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If there's one song that exemplifies Halloween, it's the 1962 hit single, "Monster Mash." Many Ozarks residents may not realize that the co-writer and producer of that song lives in Branson, and spoke to KSMU's Jennifer Moore about the behind-the-scenes making of the famous recording.
Gary Paxton said he and some friends were on the beach and heard an a capella group singing different rock songs of the era. At one point in the song, a singer in the group would pause, mess up his hair, and sing, "My darlin', I love you," and the crowd went wild.Then, taking off the hit "Mashed Potatoes," Paxton said they came up with the idea to call the song "Monster Mash."He said if a group wanted to have sound effects, they had to produce the sounds manually. He talked about blowing bubbles in glasses of water, wrenching a socket wrench, spraying a can of hair spray, and using an electric razor to make the sound effects heard in the song.He ended the interview by singing us a few lines of his hit single, "Monster Mash."Gary Paxton, now 70, lives in Branson with his wife, Vicki.For KSMU News, I'm Jennifer Moore.
