JOHN 5’S HORRORFYING TOP 5

John 5 photo by Gabrielle Geiselman.

Since guitar god John 5 is best known for being a bandmate to both Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie, it should come as no surprise he’s a fan of Halloween. What may shock some is his fondest memories of the holiday have nothing to do with dark haunted houses filled with scary freaks, goblins and ghouls, but instead friendly neighbors with open arms and doors.

“When I went out trick-or-treating, the people were so kind,” John recalls. “They would give us money and we’d get invited inside their big nice houses for doughnuts and rum cider. Imagine; people would never do that today and nobody lets their children go into people’s houses.”

John, who was the other half of Rob Halford’s band Two, performed with Marilyn Manson during the “Holywood: In The Shadow of the Valley of Death” and “The Golden Age of Grotesque” periods. He then joined Rob Zombie’s band in 2005 and has since appeared on “Educated Horses” and “Zombie Live,” which hits stores October 23.

He has three solo CDs “Vertigo,” “Songs for Sanity” and “The Devil Knows My Name,” which soon will have an accompanying instructional DVD, and has a fourth album on the way. His impressive resume also includes live and album contributions to Lynyrd Skynyrd, Meatloaf, Paul Stanley, FeFe Dobson, Lita Ford, David Lee Roth and Static-X.

Today John is currently busy preparing for Zombie’s tour, which kicks off Oct. 18 with Ozzy Osbourne. While a television show - “Hee Haw” - was what actually inspired him to pick up a guitar and learn to play at the age of seven, John enjoys a good horror movie when he isn’t busy in the studio or on stage. He’s big on classics, mostly from the seventies, and loves strong stories with minimal special effects.

John cites “The Exorcist” as his top film to watch in the month of October to get in the mood for Halloween. “It’s one of my favorite movies of all time,” John said. “I first saw it when I was a kid and it scared me beyond whatever I had ever dreamed. Still to this day I watch it.”

William Friedkin’s 1973 film based on William Peter Blatty’s novel tells the story of a young girl named Regan, played by Linda Blair, becoming possessed by a demonic spirit. Regan’s mother (Ellen Burstyn) calls in priests (Max von Sydow and Jason Miller) to perform an exorcism to drive the spirit from Regan before she dies. John said though “The Exorcist” shook him, he never fully grasped the film as a child and he is able to enjoy it even more today. “Every line in that movie makes sense,” John said. “I really love it.”

Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shinning,” which many consider to be his masterpiece, checks in at number two on John’s list. The 1980 film starring Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall, like “The Exorcist,” deals with evil spiritual presences and their influences on individuals.
“It was so incredible to me,” John said. “It just changed my life. I never looked at twins the same way again, except to think that they were hot.”

Tobe Hooper’s 1974 film “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” slashes its way to the number three spot on John’s list. The film inspired by Ed Gein starred Marilyn Burns, Gunnar Hansen and Edwin Neal. Estimated of having a budget of $83,532, “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” gave life to Leatherface and his iconic image of a masked man toting a chainsaw. The film clearly influenced Rob Zombie’s “House of a 1,000 Corpses” and “The Devil’s Rejects,” and left a strong impression on John as well. “It’s a classic example of a great story,” John said, “And that you don’t need a lot of special effects or bombs or guns to make an amazing movie.”

Speaking of Zombie, John gives a nod to his pal with his fourth favorite horror movie – Rob Zombie’s “Halloween.” “People are going to look at me strange, but I think it was better than the original,” John said. “It made more sense, answered questions I had about the first one and I really, really loved it.”

For number five on Mr. Five’s list, John reaches back to his childhood memories and pulls out Stuart Rosenberg’s “The Amityville Horror.” The 1979 classic starring Margot Kidder and Rod Steiger was based on Jay Anson’s best-selling book, which was said to be based on actual paranormal events. “It was just so well done that it left an effect on me,” said John of the film that spawned seven sequels and a remake.

As an honorable mention, John gives a thumbs up to another classic movie based on a book - Richard Donner’s 1976 film “The Omen.” Written by David Seltzer, who also partially penned “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory,” the film and its accompanying novel told the story of Damien, the offspring of Satan, who was destined to become the Antichrist. Five books and five films followed. “It’s brilliant beyond brilliant,” John said.

“All these movies are great stories,” John concluded. “It’s not just about gore or anything like that.”

For more info on John 5, check out his official site, where you can keep up with tour dates, get the latest news and buy music or merchandise.

- CCF, October 2007