Category Archives: SONGS

Stories and Reviews

“The Chicken Dance” AKA “The Bird Dance” by The Emeralds – A Canadian Polka Band from The 80s as Featured in The New Weird Al Yankovic Biopic on Roku

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The song had been done by other polka groups before. I remember hearing it on the radio but with lyrics and in German by some other group. The Emeralds did an instrumental version which became an international hit. Soon it acquired a goofy dance routine to go with it. You may have seen it at performed a wedding reception.

Shortly after I first heard the song on the radio, TV commercials started to air for a hits compilation titled Bird Dance by The Emeralds (Show and Dance Band), a group from Canada. It came out on K-Tel Records which had some distribution in the USA, especially in the Midwest.

There are two versions of the song. This one was recorded and released first, but also appears listed as “version 2” on the compilation. Originally called “Bird Dance” people quickly nick named it “Chicken Dance” and that became the alternate song title.

This exact recording is heard in the Weird: The Al Yankovic Story while the actors do the dance. You can watch it for free on the Roku Channel. If you have not you should. it’s a great time. The song also appears on the forthcoming CD and Vinyl soundtrack to be released in January 2023. I’ve heard the new mix and I prefer the original. The new mix is too tinny.

I believe my Grandma found her copy on a merch table at the Yack Arena in Wyandotte, Michigan. Dozens of ethnic festivals were held there every year in the 1980s. Polka music was popular among the elderly population that had immigrated from Central and Eastern Europe decades before.

But because I was a weird kid, the story does not end there. You see, ever since I was about 9 years old I knew that I wanted to own a radio station some day. I was also a bit of a nerd that liked to tinker with things.

One Christmas I received an electronic projects kit from Radio Shack that looked like this.

You would follow the wiring instructions in the manual to create a host of different circuits. It was fun to put them together. One of the projects was a low-power AM radio transmitter.

I put that circuit together but I wired in my cassette recorder and connected the TV antenna located on out roof. The tape in the cassette recorder was of course Bird Dance by The Emeralds (Show and Dance Band). I went out to the back yard to find my grandmother. I tuned her radio into the broadcast and it worked like a charm. Good times. :)

courtesy of discogs

“Día de los Muertos” by Rockalingua – Video for Students – Learn About The Mexican Tradition – Brush Up on Basic Spanish Too!

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Let’s learn about interesting Mexican traditions while practicing some simple Spanish. The vocals are a little “pitchy” but they work well enough to help us learn. Play it twice and I promise you will have learned or relearned some vocabulary. By the way, Rockalingua has produced many more videos like this one that combine music with learning.

Learn more about the traditions associated with Día de los Muertos with this extensive National Geographic article.

video screen capture

“This Is Halloween” by Danny Elfman from Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas Motion Picture Soundtrack

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Today is Halloween and this might be the most appropriate song. Released in 1993, it became an instant classic. It’s not quite as ubiquitous as Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” or Bobby Picket’s “Monster Mash” but it fit’s the occasion like a spooky glove.

“Danny Elfman, who has scored many of Tim Burton’s imaginative films (Edward Scissorhands, his two Batman films, etc.), is a perfect musical partner for the somewhat macabre director, and never more so than here, where, Elfman gets to play the main character. The Nightmare Before Christmas is an animated movie musical about the abduction of Christmas by the denizens of Halloween land, and Elfman sings the part of Jack, the Pumpkin King.” (allmusic, edited)

Danny Elfman is the man. He’s having a moment right now having recently performed a career spanning concert.

“The Witch Queen of New Orleans” by Redbone – About A REAL Voodoo Priestess And It’s A Funky Song for Halloween

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Here’s an unofficial video for created by a pop music chart show from Bremen, West Germany. The song is a funky jam and I think better than their other well-known single “Come And Get Your Love”.

Redbone released a recording of the song in 1971 as a single and on an the LP Message from a Drum. Pat and Lolly Vegas, brothers and band-mates wrote the song together. Their recording combines elements of Southern Swamp-Rock, Native Folk-Rock and Funk.

Redbone was actually the first All Native American band to reach number one on a singles chart in any country. It was with this song. “Witch Queen” reached number one in Belgium. It hit number two on the UK Singles chart. It got to 15 in Canada but only 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the USA.

courtesy of discogs

Because of the subject matter, the song has become a favorite for Halloween celebrations in the US, UK and Canada.

The song is about a 19th century Voodoo practitioner named Marie Laveau. You probably didn’t read about her in your high-school history book. She was a free woman of color, Creole, born and died in New Orleans, 1801-1881.

1920 portrait formerly identified as Marie Laveau (1794–1881) by Frank Schneider, based on an 1835 painting (now lost?) by George Catlin.

Her life story is long and interesting. There is far to much to cover here in this blog. The short version is that she was a famous Herbalist, Voodoo Priestess, Beautician and Midwife. Despite being a person of color, she herself owned slaves. For a while she was the elected leader of The New Orleans Voodoo Organization. This is why they gave her the nickname “Witch Queen”.

Her unique life experience has inspired many writers and musicians to referenced her in their work. You can still visit her grave today. Notice the marker refers to her VooDoo organization as a cult. Her former home and grave-site are both thought to be haunted by her dead soul.

courtesy of atlasobscura

“I Want Candy” by Bow Wow Wow, The Strangeloves, Kidz Bop & Many Others – Now A Halloween Classic – Add It to Your Playlist

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“This song certainly did not begin it’s life intended for Halloween. The lyrics even mention summertime. Nevertheless, the obvious connection between Halloween and candy has made the song slowly find its way into Halloween mixes. It is now considered a standard include by DJs worldwide. We probably need more songs about candy.

Most of our readers will remember the New Wave version that came out in 1982. The band was called Bow Wow Wow. The single hit No 9 in the UK and 22 in the USA.

12 inch single cover courtesy of discogs

The song was originally written from the male perspective. The narrator is talking about a woman named Candy. In the Bow Wow Wow version, Candy is now a male but it feels like it’s secretly woman to woman in this listener’s mind. The subtle lesbian-code did not register with the mainstream audience at the time.

But of course the story does not end there. The song was first made famous in 1965 by The Strangeloves. The band used a type of syncopation called The Bo Diddly Beat on the track. Some footage has unearthed of the band performing on TV. It is thought to be from a show called Shindig. Tony Basil might be one of the dancers in this video, though that has not been verified. See if you can spot her.

Since then a number of other artists have performed or recorded this song. A British group called Candy Girls charted with the song in 1996. Aaron Carter performed the vocal modulation for auto-tune back in 2000. I won’t ask you to listen to Charlie XCX murder the tune live but you can find that on YouTube.

You know you’ve made it as an artist if your song gets covered by The Kidz Bop franchise. Looks like The Strangeloves and Bow Wow Wow have really hit the big time now. The Kidz Bop version appears on the 2012 release Halloween Hits.

Don’t forget to tune in to FunHouse Radio for more Halloween Fun!

“The Witch” by Henner Hoir & The Rattles Original 1970 English Version. Check Out The German Version Too. Skip The Re-Recorded Misfire.

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The Rattles were a rock band from Hamburg Germany. They are best known for the hit single “The Witch” sung in English and released in 1970 at the height of psychedelia.

Here we have a recovered copy of the original music film, probably from a VHS tape. Someone attempted to re-include the music but it falls out of sync eventually. The colors are muted as well and that makes it extra creepy. What’s not to love about this?

The single reached number 4 in Germany, 8 in the UK and 79 in the US. It was included on the album also called The Witch in 1971. We love the cover-art

courtesy of discogs

Henner Hoir was a band member at the time. He eventually left The Rattles to go solo and perform in other bands. The song was also released under his name and was included on several Henner Hoir greatest hits compilations. For this reason it is frequently credited to him alone rather than the band. It’s kind of odd because he is not even the vocalist. The lead vocals on this track are by Edna Bejarano. She also sang the German version.

Herr Hoir went on to record the song again with an entirely different band called The Rivets. In this writers opinion, it’s a disappointing remake. It’s lacks the energy and pensive character of the original.

The song faded into obscurity in North America but reemerged in recent years as DJS and music fans dig for deeper cuts for their Halloween season playlists. FunHouse Radio is no exception. The remastered English version is in rotation for the season.

“Black Magic Woman” by Santana – Live in Concert 1970

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The song “Black Magic Woman” was made famous by Carlos Santana. It first appeared as a single and then on Santana’s 1970 album Abraxas. Any number of greatest hits compilations feature the song. This performance was occurred while the song was in the charts. The man and the band are in top form and the result is sublime.

The song was first recorded in 1968 by Fleetwood Mac. It was written by Peter Green, a founding member of the group.

When Carlos Santana decided to do the song, he created a medley arrangement that incorporated Gábor Szabó‘s 1966 instrumental “Gypsy Queen”, a mix of jazz, Hungarian folk and Latin rhythms. My mother is half Hungarian. She LOVES to tell people these details.

7 inch single sleeve, courtesy of discogs

“Boris, The Spider” by The Who – Now A Halloween Standard

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This classic track by The Who was not intended specifically for Halloween, but in the recent decades, it has been added to the ever growing Halloween music repertoire.

The song may be inaccurate in assuming that the spider is male. Most of the spiders that people encounter are female. I don’t think that The Who intended any sexism, but maybe it should be “Natasha, The Spider”.

It was first released on the debut album The Who in 1966. It also appeared on an EP called A Quick One