BEATLE MANIA
Charles Manson’s deranged obsession with the Fab Four.
Though each tune on the White Album had prophetic significance, Charlie explained, several songs were musical roadmaps to the immediate future, including the one that gave a name to the time
of chaos that was approaching
The White Album, released in 1968, consisted of 30 exceptionally eclectic songs, ranging from ersatz music hall to frantic rock ‘n’ roll to a children’s lullaby.
Though their fans didn’t know it, the beatles were wracked by dissension throughout the entire recording process — at one point drummer ringo Starr actually quit the band, though his departure was never made public and he was coaxed back within weeks. Two vinyl discs resulted from the internal squabbling because none of the beatles allowed any of his songs to be cut in favour of compositions by the others. critics generally praised the album — after all, it was by the beatles — but after embracing previous releases by the band as clear-cut social commentary, many listeners couldn’t find any consistency or theme this time.
charles “charlie” Manson wasn’t confused at all. He gathered the Family — his followers — around at the Gresham Street rental house and had them listen to the White Album over and over. He demanded that they pay special attention to the songs “Piggies,” “blackbird,” “revolution 1,” “revolution 9,” and “Helter Skelter.” Though each tune on the record had prophetic significance, charlie explained, these songs were musical road maps to the immediate future. “Piggies” described the disgusting sense of entitlement enjoyed by the very rich and powerful, and concluded that they needed “a damn good whacking.” “blackbird” predicted an uprising of the downtrodden blacks — this was the moment for them to arise. “revolution 1” was a call to arms. “revolution 9,” a pastiche of electronic effects and sound bites including the clatter of machine guns and human screams, was the soundtrack of the coming fury, and “Helter Skelter” provided a formal name for the chaos soon to come.
In the best dale carnegie tradition, charlie made certain that his followers felt these interpretations were theirs as well as his; he gravely asked everyone for comments about the songs, then wove whatever they said into a larger context. everyone should feel incredibly proud, charlie declared — not only was the White Album the beatles’ collective call to arms to the entire world, it was specifically directed toward charlie and the Family. Sometime in 1969, the Family would return to barker ranch in death Valley, and the beatles would join them there. charlie determined this based on a line in the song “Honey Pie” that referred to crossing the Atlantic. With his usual assumption of superiority and entitlement, charlie felt certain that the beatles would come to him and his followers. To get the process under way he sent letters and telegrams of invitation to the beatles’ office in england. There was no response, but charlie wasn’t deterred. The beatles were only part of the truth he now revealed. He preached to the Family that a black uprising was imminent not just because the beatles said so, but also the bible. In fact, the bible prophesied not only the uprising, but also the beatles themselves, and charlie Manson, too. It was all in the final book of the New Testament.
The revelation to John, commonly misidentified as revelations, concludes the christian bible on an unsettling, apocalyptic note. John, the narrator, has been banished to an island by unnamed authorities for preaching the gospel of Jesus, and as a reward for his faith Jesus has granted him an understanding or revelation about the signs that will herald christ’s return to earth. John, in turn, writes about what he has learned to a series of christian communities so they will have some warning of what is about to happen.
For some christians, revelation is entirely symbolic and simply represents a promise that Jesus will come again; to others, it’s a literal account of what is going to occur, horned beasts and all. For imaginations fuelled by frequent, copious doses of LSd, it was all too easy to believe not only John’s apocalyptic prophecies, but charlie’s unique interpretation of them.
revelation, charlie explained, predicted that locusts would come, and locusts were, of course, beetles — the beatles. John said that the locusts would have “scales like iron breastplates”— according to charlie, these were the beatles’ guitars. And there was more: revelation also told of angels coming to earth, with the first four being the beatles. The fifth, “given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit,” was charlie. The bottomless pit was a hole in the death Valley desert, one charlie had already told the Family about. revelation and the White Album, with assistance from charlie, made it clear: there was about to be an uprising of the oppressed in the world, mostly the blacks, who had been held down for too long. everybody had a turn in power, and now it was going to be black people’s turn. Something called Helter Skelter, an event or events still to be determined, would set off the battle. The blacks were going to kill most of the whites and enslave their surviving oppressors, which was only fair. Whites had made blacks their slaves and now roles would reverse. but here was the kicker: Just as the bible foretold — and the bible was always right — charlie would lead the Family to the bottomless pit, where they would remain in hiding as the world above descended into chaos. After a while — it didn’t matter how long, because time didn’t matter, hundreds of years, perhaps — the Family would expand to 144,000, the equivalent of the 12 tribes of Israel and the number specified in revelation 14:3. Meanwhile, blacks would discover that they lacked the intelligence and organizational skills to run the world. So charlie and the Family would emerge from the bottomless pit and become acknowledged rulers, charlie of course the first among them. He’d already convinced many of his followers that he was Jesus reincarnated. It didn’t take a much greater leap of faith to buy into this new vision. charlie stressed that everyone had all the proof that they needed — revelation and the White Album.
The Family was overwhelmed by this news. charlie maintained rigid control with his usual methods of carrot and stick. The women in particular were reminded that if they remained loyal, while they were down in the pit living in a wonderful underground city there, they could change into any creature they wished. Several wanted to become winged elves, and charlie promised that, when the moment was especially near, they’d begin to feel budding wings growing on their backs. but a terrible fate awaited any- one trying to leave the Family now, he cautioned. All of them were white, and any deserters who weren’t killed in the coming racial cataclysm would undoubtedly be made into slaves serving black masters. Their choice was slave or ruler.
There was an unexpected defector. Tex Watson, previously one of charlie’s most compliant followers, suddenly found Family membership claustrophobic and sneaked away. He stayed in the L.A. area, though, supporting himself by dealing drugs in tandem with a new girlfriend. Through the bikers, charlie had an excellent network of informers and probably soon knew exactly where Tex was. He was in no hurry to reclaim him; while most of the Family was preoccupied with the new prospect of Helter Skelter, charlie also had to concern himself with his longanticipated breakthrough as a musician. The beatles’ double disc set was fine but charlie’s album, the one that producers would beg him to record after the beach boys’ version of “cease to exist” was released, would surpass the White Album both commercially and as a harbinger of the future.