House of Terror! - LP

I generally don't update this blog anymore, but sometimes I find something so interesting I can't resist!

I had never seen this LP before, called House of Terror!, until I saw it for sale on eBay recently. It's not from Peter Pan Records, yet it reuses the Frankenstein/Dracula/Werewolf story drawn by Neal Adams that was originally done for them! It also comes with a sampling of horror-centric humor songs, making for one tonally weird-ass album!

Did anyone have this? The insides (pictured below) look similar to the Peter Pan release, and as you can see the cover is a mish-(monster)mash of Adams art from the comic!

Back Issue! #36 - "Marvel Monster Records"

I have been fortunate enough to write some articles on the Power Records for TwoMorrows' fine publication Back Issue! In BI #36, an all-monsters issue, I discussed Marvel's "monster" line of records, which you can read here via PDF.

If you're interested in purchasing this or any other issue of BI (and you should be), head over to the TwoMorrows site where every issue of the magazine is available in print and digital form!

The Werewolf - 1975

The last of the three solo monster 45s, pulled from the A Story About Dracula, Frankenstein, and The Werewolf LP.

This one's a tad more atmospheric than the first two, and the dripping blood is a surprising detail for what's supposed to be a children's record.

Too bad Power Records (presumably) didn't want to pay Universal for the specific rights to their versions of the classic monsters; I would've loved to have seen Power Records' versions of The Invisible Man, The Mummy, and The Creature From the Black Lagoon.

Frankenstein - 1975

Again, Power Records makes an unusual choice of sleeve art for their Frankenstein 45", pulled from the A Story About Dracula, Frankenstein, and The Werewolf LP.

That Neal Adams back cover is downright spooky, like its supposed to be!

Dracula - 1975

One of the odder re-releases in the Power Records catalog, this Dracula 45" is just the Dracula-related segment from the A Story About Dracula, Frankenstein, and The Werewolf LP.

The re-purposing is not the odd thing, of course, its that they used such weak art for the front of the sleeve, when they had all kinds of nifty Neal Adams Dracula stuff already on hand (or even hiring him to do something new).

But, as we'll see, this wasn't the only time Power Records did this.

A Story of Dracula, The Wolfman, and Frankenstein LP - 1975

Track:

A Story of Dracula, The Wolfman, and Frankenstein

One of the strangest and, not coincidentally, coolest, of all the Power Records!

The ungainly named A Story of Dracula, The Wolfman, and Frankenstein is a straightforward horror story, drawn with real flair by Neal Adams, merging all three characters into one seventeen-page story.

Like the Marvel Monsters series, this story's horror content is only barely scaled back for the benefit of a young audience. I especially enjoy the picture on the front sleeve, of Mom sitting down with little Timmy and little Susie, to enjoy a story about a blood-sucking vampire, a killer werewolf, and a zombie-man assembled from the parts of corpses. Perfect Sunday afternoon family fun!

This was never released in Power Records' more traditional book and 45" record format, and as far as I know it was never repurposed anywhere.

Dracula - Terror In The Snow!

Track:
Terror in the Snow!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Produced by Herb Davidson and Charlotte Saunders. Written by Marv Wolfman, art Gene Colan and Tom Palmer,cover by Gil Kane and Palmer. Reprinted from Tomb of Dracula #19.

One of my favorites; a particularly good issue to adapt with its very dramatic, stand-alone setting.

Next: we show DC some love!