Here's To My Sweet Satan: How the Occult Haunted Music, Movies, and Pop Culture, 1966-1980

by George Case

A sweeping and masterful cultural history, “Here’s to My Sweet Satan” tells how the Occult conquered the American imagination, weaving together topics as diverse as the birth of heavy metal, 1970s horror films, the New Age movement, Count Chocula cereal, the serial killer Son of Sam, and more. Cultural critic George Case explores how the Occult craze permanently changed American society, creating the cultural framework for the political power of the religious right, false accusations of Satanic child abuse, and today’s widespread rejection of science and rationality. An insightful blend of pop culture and social history, “Here’s to My Sweet Satan” lucidly explains how the most technological society on earth became enthralled by the supernatural.

Genres: Nonfiction, Music, History, Satanism, Occult, Horror, Film

210 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2016

Reviews

[George Ilsley · Rating 1 out of 5]

A very strange book, and in places, very poorly written. The chosen time frame (1966 to 1980) is artificial and Case argues against its relevance right from the start, when he talks about Crowley being a media sensation. He also mentions the golden age of monster movies and pulp fiction, which were decades before the 1960's. The point is the themes of this book come and go in waves and this book's focus on 1966-1980 is not the least bit convincing.

It does not help to have pages listing book titles and movie titles in an attempt to overwhelm the reader with "evidence". One could just as easily list dozens of titles from another era.

Case's bucket of "occult" accepts everything (that is, everything that is not Christian), including eastern religions and meditation. He downplays the influence of marketing and the desire for profit as a motive (even though this book title is also guilty of sensational marketing). For example, even though Alice Cooper admits his show is just an act, Case seems to discount that possibility.

However, the last section of the book (post 1980) seems to have been written by someone else. The new writer does not see the occult anywhere! Teenagers kill another in Long Island -- they are just bored. The Manson family? No, they were just druggies acting out. It is extraordinary how this book evolves from one that sees the occult in every crystal to one that does not see occult influence anywhere.

As I said, it is one strange book. Only 158 pages of text, and even that is padded by repetition and lists. Despite the brevity, there are such gems as this sentence which follows a discussion of Transcendental Meditation: "Even today, the word 'mantra' has become synonymous with any word repeatedly invoked for near-holy purposes." This is like watching a 1970's TV western and then declaring "Even today, the word horse has become synonymous with a large mammal with hooves used for transportation." One requires a framework entirely free from a sense of history in order to make such observations.

[Kassy Nicholson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite the sensational title, this was a really interesting look at the 60's and 70's obsession with the occult. This being a little bit before my time, I had never really noticed this cultural trend before. Having previously read about the Victorians' obsession with spiritualism, this was kind of another instance of "everything old is new again" for me. I really enjoy learning about these types of historical trends.

[Angie and the Daily Book Dose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's to My Sweet Satan is a sweet little book. The author traces the rise of the occult in popular culture from the 1960's to the early 80's. The book read to me as more an essay but a well written one. The book divided music, film, and the written word to follow the course of the inclusion of Crowley, Lovecraft, Tolkien and the like into the common discourse of culture.

The book hits all the high points; Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, the books and movies of The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby. Additionally throwing in the antics of self styled practitioners Anton Le Vey and modern day gurus and witches.

From a personal standpoint the author mentioned some lesser known gems of fiction in the horror genre I'm excited to check out.

The only drawback was the book was too short. I would have preferred more in depth analysis, but that shouldn't detract the casual reader.

[b (tobias forge's version) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yet another book that I've read for its tangential relation to Ghost and its potential for fanfic research. Case doesn't present a ton of new-to-me information here, but he does a good job of piecing it all together to present a cohesive picture of the occult trends in the '60s and '70s. Some of the most interesting discussion is toward the end, when he examines how the occult boom spawned a reactionary, evangelical backlash (that we're still seeing ripples of today... ugh).

To paraphrase another review here on here, though: Could've used more Satan.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting pop culture history that's evocative without being very explanatory. I like how this put Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist in their proper contexts, as two very different books filmed by two very different directors. The story peters out just when it gets to the part of the phenomenon that I'm most familiar with, the late 80s & early 90s.

[Jeremy Patterson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Basically a hard-bound pamphlet.

[Aurora Dimitre · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this was really interesting. It took a look at the occult movements during the late 20th century, and it was super super interesting. I feel like I learned a lot, even though I was aware of most of the things that it was talking about, and there were definitely chapters that I liked more than others, but overall, it was just fascinating. I'm really glad that I got my hands on it, and more than that, I'm really glad that it's a book I own rather than just borrowed from the library, because it was interesting.

One thing that I think would've been an interesting thin to mention though, a big event that took place during this time that wasn't exactly occult, but a cult and also deals a little bit with the hyper-religion thing, is Jonestown and that whole deal. But Case mentioned a lot of other stuff, and it's a short book. But it would've been interesting to see if he thought that fit in with anything, because I do think it fits in with some of the stuff he talked about here.

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Here's to My Sweet Satan" was a spooky romp through the rise of the occult from the late 60s to the early 1980s. Touching on a range of topics pertaining to the occult's infiltration of popular culture - film, literature, television, comics, childrens' toys and breakfast cereals, mainstream media - this book was a delight to read. While no stone was left unturned - the author covered film (The Exorcist, The Omen, The Amityville Horror, countless B-grade flicks), television (The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, Dark Shadows, even Scooby Doo), literature (the rise of Stephen King), mass culture (the Satanic Panic of the early 1980s, the increased popularity of "alternative" religions like Wicca, D&D) - at only 155 pages I would have liked to seen each topic gone into a bit deeper.

Recommended for those who enjoy learning about the occult through the lens of popular culture. 3.75 stars.

[Matt Musselman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was interested in this book for more background on the "Satanomania" that struck my hometown and much of the US in the late 80s and early 90s. Some passages were informative and well written (particularly the parts about the history of Anton LaVey's Church of Satan), but even those felt very rushed, and much of the rest of the book seemed to consist mostly of lists of song titles, book titles, and movie titles, with little context or explanation.

It's not surprise that the index is half as long as the main content of the book, because the book itself reads more like an index than prose.

At any rate, I learned a bit about the subject matter. Perhaps the author will get a future chance to take another run at the material, with more time and room to flesh it out and develop more of a documentary-like narrative to guide the information. I would enjoy that.

[Victor Rodriguez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un ameno recorrido por el origen de los elementos ocultistas en la cultura pop contemporánea, ya sea en libros (La semilla del diablo, El exorcista) ,películas (La profecía), música (Black Sabbath) o simplemente en la vida real (las dudosas aventuras de gente como Anton LaVey o Charles Manson). Su visión transversal es de agradecer pero a veces mete tantos datos que parece que el autor esté solamente enumerando para cumplir un cupo. No obstante, es una muy buena lectura y la recomiendo si os interesa el tema y la época.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book wasn’t quite how I expected it to be. It was rather boring if I’m honest, and doesn’t actually explain the backlash of most of these occult happenings, which I thought the entire book was supposed about. Instead it just gives a bunch of lists, repeats itself at some points, then at the very end describes a liiiiiiiittle bit of the backlash the occult caused.

I’m very eh about this read. Didn’t hate it, didn’t love it. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it but I wouldn’t completely discredit it either.

[Pia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good overview / introduction of the various bands, movies, children's entertainment and other ways that fascination with the occult manifested itself in US society between 1966-80, with a metric ton of further reading options for anyone who wants to know more about a particular topic. Anyone already extensively familiar with any of the areas the book covers probably won't find any new insights or information, though.

[Akira Watts · Rating 2 out of 5]

Basically, less a book advancing much of an argument than it is one containing long lists of things, mostly American things, that were somehow related to the 'occult.' Somewhere around the discussion of occult themed Hot Wheels I began to lose patience. By the time I got to the last chapter, featuring some rather poorly researched statements about music, I'd had about enough.

Badly written. Badly researched. Not much point to this one.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

George Case takes a somewhat in-depth look at the music, movies, television, books, etc. that helped give birth to a renewed interest in the occult which became so entrenched in popular culture (which is seen even today) that certain groups of people just started to lose their minds trying to rein in its popularity, finding Satan in things were Satan clearly wasn't, and vilifying the culture/people of the time (sometimes rightly, most of the time not so) that were gaining ground around us. Reading this book gave me a better look at why The Exorcist was and still is an important film, why so many were drawn to Black Sabbath or Alice Cooper, and how something so innocuous as Dungeons and Dragons was seen as potential dangers to the status quo. There is also a section in the book that delves into Christianity's response - not ALL, mind you, but a certain sect - and going to the extreme (the End of Times, burning in the depts of hell, etc) and how that is still echoed in our culture today. Everything that happened during those formative years of renewed interest in the occult, the response from religious groups, politicians, parents, etc., are echoed today and, in some ways, I think we are doomed to repeat a similar scare. It's just amazing how something like popular culture can so quickly divide everyone into us and them. It's a very interesting read and I'll be searching out more texts like it!

[Appoline Piotrowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have given it 4 stars had I not immediately started reading Van Luijk's Childen of Lucifer, which deals on a similar subject, but with much more depth and research. This one, on comparison, appears somewhat lightweight and lacking in coherence. Although it is a good reference point to occult movies/books/etc. Of the era, and some titles given are really tantalising (To the devil - a daughter, Satan's school for girls...who wouldn't want to check out movies with titles like these?) Also, the author kept referencing my favourite bands in the chapter about music, and it made me very happy.
All in all, an interesting look on the era, but not deep enough to be ground-breaking.

[Corey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pre-History of the Satanic Panic

Excellent timeline of the occult elements (both real and imagined) in pop culture in the decades leading up to the 1980s, and how these elements fed directly into the Satanic Panic that followed in the 80s and 90s. I enjoyed this retrospective of the music, books, movies, comics, news and rumors of the 60s and 70s that contributed to or capitalized on the public’s interests in the occult, mysticism, the paranormal, and supernatural horror. While the Satanic Panic didn’t officially begin until 1980, it’s important to understand the preceding decades of pop culture that laid the groundwork for it in the public consciousness.

[Conrad · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting deep dive into the rise of the occult and the effect it had in music (The Beatles, Led Zepplin, Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Kiss), books and movies (Anne Rice, Stephen King, The Excorcist, Rosemary's Baby), and games (Dungeons and Dragons, tarot, ouija boards). It also delves into occult killers (Zodiac, Son of Sam, Manson Family) and the rise of Satanic Panic. An interesting thought is how the occult was marketed to children through shows like Scooby Doo and even cereal, like Count Chocula and Boo Berry.

[Vixen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Czegoś mi tu brakowało. No i zdziwiły mnie rzeczy którym autor poświęcał tyle stron np Wielka Stopa która zbytnio się nie kojarzy z okultyzmem. Podobnie jak cały rozdział o Dänikenie. Ale fajnie było poczytać o początkach tego wszystkiego. Zwłaszcza że autor traktuje wydanie Władcy Pierścieni jako początek popularności okultyzmu :D

[Hayl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confusingly written, more than anything. Disjointed paragraphs that speak of seemingly unrelated things. Some good information regarding the rise of occult in pop culture, but overall I came out of the book just... confused.

[Ariel Nissan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is missing a clear thesis and working definition of occultism. It’s essentially just a list of various pop culture references that have some otherworldly connections. The portion on resulting satanic panic was short and unremarkable. I did not find it to be a compelling read.

[Crankybeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book really doesn't cover anything new, mostly a retread of what you already know if you've been reading about this topic for any length of time. Maybe I've read everything there is no know and I need to stop thinking new texts on the subject will cover new things.

[Adelaide Blair · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Emilio Lara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this to be more of a reading/watching list. I wanted it to be more analytical. I also think the title is misleading. As another reviewer noted, there is not enough Satan.

[Rachel Patterson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately this just really isn’t very good

[Julie Kirby · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF. Quit at 50%. The author carelessly attributes a myriad of capitalist moves to occult beliefs and/or practices.

[Kurt · Rating 2 out of 5]

A tedious book with a lot of lists and little information.