Forty years ago this week, Ray Parker's awesome song Ghostbusters hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 music chart, fueled by the blockbuster movie of the same name.
The song itself is dated stylistically to the 1980s. It's fun, updated, and catchy as hell. Just like the movie, the song is firmly lodged in Eighties pop culture.
Everyone knew "who ya gonna call?' It was never written to win Grammys or Oscars, though it won the former and was nominated for the second. It was a fun song for a fun movie.
The song Ghostbusters is able to transcend generations of fans decades later
Not many songs like this one are able to reach new audiences. It's not a power ballad or a masterfully written song with an eye toward awards. Most songs of this ilk are relegated to the kitschy memories of their decade as part of pop culture. They are songs parents play for their kids to show how much fun the Eighties were while the kids roll their eyes and put their headphones back on.
In 2016, however, the movie franchise was dusted off and Hollywood did a remake of the original. It featured a female cast of Ghostbusters this time and starred Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig. This version didn't do well at the box office, and it looked like the franchise was dead in the water.
In 2021, it was revamped again, and aimed at younger audiences. While Paul Rudd and Carrie Coon played leads, the film also featured young stars Finn Wolfhard from Stranger Things fame, and Mckenna Grace, who was impressive in Young Sheldon and A Handmaid's Tale.
Focusing on these younger stars more, it appealed to a younger demographic and has enjoyed success in not just one move, but also in a second, released in 2024. Of course, with the movie franchise introducing a whole new generation (or two) to the premise and some beloved characters, it also brings the song into the current era of pulp culture.
This classic, bouncy tune was one of the most iconic movies of the Eighties to come from a movie. After topping the charts in August 1984, Ghostbusters re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 37 years later in 2021, then again a year later, in 2022. Of course, music is digested differently now than it was in 1984, via downloads and streaming, so new audiences didn't have any issues finding the song to listen to.
It is quite the feat to have a song song chart upon release, let alone four decades later, and now Ghostbusters is part of the pop culture across a multitude of generations and that is a pretty cool thing.