October 22, 2021

Ghostly Tracks & the Origins Behind Them

It’s spooky season and hosts Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot have a new batch of songs about ghosts to share. They’re joined by Sam Weller, author of many books on Ray Bradbury and the gothic short story collection Dark Black, to discuss spooky music.

Download Subscribe via iTunes

Join our Facebook Group

Become a member on Patreon

Sign up for our newsletter

Make a donation via PayPal

Record a Voice Memo

Songs About Ghosts

Jim and Greg share some of their favorite ghost songs in honor of Halloween! Plus, they talk with author and professor Sam Weller about what makes a good ghost tune.

Listen to the full songs on our 2021 Halloween playlist.

Jim

Roky Erickson, "If You Have Ghosts (Then You Have Everything)"
Psychedelic Furs, "The Ghost in You"
Johnny Cash, "Ghost Riders in the Sky"
Robyn Hitchcock, "My Wife and My Dead Wife"
Mekons, "Ghosts of American Astronauts"
The Goldstars, "Stroll in Hell"

Greg

Joy Division, "Dead Souls"
Suicide, “Ghost Rider”
Caroline Herring, "Long Black Veil"
Raveonettes, “Apparitions”
Ladytron "Ghosts"
Black Sabbath “Black Sabbath”

Sam Weller

Kate Bush, "Wuthering Heights"
Scott Sorry, "Black Dog Dancers"

Featured Songs

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, "Long Black Veil," Kicking Against The Pricks, Mute, 1986
Roky Erickson and the Aliens, "If You Have Ghosts," The Evil One, 415, 1981
Joy Division, "Dead Souls," Still, Factory, 1981
Psychedelic Furs, "The Ghost In You," Mirror Moves, Columbia, 1984
Suicide, "Ghost Rider," Suicide, Red Star, 1977
Johnny Cash, "(Ghost) Riders In The Sky," Silver, Columbia, 1979
Caroline Herring, "Long Black Veil," Golden Apples of the Sun, Signature Sounds, 2009
Daniel Johnston, "Casper the Friendly Ghost," Yip/Jump Music, (Self-Released), 1983
Pat Benetar, "Wuthering Heights," Crimes of Passion, Chrysalis, 1980
Kate Bush, "Wuthering Heights," The Kick Inside, Harvest, 1978
Scott Sorry, "Black Dog Dancers," (Single), Generation X-Ray, 2021
Elton John, "Rocket Man (I Think It's Going to Be a Long Long Time)," Honky Château, Uni, 1972
Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians, "My Wife and My Dead Wife," Gotta Let This Hen Out!, Midnight Music, 1985
The Raveonettes, "Apparitions," Raven In the Grave, The Raveonettes, 2011
Mekons, "Ghosts of American Astronauts," So Good It Hurts, Twin/Tone, 1988
Ladytron, "Ghosts," Velocifero, Nettwerk Productions, 2008
The Goldstars, "Stroll In Hell," Stroll In Hell (Single), The Goldstars, 2021
Black Sabbath, "Black Sabbath," Black Sabbath, Vertigo, 1970
The Velvet Underground and Nico, "Sunday Morning," The Velvet Underground and Nico, Verve, 1967

Dear Listeners,

For more than 15 years, Sound Opinions was a production of WBEZ, Chicago's public radio station. Now that the show is independent, we're inviting you to join the band and lend a hand! We need your support more than ever because now we have to do all the behind-the-scenes work that WBEZ handled before (like buying insurance and paying for podcast hosting, ugh). Plus, we have some exciting ideas we'd like to try now that there's no one to tell us no!

Apple Podcasts / Overcast / Spotify / tunein / Stitcher / RSS

Join our Facebook Group Become a member on Patreon Sign up for our newsletter Make a donation via PayPal Record a Voice Memo