Songoftheday 9/13/13 - If there's something strange in your neighborhood who you gonna call?

Ray Parker Jr. - "Ghostbusters"
from the albums Ghostbusters (Original Soundtrack) and Chartbusters (1984)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 (three weeks)
Weeks in the Top-40: 14

Today's Song of the Day is by pop/R&B singer/guitarist Ray Parker Jr., who started out 1984 with a successful top-20 pop hit in "I Still Can't Get Over Loving You". After that album didn't produce any more hits, Parker was commissioned to write the theme song for the movie Ghostbusters, a comedic sci-fi movie starring Saturday Night Live alumni Bill Murray and Dan Akyroyd as well as Second City TV vets Harold Ramis and Rick Moranis. With a jingle worthy of prime time television, "Ghostbusters" quickly became Parker's biggest hit ever. The Video featured cameos from those in the film as well as friends like Carly Simon and Danny DeVito...

"Ghostbusters" topped the American pop charts in August of 1984 (the fifth movie song to do so so far that year), while also going to #1 on the R&B charts as well, his only #1 hit on either list. He also made the top-10 on the Billboard dance (#6) and even the adult contemporary format (#9). He also topped the singles charts in Canada, France, and Spain, and made the runner-up slot in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.

What happened after is that Huey Lewis sued Parker for plagiarizing his hit "I Want A New Drug" to make the theme song. That legal action was settled out of court, but after Lewis broke a "confidentiality" clause by attacking Parker on Lewis' Behind The Music appearance, Parker ended up suing Huey. Personally I can see a slight similarity, but those power chords happen in pop all the time.

(Click below to see the rest of the post)


In 1989, when the sequel Ghostbusters 2 came out, rappers Run-DMC revamped the theme, but it didn't do as well, only becoming a B-side to a minor single of theirs in the UK...

The fictional character Mickael Turtle from the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia, had a version of the song released in the name, which went to #5 on the charts in France in 2005, I guess capitalizing on the success of ringtone cartoon Crazy Frog...

Even British boyband McFly got into the Ghostbusters game...

...finally, here's Ray having a little fun with jazz-soul veterans the Crusaders...

Up tomorrow: the Guys from Gary are startled with a Glimmer Twin.