Their line-up has rotated much over the past couple of decades, with husband and wife Lux Interior and Poison Ivy--the lead singer and lead guitarist, respectively--as the only permanent members.
Lux picked up Ivy when he was driving on the highway. Ivy had raised her hand for an auto stop, Lux stopped his car and ...fate brought them together.
They were part of the early CBGB's punk rock movement that had emerged in New York, although they had formed several years earlier in California. The band is credited as a prominent factor in terms of influence on the gothabilly genre.
Their sound was heavily influenced by early rockabilly and proto-rock'n'roll like Link Wray and Hasil Adkins, 1960s surf music acts such as The Ventures, The Surfaris and Dick Dale, 1960s garage rock artists like The Standells, The Gants, The Trashmen, The Green Fuz and The Sonics, as well as the post-glam/early punk scene from which they emerged. They also were influenced to a degree by The Ramones as well as Screamin' Jay Hawkins, who is often credited for having pioneered their style of theatrical horror-blues.
On February 4, 2009, Lux Interior died of a pre-existing heart condition at the age of 62.
Discography:
Albums & EPs:
Gravest Hits
Songs The Lord Taught Us
Psychedelic Jungle
A Date with Elvis
Stay Sick!
Look Mom No Head!
Blues Fix
Flamejob
Big Beat from Badsville
Fiends of Dope Island
Live albums:
Smell of Female
Rockin n Reelin in Auckland New Zealand
Singles:
"Surfin' Bird" / "The Way I Walk" "Human Fly" / "Domino" "Fever" / "Garbageman" "Garbageman" / "TV Set" "Garbageman" / "Drug Train" "Drug Train" "Goo Goo Muck" "The Crusher" "Faster Pussycat" "I Ain't Nuthin' But a Gorehound" "Can Your Pussy Do the Dog?" "What's Inside a Girl?" "Kizmiaz" "Get Off the Road" "Bikini Girls with Machine Guns" "All Women Are Bad" "Creature from the Black Leather Lagoon" "Eyeball in My Martini" "Let's Get Fucked Up" / "How Come You Do Me?" "Ultra Twist!" "Naked Girl Falling Down the Stairs" "Like a Bad Girl Should" "Big Black Witchcraft Rock"
Compilations
...Off the Bone Bad Music for Bad People How to Make a Monster The Secret Life of the Cramps
Zombie Dance
The Cramps Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Here's Ben and Betty
They tap their toes
But they don't get sweaty
They don't give a damn
They're done dead already
At the Zombie Dance
They tap their toes
Yeah, wiggle their ears to get in the groove
yeah
They do 'The Boogaloo'
at the Zombie Hall
They write "BORN TO LOSE"
On Zombie restroom wall
The kinda life they choose
Ain't life at all
At the Zombie Dance
Nobody moves
They tap their toes
Yeah, wiggle their ears to get in the groove
yeah (move!)
Everybody calm down
Nobody blow their cool
Nobody hang around
Zombie dancing school
They do the swim face-down
In the Zombie pool
At the Zombie Dance
Nobody moves
They tap their toes
Yeah, wiggle their ears to get in the groove
yeah
At the Zombie Dance
Nobody moves
yeah
The Cramps's "Zombie Dance" is a satirical and ironic take on the modern society's obsession with popular culture and conformity. The lyrics of the song talk about this dance where people come to forget about their lives, forget about the fact that they are dead already, and just become part of the crowd. The lyrics tell us about two characters, Ben and Betty, who are present at the Zombie Dance. They tap their toes to the beat of the music but don't sweat because, as the lyrics suggest, they are dead already. The people at the Zombie Dance don't care about anything - they don't give a damn because they don't have to worry about any problems. They are part of the crowd and are content with tapping their toes and wiggling their ears to get in the groove.
The lyrics make references to various dances like The Boogaloo, The Swim, and also a reference to graffiti on the Zombie restroom wall saying "BORN TO LOSE". The lyrics suggest that the people at the Zombie Dance have completely given up on their lives and have become soulless. They might appear to be enjoying themselves, but they are dead inside. The song ends with a warning that nobody should blow their cool because zombies can get aggressive, and the dancers might end up in the Zombie pool doing the swim face down. The lyrics are a commentary on how we are becoming more like zombies by following all the trends and popular culture without realizing that we are losing our individuality and creativity.
Line by Line Meaning
At the Zombie Dance
The song starts by describing the location of the event, the Zombie Dance.
Here's Ben and Betty
The lyrics introduce two characters, Ben and Betty.
They tap their toes
Ben and Betty are dancing, but not moving too much.
But they don't get sweaty
Despite the dance, they don't seem to break any sweat.
They don't give a damn
Ben and Betty don't care about anything.
They're done dead already
They're already dead and part of the zombie world.
Nobody moves
At the Zombie Dance, there's no real movement happening.
Yeah, wiggle their ears to get in the groove
The only kind of movement that happens is a weird ear wiggle.
They do 'The Boogaloo'
Zombies dance the Boogaloo, a kind of retro dance style.
at the Zombie Hall
The location changes, and now it's the Zombie Hall where the dance continues.
They write 'BORN TO LOSE'
Zombies have a nihilistic worldview and write depressing messages everywhere.
On Zombie restroom wall
One of the places where zombies express their nihilistic worldview is the restroom walls.
The kinda life they choose
The song refers to the zombie existence as a choice, highlighting the existential angst of these creatures.
Ain't life at all
But regardless of the choice they made, there's no real-life in their existence.
Everybody calm down
The song takes a break from the description of the Zombie Dance event to command everyone to calm down.
Nobody blow their cool
The calm down order is reinforced by a command not to get angry.
Nobody hang around
They also shouldn't spend too much time around here because it's a Zombie dancing school after all.
They do the swim face-down
Zombies have a swim style, but face down, adding a sinister connotation to it.
In the Zombie pool
There's also a pool, but zombies just use it to swim face down.
yeah (move!)
The song resumes with the order to move once again, reminding zombies to dance a little.
At the Zombie Dance
The song ends, reminding everyone of the location they're referring to.
Nobody moves
The final line emphasizes the lack of movement at the Zombie Dance.
Contributed by Blake D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.