Now That's What I Call Halloween

As part of their holiday-themed compilation series, the folks at Now! Music roll out Now That's What I Call Halloween, an 18-track set full of occasionally spooky, yet mostly playful tracks ranging from the 1960s through the '90s. Macabre maestro Danny Elfman makes multiple appearances with themes from movies like The Nightmare Before Christmas and Beetlejuice, as well as a track ("Dead Man's Party") from his rock band Oingo Boingo. Other film music like John Carpenter's "Halloween Theme" and Mike Oldfield's iconically creepy "Tubular Bells (Theme from 'The Exorcist')" sit alongside very unscary rock tracks like INXS' "Devil Inside" and Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London" which receive nods here simply for mentioning scary things in their titles. Bobby "Boris" Pickett & the Crypt-Kickers' "Monster Mash" is a shoe-in for any Halloween comp for some reason, but it's Run-D.M.C.'s 1989 remix version of "Ghostbusters" that makes the cut over Ray Parker, Jr.'s far more popular 1984 single. As far as Halloween collections go, this is a bit lightweight, though it has enough fun moments to keep things moving. ~ Timothy Monger