<p id=”par-1_41″><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/horror/”>Horror</a> movies <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/quentin-tarantino-hated-rob-zombies-halloween-now-loves.html/”>such as <em>Halloween</em></a><em> </em>are known for their theme songs. Some movies took things a step further by giving us awesome original songs. Here’s a look at the best of them — some we remember and some we sadly don’t.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-5-tubular-bells-from-the-exorcist”>5. ‘Tubular Bells’ from ‘The Exorcist’</h2>
<p id=”par-2_71″>According to <a href=”https://collider.com/the-exorcist-theme-song-tubular-bells/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Collider</a>, “Tubular Bells” by Mike Oldfield wasn’t <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/rosemarys-baby-scarier-the-exorcist.html/?swcfpc=1″>written for <em>The Exorcist</em></a>. Regardless, we wouldn’t be discussing this track if it didn’t appear in William Friedkin’s horror blockbuster. The song starts out a tad tense, like it’s the theme song for a legal show, before getting more and more ominous and working in scare chords. The tune wasn’t written for a scary movie but it was meant for that context.</p>
<p id=”par-3_41″>Later horror themes, such as those for <em>Halloween </em>and <em>Suspiria</em>, took their cues from “Tubular Bells.” Oldfield went on to have a pop career — he even wrote “Family Man” by Hall & Oates — but he never topped “Tubular Bells.”</p>
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<iframe title=”Tubular Bells (Pt. I)” width=”925″ height=”694″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/Bnb-v9fmmCA?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-4-he-s-back-the-man-behind-the-mask-from-friday-the-13th-part-vi-jason-lives”>4. ‘He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask)’ from ‘Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives’</h2>
<p id=”par-4_59″>Alice Cooper is a walking scary movie character. He lives the genre in a way few people do. Cooper had to write a tune for a slasher movie at some point. Lucky for him, he got to pen a theme for <em>Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives</em>, one of the better-received movies in <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/friday-the-13th-was-inspired-by-a-film-whose-director-doesnt-like-it.html/”>the <em>Friday the 13th</em> series</a>.</p>
<p id=”par-5_24″>“He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask)” is a blast of pure hair metal. It’s no “Poison.” It’s still a lot of silly fun. </p>
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<iframe loading=”lazy” title=”He’s Back (The Man Behind The Mask)” width=”925″ height=”694″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/_hKV_n9C3ZI?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-3-cry-little-sister-from-the-lost-boys”>3. ‘Cry Little Sister’ from ‘The Lost Boys’</h2>
<p id=”par-6_61″><em>The Lost Boys</em> mixes operatic 1980s horror with comedy straight out of <em>The Goonies</em>. The film’s operatic side is encapsulated by the soundtrack song “Cry Little Sister,” which mixes Gothic rock, new wave synthesizers straight out of a Genesis hit, and darkly poetic lyrics. The song showed so much potential from singer-songwriter Gerard McMahon but, sadly, he never became a star.</p>
<p id=”par-7_43″>Marilyn Manson brought “Cry Little Sister” back into the public consciousness with his cover in 2018. What a disappointment. While his version of the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” radically reinterpreted the song, his “Cry Little Sister” was painted by numbers.</p>
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<iframe loading=”lazy” title=”Cry Little Sister (Theme from ”Lost Boys”)” width=”925″ height=”694″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/NOiZuw7EToE?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-2-pet-sematary-from-pet-sematary”>2. ‘Pet Sematary’ from ‘Pet Sematary’</h2>
<p id=”par-8_57″>The 1989 film version of Stephen King’s <em>Pet Sematary </em>is nothing to write home about unless the idea of a zombie pussy cat scares you. The best part of the movie is The Ramones’ “Pet Sematary,” which blasts over the closing credits. The track lifts a riff from “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” by the Blue Öyster Cult.</p>
<p id=”par-9_49″>The film captures the tongue-in-cheek nature of many 1980s horror films. Unfortunately, it was tied to a humorless slog of a movie. When<em> Pet Sematary</em> was remade in the 2010s, it was smart to include a cover of The Ramones’ song while leaving much of the original film behind.</p>
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<iframe loading=”lazy” title=”Ramones – Pet Sematary (Official Music Video)” width=”925″ height=”694″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/HJWFsZ_YUc4?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-1-love-song-for-a-vampire-from-bram-stoker-s-dracula”>1. ‘Love Song for a Vampire’ from ‘Bram Stoker’s Dracula’</h2>
<p id=”par-10_47″>People remember<em> Bram Stoker’s Dracula </em>for its gorgeous set design and Gary Oldman’s memorable turn as the Transylvanian count. Arguably, the best thing about it is Annie Lennox’s soundtrack single “Love Song for a Vampire.” It’s eerie, romantic, and beautiful. It’s everything the movie should have been. </p>
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<iframe loading=”lazy” title=”Love Song For A Vampire” width=”925″ height=”694″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/vhG8zC4npsE?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<div class=”related-article related-article–simple”>
<span class=”related-article-flag”>Related</span>
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<p id=”par-11_38″>However, <em>Bram Stoker’s Dracula</em> is a loud, tonally incoherent mess that people only like because the 1990s were nearly a dead zone for scary movies. If only people remembered Lennox’s lovely ballad as much as the film itself.</p>