Paul is dead man....miss him...miss him
Edward V. Michalak
who may be reading!). I know, all you "Paul is Dead Clue-Haters" will
cringe,
but I feel I must correct an inaccurate statement.
I love Mark Lewisohn's book on the Abbey Road Recording Sessions. But it
does contain an inaccurate statement. As most of you know, between I'm So
Tired and Blackbird on the White Album, there is some gibberish. According
to Lewisohn, it is Lennon saying "Monsieur, Monsieur, how about another
one..".
He even goes on to admonish those who insist it is something else,
backwards.
Well, I am one of the lucky ones who, in the mid-seventies, had a cheap
turntable, and was able to spin records backwards. It DOES say Paul is
dead
man...miss him...miss him, very clearly.
It always makes me wonder why Lewisohn, and others, insist that some of the
legenday backwards items in Beatle recordings are not there, or are
coincidences, or are something other than what is plainly heard. Maybe it
is an attempt to keep this whole subject going, but from a reverse
psychology
point of view. Who knows. Whatever, I know what I have heard, many, many
times.
As for this "clue" or any others, or other messages, etc., that is too much
to go into now. I just felt that it is important to clarify inaccuracies,
and this is a great forum to do it.
--
Ed Michalak
South Jersey's 5th Beatle
A special hello to my beast friend, Chief.Bl...@buc.edu.au.
Chris P. Mezzolesta
In a previous article, mich...@jeflin.tju.edu (Edward V. Michalak) says:
(line accidentally deleted...oops)
>legenday backwards items in Beatle recordings are not there, or are
>coincidences, or are something other than what is plainly heard. Maybe it
>is an attempt to keep this whole subject going, but from a reverse
>psychology
>point of view. Who knows. Whatever, I know what I have heard, many, many
>times.
I agree that it there is too much for it to be a coincidence (again, as you
say, not to rehash here, BUT...) I researched this for a college English
paper (my prof was very cool, had a Beatlish record out in '65) and found
many more than the standard run-of -the -mill clues. Very helpful was a
radio special from New York's WPLJ, first done in '69, I taped the 10th
anniversary show, on Paul's b'day in '79. They went thru MANY clues,
musical & graphic (including the backwards phone # on the front of MMT and
the split words "ONE HE DIE" on Pepper's bass drum, as well as the Pepper
inner groove). Most important seemed the # on MMT. They said that a girl
in London called this # on "Wednesday morning at 5:00", asked for Billy
Shears, and a voice said "You're getting hot Jack". After some strange
questions asked, they hung up, she called back next Wed, and the phone was
disconnected. Now has anyone else heard of this story, and any further
facts on it??? I'm kind of intrigued about this.
Still, it really can't all be coincidence. Why so many "clues", and why
none from other bands before this? (coincidences or strange stuff I mean.)
Let's face it, "Well here's another clue for you all/The Walrus was Paul",
I mean come ON...
Peace.
Chris
--
Chris P. Mezzolesta /// "Nobody ever lends money
Mentor, Ohio /// to a man with a
ds...@cleveland.freenet.edu /// sense of humor!!!"-
music music music!!! /// Peter Tork, "Head" (1968)
saki
>I feel it is time to post something about this (after all, you never know
>who may be reading!). I know, all you "Paul is Dead Clue-Haters" will
>cringe, but I feel I must correct an inaccurate statement.
>I love Mark Lewisohn's book on the Abbey Road Recording Sessions. But it
>does contain an inaccurate statement. As most of you know, between I'm So
>Tired and Blackbird on the White Album, there is some gibberish. According
>to Lewisohn, it is Lennon saying "Monsieur, Monsieur, how about another
>one..".
>He even goes on to admonish those who insist it is something else,
>backwards.
I'm looking at page 160 of The Book, under 8 October. Where's
the admonishment?
I listened again to that section of "I'm So Tired". John *is* saying
what Lewisohn says he is, albeit with a very weird pseudo-Jamaican
or mock-Creole accent...hence the "Monsieur..." What's he asking
for? Another take? Another ciggie? Your guess is as good as mine.
But let's not malign Mr. Lewisohn without good reason. His ears
were closer to the original tape than any of ours are likely
to be, and until we hear the studio playback itself, I don't
think our interpretation is likely to be better.
>Well, I am one of the lucky ones who, in the mid-seventies, had a cheap
>turntable, and was able to spin records backwards. It DOES say Paul is
>dead man...miss him...miss him, very clearly.
Dare I ask what you were smoking when you listened? :-) Maybe it's
time for another go if you haven't heard it for twenty years!
As luck would have it, several months ago I dropped my much-used
Walkman and discovered, to my horror, that it would only play
tapes backward thereafter. That is, I was horrified for about a
minute till I realized how handy this would be for settling
backwards arguments. :-)
I just listened to the passage in question. Transcribing as a
trained phonologist (which I am, among other tricks I am trained
to do), I get this:
"Ree ree, no va lay devna; essie missile missim."
Word of honor. That's what I hear.
There's no initial "P" sound (or even a plosive) for the name "Paul".
There's one dental "d" but not a followup to form "dea*d*". The
first comment ("essie") does not have a bilabial "M" so we can't
configure "miss". Second one really sounds like "missile", third
the most like "missim" a.k.a. "miss him". But that's a fair
distance from "Paul is dead; miss him etc."
>It always makes me wonder why Lewisohn, and others, insist that some of the
>legenday backwards items in Beatle recordings are not there, or are
>coincidences, or are something other than what is plainly heard. Maybe it
>is an attempt to keep this whole subject going, but from a reverse
>psychology point of view. Who knows. Whatever, I know what I have
>heard, many, many times.
Really, all kidding aside, I suggest you listen again.
The "legendary" backwards messages are in fact not there. They are
just what you say they are: legend. Unfortunately, when the legend
about hidden messages grows as this hoax has done over the years,
people start seeing and hearing what they're told is there,
rather than what's really apparent. No question that the Fabs
were fascinated with backwards sounds, from "Rain" onward
(a phenomenon John discovered when, stoned, he accidentally
reversed a working version of the tape). What a Pandora's
box he and his cohorts unleashed when they explored this
technique!
I keep waiting for some clever folklorist to get an NIH grant
and set up a *really* scientific study: viz., a prime group
and a control, headphones, tape sequences played forward
and backward, to an audience that has *no idea* whose voice
they're hearing or what phrase they're supposed to pick out.
I'll bet you a beer (hell, a *dinner*) at the Adelphi Hotel
in Liverpool that no one would hear "Paul is dead...." unless
they were told that's what was on the tape. I can't emphasize
this enough: if you're already expecting to hear a certain
phrase, it's virtually impossible to *not* hear it. I guess
this is the reason people keep insisting that John's "cranberry
sauce" at the end of "Strawberry Fields Forever" is really
"I buried Paul". Even with pretty clear tape evidence from
vault sources (the sibilance in "*s*au*c*e" is really evident),
some people *still* insist it's "I buried Paul". Or that
"cranberry sauce" is code for it. :-)
--
"Musically authoritative and physically magnetic, THE BEATLES
are rhythmic revolutionaries with an act which is a succession
of climaxes."
------------------------------------ saki (dm...@math.ucla.edu)
saki
>
>...including the backwards phone # on the front of MMT and
>the split words "ONE HE DIE" on Pepper's bass drum, as well as the Pepper
>inner groove). Most important seemed the # on MMT. They said that a girl
>in London called this # on "Wednesday morning at 5:00", asked for Billy
>Shears, and a voice said "You're getting hot Jack". After some strange
>questions asked, they hung up, she called back next Wed, and the phone was
>disconnected. Now has anyone else heard of this story, and any further
>facts on it??? I'm kind of intrigued about this.
This story turns up periodically in England and in the States. Someone
always claims to know someone else (in folklore, this is called a
FOAF---friend of a friend, i.e. someone who is not a primary source
and cannot attest firsthand to the legend in question) who called
this number and got an answer similar to "You're getting closer".
Of course, no one can really pinpoint an actual individual to
whom this happened, or dig up any phone records explaining
the mystery. It appears to have developed sometime after the
initial "Paul Is Dead" hoax was popularized in October 1969.
>Still, it really can't all be coincidence. Why so many "clues", and why
>none from other bands before this? (coincidences or strange stuff I mean.)
>Let's face it, "Well here's another clue for you all/The Walrus was Paul",
>I mean come ON...
The quote in "Glass Onion" was actually a referral to critics who
hounded John about the meaning of "I Am The Walrus", wanting to
know who the walrus was, what was semolina pilchard, etc. John
was well aware that interpreters were going nuts trying to
explicate Beatles lyrics, and was especially incensed when
he found out that a teacher in his old school was teaching
Beatles lyrics as poetry. "Walrus" was a direct response to
that, made lyrically dense on purpose. The "Glass Onion"
reference was further snide commentary.
Anyone can weave together an equal number of "clues" having just
as much validity as those in the PID hoax, about any other band.
Because they're either all impossible to verify or inaccurate,
the clues can seem linked. But delving a little deeper into the
hoax reveals just how tenuous is the whole shebang. When you
find out, for instance, that a walrus isn't a symbol of death
in any culture, that Paul *wouldn't* have been "28 IF..." (he
would have been twenty-seven in fact; what happened? One of the
clue-masters forget his arithmetic? :-) , that there are alternate
photos of Paul with sandals on (what were *those* shots supposed
to prove? Why were they taken if the whole point was that he
was a corpse? And just where *is* a corpse buried without his
shoes?) ...and so on, you feel pretty much as if you'd been had.
Couple that with the testimony from participants in the original
dissemination of the hoax (Russell Gibb, the deejay who first
broadcast the myth, and college journalist Fred LaBour, who
further embellished the hoax with his own invented clues---
among them William Campbell and the walrus = death symbol!),
and you begin to wonder whether ground zero for the hoax wasn't
right in our own midwestern backyard---which is where it seems
to be traceable. No documents, no anecdotes, no overheard
conversation by, from, around the Beatles by *any*one has ever
been able to link the hoax to the Fabs.
A fertile field for investigation, rather than strictly
folkloric, is sociological: why do people feel the need to
believe in the hoax? What contributes to its power? I sense
that it provides a connectivity between Beatles fans and
the group they love---an ongoing, evergrowing game of wits
which invites you to join your mental powers with the Boys
themselves. It takes great faith to believe that the clues
make sense (because logically they don't). It takes tenacity
to stick to your guns when spoilsports like me try to explain
the "truth". :-) And it gives believers a feeling that they're
engaged in the greatest possible concept album in history:
a concept that builds its own mystery backwards and forwards
from a musical phenomenon. Religions grow just this way, too.
Not that I'm saying the hoax has become religion. :-) But
the need for an almost Talmudic-depth of investigation
reinforces the ostensible reality of the scheme.
Why did this happen with no other group? Simple. The Fabs
are a little like the pyramids---so grand, so symbolic, so
mystical in their accomplishments, that they're the perfect
foil for a legend of this sort. You can't tell me that
anyone would have gotten this far trying to prove that,
say, the Rolling Stones are really all members of the
British Royal Family and the clues are in "December's
Children" and "Satantic Majesties Request". :-)
But if you want me to give it a go, I'll try. :-)
S. Lee Brown
In article <1993Oct10.0...@math.ucla.edu>, dm...@julia.math.ucla.edu (saki) writes:
..
|> Anyone can weave together an equal number of "clues" having just
|> as much validity as those in the PID hoax, about any other band.
|> Because they're either all impossible to verify or inaccurate,
|> the clues can seem linked. But delving a little deeper into the
|> hoax reveals just how tenuous is the whole shebang. When you
|> find out, for instance, that a walrus isn't a symbol of death
|> in any culture, that Paul *wouldn't* have been "28 IF..." (he
|> would have been twenty-seven in fact; what happened? One of the
|> clue-masters forget his arithmetic? :-) , that there are alternate
|> photos of Paul with sandals on (what were *those* shots supposed
|> to prove? Why were they taken if the whole point was that he
|> was a corpse? And just where *is* a corpse buried without his
|> shoes?) ...and so on, you feel pretty much as if you'd been had.
Well, the "28 IF" thing is supposed to be valid due to Paul's Eastern-based
religious beliefs. Followers of Buddhism add one year to their age because
they consider life to begin at conception (ie nine months is rounded to
one year) and since Paul's Buddhist, then his twenty-seven years would
be considered twenty-eight.
The shoe thing and the walrus thing are, like you say, not so provable.
I believe the rumor is that the shoes are an Italian symbol of death,
and the Walrus is supposed to be Swedish or something.
Lee
Chris Burman
>
> In article <1993Oct10.0...@math.ucla.edu>, dm...@julia.math.ucla.edu (saki) writes:
> ..
> |> Anyone can weave together an equal number of "clues" having just
> |> as much validity as those in the PID hoax, about any other band.
> |> Because they're either all impossible to verify or inaccurate,
> |> the clues can seem linked. But delving a little deeper into the
> |> hoax reveals just how tenuous is the whole shebang. When you
> |> find out, for instance, that a walrus isn't a symbol of death
> |> in any culture
>
> The shoe thing and the walrus thing are, like you say, not so provable.
> I believe the rumor is that the shoes are an Italian symbol of death,
> and the Walrus is supposed to be Swedish or something.
Ja, ja, by jimminy, the famous Swedish symbol of death, The Black Walrus of
H{rn|sand! See chapter XXIV of the famous Olaus Magnus' magnum opus, Then
Swenska Wahlrossen!
(H{rn|sand, as we all know, is just outside the famous Swedish city of Basel.)
Oh, and ;-)
Chris Burman, cbu...@abo.fi
F.Grant Whittle
way. (Anyone else heard this?) Oh, and Paul's as
Buddhist as my grandmother.
Love,
F. Grant
edward s. chen
>In article <295d5c$6...@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu> ds...@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Chris P. Mezzolesta) writes:
>>
>>...including the backwards phone # on the front of MMT and
>>the split words "ONE HE DIE" on Pepper's bass drum, as well as the Pepper
>>inner groove). Most important seemed the # on MMT. They said that a girl
>>in London called this # on "Wednesday morning at 5:00", asked for Billy
>>Shears, and a voice said "You're getting hot Jack". After some strange
>>questions asked, they hung up, she called back next Wed, and the phone was
>>disconnected. Now has anyone else heard of this story, and any further
>>facts on it??? I'm kind of intrigued about this.
>
>This story turns up periodically in England and in the States. Someone
>always claims to know someone else (in folklore, this is called a
>FOAF---friend of a friend, i.e. someone who is not a primary source
>and cannot attest firsthand to the legend in question) who called
>this number and got an answer similar to "You're getting closer".
>Of course, no one can really pinpoint an actual individual to
>whom this happened, or dig up any phone records explaining
>the mystery. It appears to have developed sometime after the
>initial "Paul Is Dead" hoax was popularized in October 1969.
The only vaguely reliable version of this story comes from
Ron Schaumburg's decidedly personal (and therefore not necessarily
factual) _Growing Up With the Beatles_. The claim here is that the
phone call was made by a Kansas City radio station (KUDL) and put
down on tape (and played over the air).
[after calling the "834" number from Magical Mystery Tour at
"Wednesday Morning at 5 o'clock", and getting an older gentleman
on the line]
Q: "Who is this speaking?"
A: "PMC. Is that enough?"
Q: "Do you have any information for us?"
A: "Of what sort?"
Q: "Well, about the Beatles."
A: "About the Beatles? I don't have anything for you now. Perhaps
you could call back tommorow; say at nine o'clock?"
Of course, when the radio station called back the next day, the phone
had been disconnected. Personally, I don't believe it...Like some of
the rest of the text, Ron was too busy living his own life to deal with
the details of the facts. There should be more about the "phone number"
aspect to the rumor in the upcoming "Paul Is Dead" book. In the meantime,
anyone want to call KUDL in Kansas City, and get blank stares as you ask
about something they may or may not have done 25 years ago :-) [Besides,
in all likelihood, the station is now all-news, all-sports, or all-something,
where something is not music...]
<ESC>
--
Q: What would you personally like to see the new administration bring in?
A: More Wine!
-- John Lennon, 1963
Bob Allison
things that is, now, merely a curio in the history book of the Fabs.
Nothing can loose so much interest as speculation which has been
proven, over time, to be false. I love speculation as much as anybody, if
not more. I used to find the Shroud of Turin speculation absolutely
fascinating until it was disproven. It immediately became far less
interesting.
So, now, to me anyway, the dead Paul thing is only a curio as I
mentioned. But since you brought it up, I'll toss in a couple of cents
worth, although I've said some of this before.
I think the speculation of interest now is, did The Beatles attempt to
start it? If they didn't start it, is it fairly safe, or at least
realistic to say that they had fun with it? There are too many Paul
oriented clues to dismess as all accidents, etc.
And if the Fabs had wanted to embed clues into songs and album covers,
they certainly had the resources at their fingertips. Just consider what
went into making the Sgt Pepper cover.
The question is, of course, why. And the first answer, of course, is,
just more publicity. Keep 'em talking about the Beatles. Especially
after they weren't new anymore, when Beatlemania had soured in some
quarters, when there was no more touring.
The attitude might have been, 'hey, a little non-negative publicity to
counteract the bigger-than-Jesus backlash wouldn't hurt. And the fans
love finding clues, and so why not, it'll be a giggle.'
--
The Scarecrow
bo...@gagme.chi.il.us
John W. Hazelton
>> As most of you know, between I'm So Tired and Blackbird on the White Album,
>> there is some gibberish. According to Lewisohn, it is Lennon saying
>> "Monsieur, Monsieur, how about another one."
>> Well, I am one of the lucky ones who, in the mid-seventies, had a cheap
>> turntable, and was able to spin records backwards. It DOES say Paul is
>> dead man...miss him...miss him, very clearly.
>> It always makes me wonder why Lewisohn, and others, insist that some of the
>> legenday backwards items in Beatle recordings are not there, or are
>> coincidences, or are something other than what is plainly heard. Maybe it
>> is an attempt to keep this whole subject going, but from a reverse
>> psychology point of view. Who knows. Whatever, I know what I have
>> heard, many, many times.
I had and still have such a turntable, as well as a reel-to-reel recorder
that I can use to play tapes backward. I've listened to these
"backward" messages many times over the past twenty years, and hear
only vague noises that only somewhat resemble the phrases that are
said to be there. I think it's mainly a matter of suggestion.
This is not to say that there weren't actually backward bits
that were intentionally put on records. As saki (dm...@julia.ucla.edu)
wrote:
[much valuable factual stuff deleted for space]
> No question that the Fabs were fascinated with backwards sounds,
> from "Rain" onward (a phenomenon John discovered when, stoned, he
> accidentally reversed a working version of the tape). What a Pandora's
> box he and his cohorts unleashed when they explored this technique!
>
> I keep waiting for some clever folklorist to get an NIH grant
> and set up a *really* scientific study: viz., a prime group
> and a control, headphones, tape sequences played forward
> and backward, to an audience that has *no idea* whose voice
> they're hearing or what phrase they're supposed to pick out.
This is not double-blind study, but I do have a story that supports
saki's contention. An instructor in the music school here
teaches classes in both Beatles and Classic (60s & 70s) Rock.
In each class, he does a segment on backward masking.
I took the Beatles class first. In this class, he told the students
what they were going to hear (what the backward bit "said") and then
played it. The class members looked at each other in astonishment. It
*really* did say that backward stuff! They were amazed.
The next semester, in the Classic Rock class, the instructor took a
different approach. He played the backward segments, then asked the
class, after each segment, to repeat what was said. No one even came
close to what was supposedly there. At this point, he told the class
what phrase they were listening for, and only then did people hear it.
Except this time, the classroom was full of laughter and justified
skepticism.
>I'll bet you a beer (hell, a *dinner*) at the Adelphi Hotel
>in Liverpool that no one would hear "Paul is dead...." unless
>they were told that's what was on the tape. I can't emphasize
>this enough: if you're already expecting to hear a certain
>phrase, it's virtually impossible to *not* hear it.
I certainly wouldn't take the bet.
--John Hazelton
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Jamesa Willer
>I agree that it there is too much for it to be a coincidence (again, as you
>say, not to rehash here, BUT...) I researched this for a college English
>paper (my prof was very cool, had a Beatlish record out in '65) and found
Cool. Who's your professor?
>many more than the standard run-of -the -mill clues. Very helpful was a
>radio special from New York's WPLJ, first done in '69, I taped the 10th
>anniversary show, on Paul's b'day in '79. They went thru MANY clues,
>musical & graphic (including Pepper
>inner groove).
Umm, not to diss your research or anything, but what does "We will
f**k you like Supermen" <saki-debunking aside for the moment> have
to do with Paul-is-dead??
>Let's face it, "Well here's another clue for you all/The Walrus was Paul",
>I mean come ON...
My sentiments *exactly*. ( I-) )
>Peace.
I *was* going to give Peace a chance, but I thought all I needed was love...
jaMesa Willer
[any opinions above should be approached with extreme caution]
Olof Hernius
: In article <1993Oct10.0...@math.ucla.edu>, dm...@julia.math.ucla.edu (saki) writes:
: ..
: Well, the "28 IF" thing is supposed to be valid due to Paul's Eastern-based
: religious beliefs. Followers of Buddhism add one year to their age because
: they consider life to begin at conception (ie nine months is rounded to
: one year) and since Paul's Buddhist, then his twenty-seven years would
: be considered twenty-eight.
: The shoe thing and the walrus thing are, like you say, not so provable.
: I believe the rumor is that the shoes are an Italian symbol of death,
: and the Walrus is supposed to be Swedish or something.
: Lee
No, no , no. The walrus is NOT a swedish symbol of death, 'cause
we don`t have any in Sweden, and no polarbears either.
Why hasn't anybody looked for clues in the post-Beatles albums?
I'm sure there are lots of them. Why not start a search!
/Olof/
Maurizio Codogno
>S. Lee Brown (sl...@carr8.acpub.duke.edu) wrote:
>
>: In article <1993Oct10.0...@math.ucla.edu>, dm...@julia.math.ucla.edu (saki) writes:
>: The shoe thing and the walrus thing are, like you say, not so provable.
>: I believe the rumor is that the shoes are an Italian symbol of death,
>: and the Walrus is supposed to be Swedish or something.
>
>: Lee
>
>
> No, no , no. The walrus is NOT a swedish symbol of death, 'cause
> we don`t have any in Sweden, and no polarbears either.
well, neither shoes are symbol of death in Italy :-)
--
ciao! .mau.
-----
Maurizio Codogno - CSELT UF/DU dept. - Torino Italy
"home" email: m...@beatles.cselt.stet.it
Mr M J Brown
>
>> No question that the Fabs were fascinated with backwards sounds,
>> from "Rain" onward (a phenomenon John discovered when, stoned, he
>> accidentally reversed a working version of the tape). What a Pandora's
>> box he and his cohorts unleashed when they explored this technique!
>>
Wasn't it actually George Martin who claims the honour of starting the
backwards stuff, especially on Rain. I remember an interview where he
said that while John was out of the studio he was messing about with
bits of the recording, moving them back and forth until it fitted. When
John came in, he loved it and was hooked, wanting everything to go backwards
from then on.
=============================================================================
_/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/_/_/_/ |
_/_/ _/_/ _/ _/_/ _/ | Michael Brown
_/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/_/ |
_/ _/ _/ _/_/ _/ | m...@dcs.warwick.ac.uk
_/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/_/_/_/ _/ | cs...@csv.warwick.ac.uk
=============================================================================
"It's one SML grep FOR man ....
one giant LOOP {FOR man -k -ind}" - /dev/null rm strong
=============================================================================
Also reachable at Michae...@f24.n258.z2.fidonet.org (if all else fails)
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
Chris P. Mezzolesta
In a previous article, jw...@okeeffe.cc.rochester.edu (Jamesa Willer) says:
>>paper (my prof was very cool, had a Beatlish record out in '65) and found
>
>Cool. Who's your professor?
His name is Maury Dean, his band was called "Strum", and the 45 (under his
real name) was "Time Drags Me Down". Wish I had a copy, it was groovy.
>Umm, not to diss your research or anything, but what does "We will
>f**k you like Supermen" <saki-debunking aside for the moment> have
>to do with Paul-is-dead??
Supposedly that's not the only thing in there, though the most obvious to
pick out. They also say that it says "He's found heaven" (the lower
"ba-ba-BAAA" voice) or "We'll all be back here soon", hey it's all
interpretation, but fun I think.
And yes, as Saki pointed out, it's definitely "cranberry sauce". Get any
of the boots of "Strawberry" with the the cello/trumpet version, without
all the other overdubbing, and John clearly says it. Twice, in fact, then
the gem is at the end, where he turns & says "All right, calm down Ringo!"
C
Christer Gullstrand
> S. Lee Brown (sl...@carr8.acpub.duke.edu) wrote:
>
>
> No, no , no. The walrus is NOT a swedish symbol of death, 'cause
> we don`t have any in Sweden, and no polarbears either.
>
My previous boss at work (swedish) looked exactly like a walrus before
he shaved off his moustache, so in those days I think we had one. :-)
He also acted like a symbol of death :-(
He has shaved since, so I guess we don't have any more.
- Christer
jd...@wvnvms.wvnet.edu
> I feel it is time to post something about this (after all, you never know
> who may be reading!). I know, all you "Paul is Dead Clue-Haters" will
> cringe,
> but I feel I must correct an inaccurate statement.
>
> I love Mark Lewisohn's book on the Abbey Road Recording Sessions. But it
> does contain an inaccurate statement. As most of you know, between I'm So
> Tired and Blackbird on the White Album, there is some gibberish. According
> to Lewisohn, it is Lennon saying "Monsieur, Monsieur, how about another
> one..".
> He even goes on to admonish those who insist it is something else,
> backwards.
> Well, I am one of the lucky ones who, in the mid-seventies, had a cheap
> turntable, and was able to spin records backwards. It DOES say Paul is
> dead
> man...miss him...miss him, very clearly.
I wanted to add here that I also still have one of those cheap 70's
turn-tables and have played that bit backwards several times. I also
clearly hear the "paul is dead miss him miss him", in john's voice.
No, i don't hear voices talking to me on most other songs (any back-
wards message on "stairway" has totally eluded me). The only other
signigicant backwards vocals I've found "hidden" (rain doesn't count)
is the "secret message" on pink floyds "the wall" (yeah, i went thru
a period of listening to them too...), though i forget which song it
was in.
While on PID nonsense, there is one clue i know of that i don't
believe is mentioned in the faq or by others on the net. That is the
picture in the MMT book (remember those?) that has the banquet
table picture shot through a fish-eye-lens (i think thats what they
are called). If this picture (the only one in the book not from
the movie/show) is looked at from about 20' away (i.e. across a
room) it appears to be a skull with a flower painted on it. This
always sounds ludicrious (like the word, hate the spelling) to any-
one who i tell it to but don't show so i haven't brought it up until
now. Can anyone else confirm this? Anyone have any more info on
how the book was put together (who wrote the story, drew cartoons,
selected pix, etc.)? That's enough for now.
jef.
(No, no i don't hear "get me out" on rev #9 :)
be here now
)>...including the backwards phone # on the front of MMT and
)>the split words "ONE HE DIE" on Pepper's bass drum, as well as the Pepper
)>inner groove). Most important seemed the # on MMT. They said that a girl
)>in London called this # on "Wednesday morning at 5:00", asked for Billy
)>Shears, and a voice said "You're getting hot Jack". After some strange
)>questions asked, they hung up, she called back next Wed, and the phone was
)>disconnected. Now has anyone else heard of this story, and any further
)>facts on it??? I'm kind of intrigued about this.
(saki) writes:
)This story turns up periodically in England and in the States. Someone
)always claims to know someone else (in folklore, this is called a
)FOAF---friend of a friend, i.e. someone who is not a primary source
)and cannot attest firsthand to the legend in question) who called
)this number and got an answer similar to "You're getting closer".
)Of course, no one can really pinpoint an actual individual to
)whom this happened, or dig up any phone records explaining
)the mystery. It appears to have developed sometime after the
)initial "Paul Is Dead" hoax was popularized in October 1969.
Saki, sure you can... I'm such a person! :) In fact, when r.m.beatles was
first created (a few years back) I posted several messages about my experiences
calling the MMT phone number (and other such numbers). Do you have any of
those early messages archived?
It was during the late fall/early winter of 1969 when me and a friend began
calling the number we deciphered off of the MMT album cover. We'd call it
at 11PM (local time) Tuesday nights so it would be about 5AM London time.
We deduced "Wednesday morning at 5 AM" as a very seriously clue... :)
What actually happened was this. We'd make the call, wait for the line to
be picked up (the phone never actually "rang") and someone would say "You're
getting closer..." and then hang up on us. We also tried the number that
John gave in the song You Know My Name (look up the number) (listen for the
cuckoo clock). I will never forget these phone calls we made and their
haunting messages and effect it had on my life at that moment in time.
I have no reason to make this story up. Until I wrote about it here when
r.m.beatles was first created, I had thought it was a fairly common thing.
I used to take the PID hoax quite seriously... having scads of clues (most
of which I think went into the PID FAQ?). Then I realized that it was all
true! :) You see, when the Beatles went to India they were "reborn" and as
such the old Beatles were "dead". Hence the allusion about Paul.
)Anyone can weave together an equal number of "clues" having just
)as much validity as those in the PID hoax, about any other band.
)Because they're either all impossible to verify or inaccurate,
)the clues can seem linked. But delving a little deeper into the
)hoax reveals just how tenuous is the whole shebang. When you
)find out, for instance, that a walrus isn't a symbol of death
)in any culture, that Paul *wouldn't* have been "28 IF..." (he
)would have been twenty-seven in fact; what happened?
I'd have to disagree about being able to find such or similar clues about
any other band. As far as accuracy goes, if you count the time Paul's
mother was pregnant with Paul (an additional 9 months or so) he would've
been 28. :) Yes, I'm aware that you can stretch _anything_ and make it
sound or seem plausible. I don't mean to argue with you over something
as subjective as this... But back in the heyday, we we're obsessed with
finding as many clues as we could, regardless of what could or could not
be proven. We also did not have the luxury that we have now, eg, things
like alternate photos from the Sgt Pepper's and Abbey Road sessions.
Perhaps the hoax would've fizzled out if such photographs had been made
available back then? Or perhaps they would've been regarded as additional
clues? Who knows? :) I still think it's uncanny how the photos that did
suggest the strongest clues always ended up being the ones that were used
on their albums. And nobody seems to have been responsible for it!
)Couple that with the testimony from participants in the original
)dissemination of the hoax (Russell Gibb, the deejay who first
)broadcast the myth, and college journalist Fred LaBour, who
)further embellished the hoax with his own invented clues---
)among them William Campbell and the walrus = death symbol!),
William Campbell as I recall, won a Paul look-alike contest and a photo
of him can be found on the poster that came with the White Album. It's
a small photo of him that looks like Paul with black-glasses, toward the
bottom of the poster. Of course, this too could be urban legend...
)and you begin to wonder whether ground zero for the hoax wasn't
)right in our own midwestern backyard---which is where it seems
)to be traceable. No documents, no anecdotes, no overheard
)conversation by, from, around the Beatles by *any*one has ever
)been able to link the hoax to the Fabs.
Yeah, I'm curious about that too. I lived in Racine, Wisconsin (very
mid-west) when I was into all of this, making those phone calls and etc.
)A fertile field for investigation, rather than strictly
)folkloric, is sociological: why do people feel the need to
)believe in the hoax? What contributes to its power? I sense
)that it provides a connectivity between Beatles fans and
)the group they love---an ongoing, evergrowing game of wits
)which invites you to join your mental powers with the Boys
)themselves. It takes great faith to believe that the clues
)make sense (because logically they don't).
I was driven by curiousity, incredulity, and by my massive interest in the
Beatles as a fan who wanted to know the truth. The PID hoax was a mystery
and it demanded my attention. Even the smallest of clues, incorrect or not,
had something to add. The idea being, that all of the clues together might
add up or create the real picture of what actually happened. Of course, I
don't think this was ever resolved as such in my mind, as I eventually
swallowed it as the hoax that it was/is. :) I think I came to this
conclusion after having bought Kum Back in Dec 1969. Upon hearing Dig It,
I was convinced that only Paul could sing like he does on that song...
"if you want it you can dig it up..." and so on...
Perhaps the Beatles did insert a few hidden meanings and symbolism that
alluded to their "rebirth" when they got involved with Indian spirituality?
And then the "hoax" came along and obscured this effort. Rubber Soul as
a title says a lot to me in this regard, as does the cover of Sgt Pepper
where the "early" Beatles are shown as wax figures of their former selves.
--
Bob Pietkivitch
rj...@ihspa.att.com
hey...@delphi.com
F.Grant Whittle
want to. I've seen it on my copy. A lady's beret
becomes an eyesocket. It's really creepy. But,
like a rorschak (sp?) test, it's all in what you
make of it. I showed it to my students once,
and they were mystified.
Best,
F. Grant
saki
>I read the 28 IF turns out, instead, to be 281 F, by the
>way. (Anyone else heard this?)
Right you are: 28 1F. I seem to recall that Paul bought the actual VW recently
at a Sotheby's auction.
>Oh, and Paul's as Buddhist as my grandmother.
Paul was brought up nominally Catholic, had a brief flirtation with
Trranscendental Meditation (not Buddhism), and retains a fair amount
of Christian imagery in his lyrical composition. To my knowledge there's
no reason to suspect that he thinks, or ever thought, that he was really
a year older than he was based on any religious philosophy. Or based
on anything. :-)
do...@yang.earlham.edu
theory, no matter how silly...
THE "PAUL IS BALD" EVIDENCE
The people who devised the "Paul is Dead" (PID) Theory had the
right idea, just the wrong conclusion. Paul was indeed in a car wreck,
but he survived; however, permanent scalp damage left him unable to grow
hair on the top of his head for the rest of his life.
The evidence can be found in many of their songs. "Don't Pass Me
By" is the most explicit, with the line, "You were in a car crash, and you
lost your hair;" an obvious reference. However, many other references can
be found by combing the Canon. (It must be remembered that John was fond
of teasing Paul about his handicap.)
"Come Together:" "He got hair down to his knees..." John teasing Paul.
SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND cover: The hand behind
Paul's head is reaching to adjust his toupee, which is slipping off.
MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR: One of the photos rejected from the booklet
shows Paul with uneven sideburns. It's been published somewhere but I
haven't seen it; a friend told me about it.
"I'm So Tired"/"Blackbird" backwards message, which quite clearly
says, "Paul is bald, kiss him, kiss him." Again, John teasing Paul about
how sexy he looks without the toupee.
"A Day in the Life:" "He blew his mind out in a car...Nobody was
really sure if he was from the house of *BALD*..." More teasing, this
time trying to convince him that no one could tell the difference.
"Glass Onion:" "The Walrus was *BALD*." Too obvious to explain.
Remember, walruses have no fur on their heads.
ABBEY ROAD cover: His bare feet symbolizes his being bare "from
head to toe."
Find your own clues and post them!
--Doug
PS: Needless to say, there's one huge smiley over this whole post...
Stephen Carter
Surely if Paulie is dead then we gave a ghost an honorary degree in
'88?
Unlikely - he looked real to me when we spoke :-)
----
Stephen Carter, Systems & Operations Manager, Computing Services,
University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QJ, UK : S.D.C...@sussex.ac.uk
"Nothing is Beatle Proof!"
saki
> I think the speculation of interest now is, did The Beatles attempt to
>start it? If they didn't start it, is it fairly safe, or at least
>realistic to say that they had fun with it?
If they didn't start it, there's no chance they could have had fun with
it. The rumors about Paul's "death" did not emerge in any media until
after the release of "Abbey Road" on 26 September 1969; the closest
anyone can pinpoint to an actual timeframe is 26 September - 12 October,
the latter being the date on which Russell Gibb and friends made their
historic broadcast. By that time, the Fabs were done recording as a
foursome; they'd just released their last album. They could have added
no more clues, nor had fun with them, because they'd already completed
their oeuvre. They didn't add clues retroactively. That was the work
of the originators of the hoax, who worked backward (I wonder why
traditional clues go no further back than "Yesterday and Today"?)
from the Abbey Road LP to earlier albums.
>There are too many Paul
>oriented clues to dismess as all accidents, etc.
The hoax perpetuators intended it to seem deliberate, and the plethora
of "clues" these days (expanded even today---someone wrote me a note
last week and insisted that a "glass onion" was mortician's slang for
a coffin handle! First time I'd heard that....) lends weight to the
theory that it *must* have all really been there. Of course the clues
can all be debunked or reexplained to prove something else entirely
(viz., Paul's wearing a black carnation and the other Fabs are wearing
red in "MMT"; why is this not proof, in fact, that a very-much-alive
*Paul* was in mourning for his fellows, whose red carnations proved
that *they* were dead, red being indicative of blood, etc.?)
> And if the Fabs had wanted to embed clues into songs and album covers,
>they certainly had the resources at their fingertips. Just consider what
>went into making the Sgt Pepper cover.
Right, but this presupposes that the Fabs *did* plan the whole scheme
from the word go, didn't tell a soul about it, and sat on their practical
joke for over three years before releasing information to a disc-jockey
in the American midwest, and let it disseminate from there.
As preoccupied as the Fabs were with their own creative expressions
(solo as well as group), inner visions, and personal-life restructurings,
it makes no logical sense to me that they'd have time to agree on a
long-term joke to be played upon their unsuspecting public. The way they
fought over various parts of their public and private concerns through
the late sixties, it's hard to imagine them all agreeing to a scheme
as "developed" and "intricate" and the PID hoax.
But I'll bet some fellow (or group of fellows) is still having a laugh
today about how he duped all these Beatles fans in 1969...that is, unless
he became a drug (or worse) casualty years ago.
saki
>Wasn't it actually George Martin who claims the honour of starting the
>backwards stuff, especially on Rain. I remember an interview where he
>said that while John was out of the studio he was messing about with
>bits of the recording, moving them back and forth until it fitted. When
>John came in, he loved it and was hooked, wanting everything to go backwards
>from then on.
This is one circumstance (of many) where varying memories come up
with different stories.
John remembered it as something he himself discovered when he was
stoned and playing with a tape recorder at home; he reversed the
tape and heard his vocals backwards...and therein hangs a tale.
George Martin says that *he* was playing around with John's
vocal (at John's request, who always wanted it to sound different),
lifted a bit of it, turned it around, and "slid it back and forth
until it fitted" (presumably for "Rain", the track Martin was
apparently talking about to Lewisohn, in The Book, p. 74), and
once John heard it, he was besotted by the technique.
"Rain" was recorded on 14 April 1966. "Tomorrow Never Knows"
was recorded a week earlier, and to my ears, it's always
sounded as if there were backward bits in that too, but
Lewisohn doesn't mention that, suggesting that tape reloops
and distortions are responsible for the weird effects. I
could swear that Ringo's drum track (or parts of it) were
reversed, but I wouldn't bet a beer on it.
The genesis of backwards music seems to have been launched
about this time.
BTW, technically, "backwards masking" has another audiophonic
definition entirely, as I understand it. It refers to the
phenomenon of a loud-volume passage of music or sound masking
the received impression of the sound which preceded it, i.e.,
masking backwards over the previous soft notes. Over time, the
phrase has been improperly applied to hidden messages in songs
which are said to be heard (in full diabolical glory, one presumes)
when the song is played backwards. Some attempts at legal flights
of fancy have even tried to suggest that the mind subconsciously
translates the "backwards" commands and hears them in proper
order, but no scientific evidence has ever supported this wild
contention.
Porritt / Simon John (ISE)
err..how about that line in `for you blue` where george sings `i love you
more than ever girl, i do'? not convinced? nope, me neither.. :-)
saki
>In fact, when r.m.beatles was first created (a few years
>back) I posted several messages about my experiences
>calling the MMT phone number (and other such numbers). Do you
>have any of those early messages archived?
Alas, no. R.m.b. was created seven years ago, and its archivist
has not responded to email for over a year now.
>It was during the late fall/early winter of 1969 when me and a friend began
>calling the number we deciphered off of the MMT album cover. We'd call it
>at 11PM (local time) Tuesday nights so it would be about 5AM London time.
>We deduced "Wednesday morning at 5 AM" as a very seriously clue... :)
>
>What actually happened was this. We'd make the call, wait for the line to
>be picked up (the phone never actually "rang") and someone would say "You're
>getting closer..." and then hang up on us. We also tried the number that
>John gave in the song You Know My Name (look up the number) (listen for the
>cuckoo clock). I will never forget these phone calls we made and their
>haunting messages and effect it had on my life at that moment in time.
>
>I have no reason to make this story up....
I'm sure you don't! Nevertheless, it's odd that this story should
turn up using the MMT LP cover "number". Ed Chen just posted the
story of another fellow (who wrote a book about the Fabs many
years ago) whose experience was similar to yours but who used
a different number (a 3-digit one at that!) and got a different
message. It seems to me that if there were a centralized hoax,
numbers should be the same, and messages should be identical.
Otherwise perhaps we're dealing with a more diffuse hoax, one
with several centers, or several wits who took the initial hoax
and embellished it.
>...It's uncanny...that the strongest clues
>clues always ended up being the ones that were used
>on their albums. And nobody seems to have been responsible for it!
Well, the perpetrators only had what was available on LP covers
and on vinyl. Nothing else. For a long time no one scrutinized
the VW license plate carefully enough to figure out that there
were three digits and one letter (28 1F...that's one-F) which
can't be remotely stretched into the clue it was supposed to
have been. But surface clues were all we had.
As for who was responsible, I think we're very close to ground
zero. We may never narrow it down to a specific who, but the
state of origin seems pretty much to be Michigan, with Illinois
the possible alternate. Detroit's Russ Gibb and pals were inspired
by an underground newspaper in his studio; now *someone* wrote
that piece, but it's the missing link. From Russ the hoax
travelled through Fred LaBour at the University of Michigan
and thence to the world, picked up by print and radio media
across the country.
>)Couple that with the testimony from participants in the original
>)dissemination of the hoax (Russell Gibb, the deejay who first
>)broadcast the myth, and college journalist Fred LaBour, who
>)further embellished the hoax with his own invented clues---
>)among them William Campbell and the walrus = death symbol!),
>
>William Campbell as I recall, won a Paul look-alike contest and a photo
>of him can be found on the poster that came with the White Album. It's
>a small photo of him that looks like Paul with black-glasses, toward the
>bottom of the poster. Of course, this too could be urban legend...
The name is fake; the contest was real. One Keith Allison (no relation
to Bob, I trust?) won a contest in 1966, cosponsored by an American
teen magazine (possibly Tiger Beat) and Dick Clark Productions.
Allison was given a minimal chance at recording a few songs and
appeared on "Where the Action Is" once or twice, according to
contrmporary sources. The name William Campbell was invented by
Fred LaBour, whose article was a take-off on Gibb's afternoon
music show of October 12, 1969; Fred said he was originally
thinking of naming the guy Glen Campbell but thought that
would be too obvious.
>)...and you begin to wonder whether ground zero for the hoax wasn't
>)right in our own midwestern backyard---which is where it seems
>)to be traceable. No documents, no anecdotes, no overheard
>)conversation by, from, around the Beatles by *any*one has ever
>)been able to link the hoax to the Fabs.
>
>Yeah, I'm curious about that too. I lived in Racine, Wisconsin (very
>mid-west) when I was into all of this, making those phone calls and etc.
Interesting point. I wonder if old phone records for that region
still exist. Maybe we could find out who set up the MMT phone
number for that time!
>Perhaps the Beatles did insert a few hidden meanings and symbolism that
>alluded to their "rebirth" when they got involved with Indian spirituality?
>And then the "hoax" came along and obscured this effort. Rubber Soul as
>a title says a lot to me in this regard, as does the cover of Sgt Pepper
>where the "early" Beatles are shown as wax figures of their former selves.
Possibly, but "Rubber Soul" was prior to their interest in Indian
religion, however brief that was. The wax figures on "Sgt. Pepper"
were a real attempt to display their past selves, but so was that
album as well, where the main characters, so entrenched in musical
society, attempted to re-create themselves in a new image, and to
shift their personae from one point to another all in the space
of 40-odd minutes. That's the real "concept" of "Sgt. Pepper":
the transmigration of identity, the fluidity of being and knowing.
The PID hoax was clever in its initial run, but never as deep
as the messages the Fabs were ultimately capable of communicating
to us through their actual work---their music. The hoax has a
long life, but it's really in the shadow of the Beatles' much
more monumental artistic accomplishments.
BTW, Headley Westerfield and J. Gray have been very helpful
in enlightening parts of the missing PID puzzle; I'm very
grateful to them. If you, Mr. rjp, are in any way instrumental
in helping fashion the original PID Note (still offered through
r.m.b.), I should like to thank you too for helping to gather
the clues. Your name did not survive on the original manuscript
compiled by the esteemed and erstwhile Jim Kendall, founder
of r.m.b.; but I'll send you a copy and you can tell me how
much of the compilation is yours, and where you'd like your
credits to go. :-)
Anyone not completely bored to tears with this subject might
be interested in a forthcoming book from Popular Culture Press
(available from Beatlefest in November) called "Turn Me On,
Dead Man: The Complete Story of the Paul McCartney Death
Hoax", by Andru J. Reeve. I don't know how dependable or
accurate it will be, or what the focus will be (perhaps
it too will speculate as to the origins), but it might be
worth a perusal. Call 1-800-BEATLES for exact release date.
Dan Kozak
> "Rain" was recorded on 14 April 1966. "Tomorrow Never Knows"
> was recorded a week earlier,
Yes, but when were the TNK overdubs done? (I don't have my copy of The
Book with me). Any backwards effects were by necessity put down as
overdubs.
> and to my ears, it's always sounded as if there were backward bits in
> that too, but Lewisohn doesn't mention that, suggesting that tape
> reloops and distortions are responsible for the weird effects.
The two are not mutually exclusive--you can have a backwards tape loop,
and it sounds to me like some of the loops in TNK are in fact
backwards.
> I could swear that Ringo's drum track (or parts of it) were reversed,
> but I wouldn't bet a beer on it.
I can't recall anything specifically that sounds like backwards
drums/percussion, but I wouldn't rule it out. The drums do have an
extreme compression setting on them that tends to soften the attack
such that it almost sounds like the reverse attack of something that's
been reversed. Listen to how the cymbals on "She Said, She Said"
almost fade in for an example of compression giving a forwards sound
the illusion of backwardness. The easiest way to tell the difference
is to listen to the end of each note/chord--a truly backwards guitar,
piano or other instrument with an attack will have that sucking sound
(like the noise one would make sucking a single strand of pasta into
the mouth rapidly) at the end (i.e. the attack of the sound before it
was reversed).
The guitar solo in the middle of TNK is most definitely backwards (I
think it's Paul).
Dan Kozak (d...@ltpsun.gsfc.nasa.gov)
--
Dan Kozak (d...@ltpsun.gsfc.nasa.gov)
Bob Allison
S> recorded a week earlier, and to my ears, it's always sounded as if
S> there were backward bits in that too, but Lewisohn doesn't mention that,
S> suggesting that tape reloops and distortions are responsible for the
S> weird effects. I could swear that Ringo's drum track (or parts of it)
S> were reversed, but I wouldn't bet a beer on it.
Gee, is it just me or doesn't George's guitar comes spinning out of
nowhere backwards? Or does it just sound backwards?
--
The Scarecrow
bo...@gagme.chi.il.us
Mr M J Brown
dm...@julia.math.ucla.edu (saki) writes:
>BTW, technically, "backwards masking" has another audiophonic
>definition entirely, as I understand it. It refers to the
>phenomenon of a loud-volume passage of music or sound masking
>the received impression of the sound which preceded it, i.e.,
>masking backwards over the previous soft notes. Over time, the
>phrase has been improperly applied to hidden messages in songs
>which are said to be heard (in full diabolical glory, one presumes)
k
Yes, a good point. Backward masking is nothing to do with tapes going
backwards, it is purely an effect within the brain, of a quiet sound
being missed (consciously) because a loud sound followed it.
Gary Parker
Saki sez:
>The name is fake; the contest was real. One Keith Allison (no relation
>to Bob, I trust?) won a contest in 1966, cosponsored by an American
>teen magazine (possibly Tiger Beat) and Dick Clark Productions.
>Allison was given a minimal chance at recording a few songs and
>appeared on "Where the Action Is" once or twice, according to
>contrmporary sources.
Actually, he did more than that if memory serves. Didn't he end up in
Paul Revere and the Raiders as a bass player late in their run?
(that bands name always reminds me of the name of a band I was in when
I was 'bout 16: "Moby Dick and the Wailers". You can't make stuff
like this up folks.)
-Gary (Riffking) Parker
Stephen Carter
I recall that one of the numbers that was alleged to be a clue was
actually the number of a journalist on the (then) Manchester Guardian.
They ran an article on it - presumably in the autumn of '69 which I'm
still trying to track down.
Anyone know where the Grauniad is on microfiche?
snopes
> I'd have to disagree about being able to find such or similar clues about
> any other band.
I wouldn't. The problem is that it takes a snowball effect to work -- you've
got to find some clues, spread the hoax, and hope that other people pick up
on the story and find more clues to fuel the fire. I doubt there are many
people willing to go to such lengths to start a hoax, and no group these days
has the massive popularity and mystique that the Beatles had in 1969 that did
so much to facilitate the spreading of this story. If you really wanted to,
though, you could find plenty of clues in Byrds albums to tell you that
David Crosby was dead, or clues in Rolling Stones albums to tell you that
Brian Jones was going to die.
> As far as accuracy goes, if you count the time Paul's was pregnant with Paul
> (an additional 9 months or so) he would've been 28. Yes, I'm aware that you
> can stretch _anything_ and make it sound or seem plausible.
Exactly. Most of the so-called "clues", such as "28 IF", stretched credulity
beyond the breaking point, but such was the mystique that people would
rationalize anything. Why plant a clue as obvious as the characters on a
license plate, and then use some arcane definition of age to make it work?
> I still think it's uncanny how the photos that did
> suggest the strongest clues always ended up being the ones that were used
> on their albums. And nobody seems to have been responsible for it!
I don't think it's the case that the photos that suggested the strongest clues
were always used; it was merely a case of people finding clues in whatever
photos were used.
First of all, the vast majority of the "Paul is dead" clues were so general
they could have been applied to anyone. Mentions of death, loss, and three
of anything have nothing to do with Paul in particular. Moreover, you could
just as easily demonstrate that it was John who was dead it you put your mind
to it. Look at the cover of Abbey Road -- John dressed all in white at the
head of a procession. That clearly indicates that John has died, become an
angel, and is now leading the other three Beatles into heaven. (Awfully
prophetic, as it turned out.) How about "28IF"? The fact is that John was
exactly 28 when "Abbey Road" was recorded -- no ridiculous "womb" credit
needed to make this one work out. Now look at the cover of "Sgt. Pepper".
Who's standing right behind John? Oscar Wilde. Remember "The Picture of
Dorian Gray"? Get it? John's the one singing about "I'm Only Sleeping"
and "I'm So Tired", as if to assure us that his spirit hasn't left us, only
his physical body. And how is it that John's been told "what it's like to be
dead", and that he feels "like [he's] never been born"? Clearly, John left us
long before 1980. The clues were there for anyone to see.
- snopes
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be here now
)> I'd have to disagree about being able to find such or similar clues about
)> any other band.
(snopes) writes:
)I wouldn't. The problem is that it takes a snowball effect to work -- you've
)got to find some clues, spread the hoax, and hope that other people pick up
)on the story and find more clues to fuel the fire.
I disagree. If it were that simple it would've happened again sometime.
)If you really wanted to,
)though, you could find plenty of clues in Byrds albums to tell you that
)David Crosby was dead, or clues in Rolling Stones albums to tell you that
)Brian Jones was going to die.
Hmm, no I don't think so. I looked and didn't find any. ;)
)First of all, the vast majority of the "Paul is dead" clues were so general
)they could have been applied to anyone. Mentions of death, loss, and three
)of anything have nothing to do with Paul in particular. Moreover, you could
)just as easily demonstrate that it was John who was dead it you put your mind
)to it.
I disagree with you here too. I get the feeling that you don't like the
PID phenomenon and so you just want to put it down. Perhaps you weren't
there in 1969 when it happened? It makes a big difference you know.
Besides, I thought it was fun at the time and humorous now as I look back.
--
Bob Pietkivitch
rj...@ihspa.att.com