls, simply loved the instrumental arrangement. It made me wanna dance more!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cathy, I guess that music was intended for people to dance to it. Stein's music has that classic sixties sound.

      Frankie Stein.

      Lee

      Delete
  7. I have never heard if either of these and I like them both but Jeff Barry is just so odd and dumb that he gets my vote. It must be the nerd in me as he reminds me a bit of the B52s

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Birgit, I can hear that style you are talking about. Novelty songs were so popular back in that era.

      Jeff Barry

      Lee

      Delete
  8. I liked "The Creep" because, as you know, I love instrumental music. I liked "The Face From Outer Space" because it was hilarious. Give this to Jeff Barry.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Replies
    1. Mary, a lot of others have voted the same way.

      Frankie Stein.

      Lee

      Delete
  10. Frankie and the Ghouls for me! I liked the surf guitar. Jeff Barry was fairly annoying. ☺

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Debbie D, lots of surf guitar sounds on all the Frankie Stein albums.

      Another vote for Frankie Stein.

      Lee

      Delete
  11. Results are now posted for this Battle!

    https://tossingitout.blogspot.com/2024/10/down-to-earth-results-botb-results.html

    ReplyDelete

Go ahead and say something. Don't be afraid to speak your mind.
I normally try to respond to all comments in the comment section so please remember to check the "Email follow-up comments" box if you want to participate in the comment conversation.

For Battle of the Bands voting the "Anonymous" commenting option has been made available though this version is the least preferred. If voting using "anonymous" please include in your comment your name (first only is okay) and city you are voting from and the reason you chose the artist you did.

If you know me and want to comment but don't want to do it here, then you can send me an email @ jacksonlee51 at aol dot com.

Lee