Spooky Soundtracks! – FRIDAY THE 13th PART VI: JASON LIVES: “He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask)” (1986)

The “Friday the 13th” folks were a little late in finding a tie-in rock star for their franchise. The good news is that they snagged the perfect one.

For the kids who didn’t have MTV, NBC’s “Friday Night Videos” was possibly your singular lifeline to music. Sure, TBS’s “Night Tracks” was far superior, and USA Network’s one-two punch of “Night Flight” and “Radio 1990” was working on a whole other level, but “Friday Night Videos” gave you a close enough peek at the latest Billboard sounds that you wouldn’t be made fun of at school on Monday morning.

“Friday Night Videos” could be counted on for one thing–the most superficial choices when it came to their programming. That’s not a bad thing–you’d be nuts to show some ‘bubbling under’ college hit in favor of something like Janet Jackson or John Cougary Mellonballs–but you can imagine my surprise when Alice Cooper popped up one night with the theme to the latest Jason Voorhees adventure, FRIDAY THE 13th PART VI: JASON LIVES. 

Cooper’s career was kind of in the shitter by the mid-80s after a hard left turn into new wave and an even harder turn into drugs and alcohol. Though it was only a moderate success, the slick synth metal and hummable chorus of “He’s Back” was Cooper’s first step back up the rock ladder. By the end of the 80s he was once again in the top ten, in heavy rotation on MTV for the first time, and had even appeared in John Carpenter’s PRINCE OF DARKNESS (1987).

In retrospect, the sixth FRIDAY THE 13th is generally regarded as one of the more entertaining and humorous sequels. Cooper, having gained the moniker of The Godfather of Shock Rock from his outrageous, horror-drenched stage shows featuring guillotines, electric chairs, and gallons of fake blood, ended up being the perfect match for a goofy mid-80s entry of our favorite campy film series. 

Though that fateful night on “Friday Night Videos” was the only time I ever saw “He’s Back” broadcast, the magic of YouTube has made sure it’s no longer a rarity. Indulge yourself now!

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