Biography
The monster maestro (Frankie Stein) is a graduate of the mausoleum of music at the University of Paris Green. He plays guitar with three hands and conducts with the other two. He is DEAD serious about his music. Many critics have hailed him as “hideous” … “ghastly” …“horrormonius”… etc. etc. etc. (album jacket). However, the true identities of the musicians behind Frankie Stein and his Ghouls remain officially unconfirmed. The lineup has never been definitively uncovered, and the band was an entirely fictional studio group created to release budget Halloween novelty records.
A fictional studio creation designed to profit off the "Monster Kid" generation of the early 1960's. The Frankie Stein formula was as simple as it was brilliant; cool low budget horror cover art, creepy sounding song names with a suggested dance listing after the title ("Hully Gully, Frug"), and spooky sound effects laid on top of the actual music. (discogs)
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There are speculation points to several legendary musicians due to the studio practices of their record label.
What is Known About the Band
• The Record Label: The five albums—beginning with Introducing Frankie Stein and His Ghouls (1964) and followed by four more in 1965—were issued through Power Records, a subsidiary of the children's specialty label Peter Pan Records.
• The Style: Instead of generic, low-effort children's tunes, the records feature aggressive, high-energy rockabilly, surf rock, and "rock-and-twist" workouts layered with deranged howls, maniacal roars, and spooky sound effects.
• The Precedent for the Rumors: The theory that high-profile musicians are on these tracks stems from a known fact about Power Records. In 1966, the label released a Batman and Robin album under the name The Sensational Guitars of Dan and Dale. That specific album was later proven to be produced by Tom Wilson (who worked with Bob Dylan and The Velvet Underground) and featured avant-garde jazz icon Sun Ra alongside members of the blues-rock group The Blues Project.
The Suspected Musicians
Because of the Dan and Dale connection and the complex musicality of the tracks, several names are frequently bandied about by collectors:
Here a short list of most Suspected Musician / Group with why they are rumored
Sun Ra & The Blues Project -They are the most prominent theory, as they were actively using the same New York studio pipeline for Power Records projects around this time.
Duane Eddy - The legendary guitar pioneer is rumored because the tracks feature a signature heavy, "twangy" surf-guitar style that closely mirrors his work.
Max Greger - A prominent German jazz saxophonist who is occasionally floated as the man behind the frenetic saxophone elements.
Because these sessions were uncredited work-for-hire gigs meant to cash in on the mid-1960s monster craze, it is highly likely the exact session sheets are lost to time, keeping the true lineup one of vinyl history's best-kept secrets. Today, original pressings are highly sought-after, expensive collector's items, though reissues have been pressed by specialty labels like Real Gone Music.
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.