Summary

• Many iconic horror films from the ’60s-’80s featured original theme songs, setting the tone and enhancing the viewing experience.
• Notable musicians like AC/DC, The Ramones, and LL Cool J contributed original songs to classic horror movies, elevating the soundtracks.
• Bands like The Dickies, Dokken, and J. Geils Band created catchy original horror songs that became cult favorites, adding to the films’ appeal.

Some of horror’s most iconic films are accompanied by an original theme song. An art seemingly lost after the ’80s, an original song that plays during an integral scene or over the credits of a classic movie just makes it a little more fun. The songs often reiterate what the audience is seeing on-screen in rock or rap form, but sometimes, are just written as part of the larger horror soundtrack, only referencing the film in thematic fashion. In the past, the biggest talents in the music industry have been brought into theme horror’s greatest characters and stories.

From movies inspired by Stephen King’s books to the beloved Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, original theme songs have had their place in horror since the early ’60s. They started in less-popular films like Werewolf in a Girls’ Dormitory (1961) and Two Thousand Maniacs! (1964), with small musical acts often providing the songs. This evolved to world-renowned artists like AC/DC, Alice Cooper, and The Ramones writing original tunes for the biggest horror releases of the 1980s. Occasionally, a newer horror film will include an original song as a throwback, but rarely do they feel legitimate.

10 Deepest Bluest (Shark’s Fin) – LL Cool J

Deep Blue Sea (1999)

1999’s creature feature about super-smart killer sharks, Deep Blue Sea, sported mostly a hip-hop and R&B soundtrack by popular artists from the late ’90s. The lone single and most memorable song from the film was “Deepest Bluest (Shark’s Fin)” by famed rapper LL Cool J, who also played one of the main (and only surviving) characters in the movie. Not only did the song have a catchy chorus hook, but it essentially described the entire plot of the film from the perspective of the shark, including some of LL Cool J’s character’s spoken lines.

The theme has a bit of a deep cut in it that only the biggest fans of LL Cool J are likely to notice, as the catchy chorus, “Deepest, bluest, my hat is like a shark’s fin,” is actually a callback to one of LL Cool J’s popular songs from his second studio album, 1987’s Bigger and Deffer. The song referenced is “I’m Bad,” which was #84 on Billboard’s Hot 100 in 1987, as the lyrics say, “MCs can’t win, I make ’em rust like tin. They call me Jaws, my hat is like a shark’s fin.”

9 Frig Off! – Blitz//Berlin (Featuring Danny Deane)

PG: Psycho Goreman (2020)

Steven Kostanski’s PG: Psycho Goreman is essentially a love letter to all things horror and sci-fi from the ’90s, and that includes having a rocking soundtrack and original music written for the film. Canadian composing trio Blitz//Berlin did the score for the film, and along with lyrics from Danny Deane, created “Frig Off!” It’s a funny tune written for the film that the characters play together as a three-piece band, with the titular Psycho Goreman hammering away on the drum set.

Blitz//Berlin’s involvement is key to the song’s appeal, as the band has become well-known for their work in the film and TV industry, particularly in the years since PG: Psycho Goreman‘s release. The band has scored several movie and TV show trailers, including Top Gun: Maverick, House of the Dragon, Death on the Nile, and Bird Box. Aside from their fantastic synth-rock PG: Psycho Goreman music, one of their most underrated works comes from the score of Luke Scott’s six-minute Blade Runner 2049 prequel short, Blade Runner 2036: Nexus Dawn.

8 Killer Klowns – The Dickies

Killer Klowns from Outer Space (1988)

In one of the catchiest original horror songs of the 1980s, California punk rock band The Dickies wrote “Killer Klowns” for the 1988 film, Killer Klowns from Outer Space. The song intros the movie, preparing the audience for the wacky, B-horror shenanigans that await in the silly circus-themed alien invasion film. The song fuses fast-paced guitar soloing and punk and rockabilly styles with generic, recognizable circus music, setting the tone for the cheesy (yet somehow still horrific) extraterrestrial killer clowns.

Killer Klowns from Outer Space was recently made into a video game, and as Bloody Disgusting reported, there was some controversy about whether The Dickies’ iconic song would be used in the game. After some apparent back-and-forth, “Killer Klowns” will play during the start menu and the game’s credits, highlighting its importance to the story.

7 Who Made Who – AC/DC

Maximum Overdrive (1986)

While Stephen King’s lone directing credit, Maximum Overdrive, isn’t necessarily seen as a great film, it is a fun one, and it has an amazing soundtrack written by the wildly popular Australian rock band, AC/DC. The band wrote both the original song “Who Made Who” and released a soundtrack for the film, which consisted of a mix of originals, instrumentals, remixes, and additions of their hit songs, like “Hell’s Bells” and “You Shook Me All Night Long.” Regardless of Maximum Overdrive‘s failures, “Who Made Who” was a successful album.

The title song reached as high as #33 on the U.S. Billboard Top 200 and #16 on the UK Albums chart. The album went platinum five times, as well. Stephen King has long been recognized as a massive classic rock fan and a supporter of AC/DC, so the band agreeing to do the soundtrack was a dream come true for the horror novelist. AC/DC is even featured on screen in a way; in the movie’s first act, an AC/DC tour van is seen being destroyed in the drawbridge scene.

Along with being a huge classic rock fan, Stephen King played guitar in a rock band called Rock Bottom Remainders from 1992-2005.

6 Power of the Night – Terrence Mann

Critters (1986)

“Power of the Night” was written and performed by actor Terrence Mann for the 1986 film Critters. The powerful ’80s anthem pops up multiple times in the film, performed by fictional rocker Johnny Steele (played by Mann). It’s a one-off song that shows up on television sets and radio broadcasts throughout the movie, setting up the idea that Steele is a massively popular figure, which is why one of the bounty hunters assumes his image when shape-shifting.

Unlike a lot of other original horror songs, “Power of the Night” was made for the movie, not necessarily about the movie. There are no mentions of the fuzzy little aliens in the Critters universe, and it’s more of a parody of the heavy metal hairband style that was popular during that time. While the song is difficult to find on music streaming services, it was included on the CrittersOriginal Motion Picture Soundtrack by David Newman. Its rarity only adds to the song’s appeal.

5 Fright Night – The J. Geils Band

Fright Night (1985)

Tom Holland’s Fright Night is one of the most underrated vampire flicks of all time. Along with its great soundtrack that features Devo, April Wine, and White Sister, it has an absolute bop of an original theme song, simply titled “Fright Night.” The tune was written by Joe Lamont, and The J. Geils Band performed it in the credits for the movie. However, their performance of “Fright Night” kicks off the film’s original soundtrack, highlighting its importance to the movie.

Being written specifically for the film, the lyrics of “Fright Night” are essentially a rundown of what happens in the story. They also describe the character of Jerry Dandridge, the vampire and antagonist of the film, played by Chris Sarandon. Recordings of the song are a bit difficult to find, but the band did release a promotional music video on MTV in 1985. The J. Geils Band broke up shortly after the release of Fright Night, making the song feel all the more special.

4 He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask) – Alice Cooper

Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986)

“He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask)” is a bit different from other original horror songs, as it doesn’t actually play during the movie it was written for. Rock god Alice Cooper wrote the song as a tribute to Jason Voorhees’ return in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives. Cooper included the song on his Constrictor album in 1986, and strangely, it did well in Europe, posting #4 on the charts in Sweden and #61 on the UK Singles charts.

The song uses the typical Friday the 13th sound effects and has lyrics about victims running from a masked killer. Cooper released a video for the song using scenes from Jason Lives, along with original footage showing Jason Voorhees terrorizing teenagers at the movie’s midnight showing. The music video was included in Scream Factory’s recent release of the entire Friday the 13th series on Blu-ray, but before that, it was never released on home video. The song remains an apt and entertaining interpretation of one of horror’s most well-known villains.

3 Dream Warriors – Dokken

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)

Lesser-known Los Angeles-based heavy metal band Dokken has possibly the hardest-hitting original horror song out there. “Dream Warriors” was the main theme for A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, which is arguably the best film in the franchise, even more so than the original. While the lyrics don’t specifically mention Freddy Krueger or the Elm Street movies, they do reference the teens who fight Freddy in the third film. However, the music video uses scenes from the film and original footage of the movie’s protagonist (Patricia Arquette) facing off against Freddy.

Dokken used “Dream Warriors” on their 1987 album Back for the Attack and saw mild success with the song, as it charted at #22 on Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks. Currently, the song has more than 11 million plays on Spotify, the second most of Dokken’s songs. The song has been covered by several other bands and is even used as entrance music for Japanese wrestlers, highlighting its mass appeal.

Dokken is still together, releasing their most recent album in 2023, titled
Heaven Comes Down
.

2 Pet Sematary – The Ramones

Pet Sematary (1989)

The Ramones’ “Pet Sematary” may be the most popular and famous original horror song, and it’s another theme that was written for a Stephen King movie. According to Classic Rock & Culture, Marky Ramone stated that the band met at King’s house for dinner, King handed the band his Pet Sematary novel (which wouldn’t come out for another year), and an hour later, they gave him the lyrics. King has stated that, while that story sounds like a cool legend, it’s totally fabricated. Arguably, this confusion about the song’s origins only adds to its mystique.

“Pet Sematary” plays in the film during the ending credits scene and was also used in Mr. Mercedes, another King project. Since the song’s release, it’s become one of The Ramones’ biggest hits, reaching #4 on Billboard Modern Rock Tracks. They filmed the music video for it in an actual cemetery in New York, adding to the song’s spookiness. It’s The Ramones’ third-highest played song on Spotify at a whopping 85 million plays, under “Blitzkrieg Bop” and “I Wanna Be Sedated.”

1 Cry Little Sister – Gerard McMahon (McMann)

The Lost Boys (1987)

The most memorable song on probably the best complete horror soundtrack of all time, Gerard McMahon’s “Cry Little Sister” sets the tone from the beginning of the film to The Lost Boys’ exciting ending. Interestingly, the song doesn’t reference the movies or vampires in its lyrics because McMahon wrote it without seeing the film first. In fact, he’s gone on record saying that if he had, the song wouldn’t have been made.

Atlantic Records felt the song didn’t have what it took to become a radio hit and offered Joel Schumacher Journey’s Steve Perry or Phil Collins to do the singing, but the filmmaker was dead-set on allowing McMahon to sing his own lyrics. This contributes to the song’s appeal, as the lyrics he wrote were personal, about family and longing to feel connected. That emotion helps the song stand out among other horror offerings. “Cry Little Sister” has been covered by countless artists and is even used in the soundtrack of DmC: Devil May Cry, the video game.

Source: Bloody Disgusting, Classic Rock & Culture