Helter Skelter (song)

Helter Skelter
The Beatles
publication	November 22, 1968
length	4 min 30 s
Genre (s)	Hard rock , proto- metal
Author (s)	Lennon / McCartney
album	The Beatles

Helter Skelter ( English headlong [accordingly] or helter-skelter ) is a song by British rock band The Beatles , mainly by Paul McCartney was written, although all of his and John Lennon's Beatles compositions under the general copyright Lennon / McCartney were published. It was recorded on September 9, 1968 and released on the White Album on November 22 of the same year . An alternate version of the piece, recorded on July 18, appeared on the 1996 album Anthology 3 .

History of origin

Helter Skelter as a single B-side , 1976

McCartney had read that The Who had claimed in the English music magazine Melody Maker that they had written the loudest and heaviest rock song of all time (I Can See for Miles) . Gripped by ambition, McCartney decided that the loudest and heaviest song had to come from the Beatles and then wrote Helter Skelter . In fact, the piece, of which three different versions were recorded on July 18, 1968 and the longest of which has a playing time of 27:11 minutes, has a clear affinity with the hard rock music style that was just developing at the time : this is mainly due to its extensive use of distortion and feedback on the electric guitars and McCartney's screaming vocals. Ringo Starr also contributes with his very hard hit drums . You can put it at the end of the recording with the exclamation "I got blisters on my fingers" ( "I have blisters on the fingers") to hear. John Lennon plays the Fender VI bass. A piano was also used. Saxophone and trumpet were John Lennon and roadie Mal Evans , who on this occasion is the name of The Two Harry gave in overdubbing added method. It was the first track that was completely recorded with the new eight-track device from Abbey Road Studios . Until then, four-track devices had been used.

The helter skelter slide in the amusement park in Brighton

The piece packs the reflection on a relationship into a visit to an amusement park: the image of a slide is used in the first few lines . The large slide at the end of the pier in the British seaside resort of Brighton , dating from the 1920s, is called Helter Skelter . McCartney took this as a symbol for the "frenzied ride from the summit to the very bottom".

Impact history

Charles Manson used the song for his helter-skelter theory , which deals with an apocalyptic race war that he and his followers believed they could start with the brutal murders of film actress Sharon Tate and other members of Los Angeles high society . Don McLean alluded to this in his song American Pie with the line “Helter Skelter in a summer swelter”.

Cover versions

• In 1978 the group Siouxsie and the Banshees released a cover version on their debut album The Scream.
• In 1981 Pat Benatar recorded a cover version for her album Precious Time .
• Another version comes from the American band Hüsker Dü . It appeared on the B-side of the EP Don't Want to Know If You Are Lonely in 1986 .
• The cover version of the Irish band U2 was released as a live recording in 1988 on the album Rattle And Hum .
• In 1991 a version of the song by the group Aerosmith appeared on the compilation Pandora's Box , which was created in 1975 during the recording of their third album Toys in the Attic .
• The album 2nd Skin by the Eschweger punk band The Bates, which was released in 2000, features another cover version of the piece. With the options available today, the song sounds a lot harder and louder than was possible in the 1960s. In the booklet to the record it was stated: "If the bands were to arrange and produce the songs in question today, they would probably sound very similar to our versions."
• Also in 2000, Oasis released a cover version of the piece on the B-side of their single Who Feels Love? as well as a live version on the album Familiar to Millions .
• The melodic death metal band Dimension Zero also covered the piece, which can be found on the re-release of their Penetrations from the Lost World EP from 2003.
• The glam metal band Motley Crue in 1983 released their cover version on their album Shout at the Devil (and in their best-of album Red, White & Crüe in 2005).
• The rock band Thrice plays the song occasionally when performing live . This cover version is also included on the CD version of the Beggars album.
• On the EP Coverfield of the metalcore band Caliban you can find this song among other tracks.
• In February 2015, the Moscow punk rock band Pussy Riot released a cover version on their album Won't Get Fooled Again
• The German rock band Kadavar released a cover version as the B-side of their single Die Baby Die in 2017
• The American rock musicians Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson also released a joint cover version in 2018.

Web links

• Song facts

Individual evidence

1. ^ Mark Lewisohn: The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions: The Official Story of the Abbey Road Years . Hamlyn, 2004, ISBN 0-600-61207-4 , p. 143.
2. ↑ ^{a b} More than Words. It's Time for Helter Skelter ( English )
3. ↑ Barry Miles: Paul McCartney. Many Years From Now. Rowohlt, Reinbek 1998, p. 606.
4. ↑ The Influence of The Beatles on Charles Manson ( Memento of the original from March 9, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ( english )  
5. ↑ Who Feels Love? Release information. Oasis, accessed January 12, 2013 .