20 Halloween songs that are better than 'The Monster Mash'

Yes, it's a graveyard smash, and yes, it caught on in a flash. But, as the blog pointed earlier today, it's still one of the most annoying human artifacts ever produced. Here are 20 songs that, unlike "The Monster Mash," won't suck the blood out of your Halloween party.

1. "Black Magic Woman" by Santana*
2. "Bad Moon Rising" by Creedence Clearwater Revival
3. "I Put a Spell on You" by Screamin' Jay Hawkins (Creedence also has a good cover)
4. "Sympathy for the Devil" by the Rolling Stones
5. "Gallows Pole" by Led Zeppelin
6. "Creep" by Radiohead
7. "Zombie" by the Cranberries
8. "Born as Ghosts" by Rage Against the Machine
9. "Highway to Hell" by AC/DC
10. "Running with the Devil" by Van Halen
11. "Devil went down to Georgia" by The Charlie Daniels Band
12. "Season of the Witch" by Donovan
13. "Werewolves of London" by Warren Zevon
14. "Born Under a Bad Sign" by Albert King
15. "Don't Fear the Reaper" by Blue Öyster Cult
16. "Friend of the Devil" by the Grateful Dead
17. "Psycho Killer" by The Talking Heads
18. "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder
19. "Devil's Haircut" by Beck
20. "Voodoo Child" by Jimi Hendrix

Nominate your own suggestions in the comments section.

*Update: An astute reader pointed out that "Black Magic Woman" was written by Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac, who first recorded it in 1968, two years before Santana released it.

See also:

Google Halloween versus Bing Halloween.  Who wins?

Google celebrates Halloween with Trick or Treat doodle

Happy Halloween! Bing celebrates Halloween with Vampire Bat

Eoin O'Carroll blogs for the Monitor's Environment section. And sorry, but he doesn't much care for "Thriller." Follow him on Twitter.