Strange urban myths of the 70s
Steve and Cara
OK, it was nothing quite up to the standards of "Paul is Dead," but
there were some really strange rumors going around in the late '70s
regarding what was embedded in certain songs. The one I remember most
clearly was from the Ohio Players' "Roller Coaster." During one of the
instrumentals (I know, it was disco and there really weren't any
instrumentals) there was a scream in the extreme background. Rumor had
it, at least at my high-school, that the woman who posed on the cover of
the albums (you may remember her clothed in honey, a clear plastic fire
hose, etc.) was murdered while the song was being recorded and it just
kind of slipped onto the tape.
We really believed it, too. Just like we believed that the stuff inside
of golf balls was a powerful acid that would kill you.
OK, maybe people who grew up in the 70s were gullible, but at least we
didn't believe that eating pop-rocks and drinking pepsi would make you
explode.
Steve
HSC
During one of the
>instrumentals (I know, it was disco and there really weren't any
>instrumentals) there was a scream in the extreme background. Rumor had
>it, at least at my high-school, that the woman who posed on the cover of
>the albums (you may remember her clothed in honey, a clear plastic fire
>hose, etc.) was murdered while the song was being recorded and it just
>kind of slipped onto the tape.
I happen to know, on very good authority from a friend that actually
used to live in Ohio, that the woman in question WAS killed, just
outside the recording studio, as the tape was rolling.
Andrew Crossett
In article <325B34...@mailhost.efn.org>,
Steve and Cara <scl...@mailhost.efn.org> wrote:
> OK, maybe people who grew up in the 70s were gullible, but at least we
>didn't believe that eating pop-rocks and drinking pepsi would make you
>explode.
But that's what killed Mikey! Poor Mikey. That's one of about 6 things that he
was supposed to have died of. He must be getting pretty paranoid by now,
wherever he is.
My favorite stupid-little-kid myth was the one about the spider eggs that were
supposed to be in Bubble Yum.
Andy Crossett
a...@spectra.net
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"The Revenge of the Rose", M. Moorcock
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----John Gilmore
Hobbs
Steve and Cara wrote:
>
> OK, it was nothing quite up to the standards of "Paul is Dead," but
> there were some really strange rumors going around in the late '70s
> regarding what was embedded in certain songs. The one I remember most
> instrumentals (I know, it was disco and there really weren't any
> instrumentals) there was a scream in the extreme background. Rumor had
> it, at least at my high-school, that the woman who posed on the cover of
> the albums (you may remember her clothed in honey, a clear plastic fire
> hose, etc.) was murdered while the song was being recorded and it just
> kind of slipped onto the tape.
I thought we thoroughly debunked that one, but, these things die hard.
> We really believed it, too. Just like we believed that the stuff inside
> of golf balls was a powerful acid that would kill you.
Oh hell, that one's been going around since the 1940's. Of course
some golf balls *might* have had a caustic substance in them at one
time, so there might be a ring of truth to that one.
Diane Kerner
In article <weissl.156...@cfs.purdue.edu>, wei...@cfs.purdue.edu (Laura Weiss Linger) wrote:
What about the Great
>Cracker-Jack Tattoo Prize Laced With LSD myth of the late seventies? I
>remember this one circulating in my town circa 1978. Our hometown newspaper
>even ran a feature about it!!
>
>--laura weiss linger
Don't laugh too loud... I saw a version of this one posted on my office
bulletin board this year. Plus ca change...
Paul Goldschmidt
Hobbs <ab...@lafn.org> wrote:
Have you checked out Jan Brunvand's urban legend books (The Choking
Doberman, Curses Broiled Again, The Baby Train)? There's also a trade
comic paperback of 'em!
jim and/or ann
HSC wrote:
>
> During one of the
> >instrumentals (I know, it was disco and there really weren't any
> >instrumentals) there was a scream in the extreme background. Rumor had
> >it, at least at my high-school, that the woman who posed on the cover of
> >the albums (you may remember her clothed in honey, a clear plastic fire
> >hose, etc.) was murdered while the song was being recorded and it just
> >kind of slipped onto the tape.
>
> used to live in Ohio, that the woman in question WAS killed, just
> outside the recording studio, as the tape was rolling.
If something like this had actually happened--a murder outside a
Chicago recording studio while a major pop group was working
inside--you'd be able to find some documentation--a newspaper report, a
police report, something. And nobody, to my knowledge, ever has. It's
always "a friend of a friend" who swears it happened. (Never mind that
given the soundproofing of the typical studio, the chances of anything
outside of it being picked up on tape inside are mighty slim.)
We've discussed this particular urban legend in this newsgroup
before, and it's just that--an urban legend without a shred of truth to
it, like the one about the stoned babysitter who put the baby in the
microwave. The part about the murder victim being the woman on the
album covers is a new twist, however. The song in question, by the way,
is "Love Rollercoaster" by the Ohio Players, which was recorded in
Chicago.
jim
Eric Young
In article <326906...@netins.net>, jim and/or ann
<jbar...@netins.net> wrote:
> HSC wrote:
> >
> > During one of the
> > >instrumentals (I know, it was disco and there really weren't any
> > >instrumentals) there was a scream in the extreme background. Rumor had
> > >it, at least at my high-school, that the woman who posed on the cover of
> > >the albums (you may remember her clothed in honey, a clear plastic fire
> > >hose, etc.) was murdered while the song was being recorded and it just
> > >kind of slipped onto the tape.
> >
> (Never mind that
> given the soundproofing of the typical studio, the chances of anything
> outside of it being picked up on tape inside are mighty slim.)
I used to use this argument to debunk this myth that managed to reach even
my small town of Pleasant Grove, Utah. Glad to hear that somebody else
understands the extreme improbability of a scream penetrating into the
studio.
Didn't anyone in the 70's ever stop to realize that it was a roller
coaster scream placed in the song on purpose? Just listen next time you're
at the local amusement park.
Steve and Cara
Eric Young wrote:
> Didn't anyone in the 70's ever stop to realize that it was a roller
> coaster scream placed in the song on purpose? Just listen next time you're
> at the local amusement park.
>
> -Eric
> http://ccwf.cc.utexas.edu/~ericy
Oh, right. And next you'll be telling me that a friend of a friend
*didn't* find a fried rat in his Kentucky Fried Chicken.
Sure we realized it. Did people in the eighties realize that it would
be nearly impossible for a hypodermic syringe to fall into a Pepsi can?
Sure they did. It just made a neat story.
Steve
robbin decker
I missed the original post on the "scream", what album was this on?
Basil Fawlty
you forgot to mention spider eggs in Bubble Yum
jim and/or ann
Our recent discussion of urban legends led me to check out
www.urbanlegends.com, which is an archive of dozens of good ones.
Consult it the next time someone swears Walt Disney had himself frozen.
jim
Steve Ellis
Walt was never frozen? Damn! That kills the premise of one of my favorite
Michael O'Donoghue stories, "O Comes to America". Remember when the National
Lampoon was Funny?
Steve
Steve and Cara
I used to sneak into my parents' room where they hid the Nat Lamps. I
will admit, I got no small thrill out of, oh what was his name,
something like "Vinny Shinblind the invisible sex maniac." Pretty racy
stuff.
Another Steve
robbin decker
jim and/or ann <jbar...@netins.net> wrote:
>Our recent discussion of urban legends led me to check out
>www.urbanlegends.com, which is an archive of dozens of good ones.
>Consult it the next time someone swears Walt Disney had himself frozen.
>jim
Went there, fun way to burn up a rainy afternoon, lots of cool stuff
even with the Gerbil fixation.