FunHouse Radio

Novelty Records, Parodies, Weird Covers, Outsider Music, Oddities, Mashups, Comedy, Nonsense & Cringe.

“Spooky” by Classics IV – Halloween Classic – COVERED by Dusty Springfield, Martha Reeves, Daniel Ash and More!

Posted on 2023-10-20 by Wacky Alex

“Spooky” was originally an instrumental tune by saxophonist Mike Sharpe. It charted as an instrumental in 1967 hitting No. 57 in the US. One year later vocals were added by Dennis Yost and the song was re-released as by Classics IV. That’s the version featured above. This version went on to hit No. 3 in the USA and 46 in the UK.

Shortly after, Dusty Springfield released her version, with genders flipped. This version is my favorite but does not lend itself to the Halloween season quite as well.

Eleven years later, a band called The Atlanta Rhythm Section recorded a nice 70s pop-rock version. Man the bass playing on this kicks ass.

Martha Reeves went on to recreate the song in the first person. This time it’s a Spooky Old Lady and she specifically mentions Halloween. It appeared on her 1986 album In the Midnight Hour.

Daniel Ash, best known for he work with goth-rockers Bauhaus and the new wave Love And Rockets released his take in 2006.

It got the Latin Jazz treatment earlier this year by the Bobby Sanabria Multiverse Big Band on the 2023 CD, Vox Humana featuring Janis Siegel on vocals.

And if you are curious about how the original 1966 instrumental sounded, here it is!

That’s a lot of versions. There are probably dozens of others. If you know of one that we missed, let us know in the comments!

Snopp Dogg Bit Somebody Hard – The No Shizzle Truth Behind Snoop-Speak

Posted on 2023-06-12 by Wacky Alex

The first time I heard Snoop Dogg say “Fo Shizzle My Nizzle”, I knew he didn’t come up with that himself. My theory is that he heard a classic disco song playing on the radio called “Double Dutch Bus” by Frankie Smith. He’re a clip from YouTube. Decide for yourself.

I guess it’s not a big secret because discogs reports, “His classic “Double Dutch Bus” popularized his nonsensical form of slang that influenced later rappers like Snoop Dogg and E-40.”

In the HipHop world the term “bite” means to borrow an phrase or an idea from another artists, usually a rapper. That’s why I used it as click-bait.

Frankie Smith released a very similar sounding song as a single back in 1973. It was called “Double Dutch” without the “Bus”. From what I can tell the song failed to chart at the time. (citation needed)

In 1980, He re-cut the vocals and modified the lyrics, releasing it as a 12 inch single, with his original 1973 track on the flip-side. The clubs started to play the record and it ended up at Number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Number 1 on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart.

So the question remains, Did Smith come up with this kind of jibberish/code speak or did he learn it from someone? I think he heard the kids in his neighborhood doing it back in the early seventies. So we may never know who really invented “Snoop-Speak”.

Michael Jackson’s Thriller Video Was Re-imagined in India – Then Japan Remade The Remake – Then A Remix – An Uncanny Cascade of Undead Events

Posted on 2022-09-30 by Wacky Alex

First there was the Thriller Video by Michael Jackson. You know it. You love it. It was a big hit on MTV when it first came out in 1984.

The dance routine in the original video is sublime and the most famous part of the video. Countless recreations have occurred in professional stage shows, school performances, Rocky Horror Picture Show local cast pre-shows, and so on.

A movie director in India decided to make a knock-off tribute called “Goli Maar” the next year. It was part of a movie called Donga

There are a number of crude uploads to YouTube, None of them are in great shape. The audio quality is always crap. The song does not appear to be available for digital download on Amazon. I wish the original recording would resurface so we can get a proper remaster. I consider it a cult-classic.

This versions is not too bad but they over saturated the colors.

Then a dance group in Japan remade the video (but not the song) in 2009.

Wait there’s more! Somebody did a remix/mashup in 2015. Somehow the video quality is best in this version.

Have a happy Halloween and do share this little story with your favorite wacky Halloween lover.

“Sing A Simple Song” by Sly & The Family Stone

Posted on 2022-07-12 by Wacky Alex

Today is National Simplicity Day. This track fits perfectly. Released in 1968, it was actually a b-side for the number one hit single “Everyday People”. The b-side surely helped the a-side to top the charts. It’s considered a hit in it’s own right by fans.

Since it’s release has been covered by a number of acts, including Dusty Springfield, Diana Ross & the Supremes, The Temptations, The Jackson 5, The Commodores, Miles Davis, The Meters, Booker T. & the M.G.’s, Prince, and many others.

It has also been sampled by numerous artists, including 2Pac, Jodeci, Wu-Tang Clan, Public Enemy, De La Soul, Digital Underground, Cypress Hill, Gorillaz, Arrested Development, Backstreet Boys, Spice Girls, and Alanis Morissette.

“Kiss” by Tom Jones & Art Of Noise (Prince cover) – The 14th Most Danceable Song Of All Time!

Posted on 2022-06-22 by Wacky Alex

Today is National Kissing Day. Can you think of a more appropriate song for the occasion?

We love covers here. Who better to cover than Prince? This track was released back in 1988 only two years after the original. It reached high positions in the global pop charts and as such remains Art of Noise‘s biggest hit. They also received an MTV Music Video Award.

After recording a number of country-pop style tracks, Welsh singer Tom Jones made a left-field decision to cover “Kiss”. It ended up reviving his career.

WalesOnline did a study using Spotify data back in 2016. Jone’s “Kiss” was rated the 14th most dance-able song of all time. The caveat is that about 8% of all pop music does not appear on Spotify. That beat out Daft Punk who came in at 18 with “Around The World”.

Do you think this track is really that danceable? Let us know in the comments.

-Wacky Alex

“Picnic In The Summertime” by Deee-Lite

Posted on 2022-06-01 by Wacky Alex

June 1st is considered the first day of meteorological summer in North America. I think we could all use a picnic with a chill vibe right now. With DJ Towa switched out for ANI, we have a sequenced track in the style of 1970s classic soul.

The music and the video are as innocent as it gets. Let’s have a peaceful summer this year.

Picnic In The Summertime was released as a single and I have the CD version. If you wan’t a sealed copy on vinyl, it’s $60 and up on ebay.

What is your favorite unique thing to bring to a picnic? Let us know in the comments.

-Wacky Alex

“Just The Two Of Us” by Mike Myers as Dr Evil

Posted on 2022-05-25 by Wacky Alex

Happy Birthday to Mike Myers, one of our favorite funny guys. Myers turns 59 today, assuming they use the same calendar up in Canada. (just kidding)

The second Austin Powers movie is considered by most to be the best of the three that have been released so far. The Spy Who Shagged Me arrived in 1999.

Look at how young Seth Green was in the video clip. Who knew he would go on to be such a bastard. (Just kidding, Robot Chicken rocks by the way.) Sadly, “Mini-Me” Verne Troyer has since died, RIP.

The movie and the soundtrack album both feature this parody on Will Smith’s take of “Just The Two Of Us”. The album was re-released on vinyl for record store day 2020. We have the original CD version here at the station but the cover art looks better on the LP shown.

The song was first made famous by The Great Bill Withers.

Do you like Mike? Let us know what you think of him in the comments.

-Wacky Alex

“Somebody Farted” by Bobby Jimmy & The Critters (pissing on MC Hammer)

Posted on 2022-05-22 by Wacky Alex

Have you ever walked into someone’s bedroom and became immediately aware that they had been farting all night and they are badly in need of ventilation? That’s happened to me this morning.

Or maybe you got stuck in an elevator full of strangers and someone let a ripe stink bomb rip like chemical warfare. Perhaps you got stuck waiting in a long line and you really could not run away or risk embarrassing the random funky person. Or maybe you were like me and quietly rolled out a stench grenade while handing money to a poor cashier.

If you’ve had any experience with third party flatulence, you will find this track relatable. I remember hearing this on morning-drive radio while heading to high school back in 1990. It’s actually a quazi-parody of MC Hammer’s “Let’s Get It Started”. Compare for yourself!

“Somebody Farted” was released both on a 12″ EP and on a full length album. I happen to own the EP. Here’s a photo. The lead single was actually “Hair or Weave”. In my opinion “Somebody Farted” is a lot funner.

-Wacky Alex