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February 22, 2006

Myths and Legends

Today's "My Three Songs," from Richard Baum of St. Paul, concerned myths and "urban legends" in music. The scream during "Love Rollercoaster," the whole "Paul is dead" thing, bluesman Robert Johnson selling his soul to the devil. I was trying to think of some others, and the only one I came up with concerned an emergency-room visit by Rod Stewart (alternate version to that one: Michael Jackson). *Ahem*. Anybody think of any others? Please, keep the discussion rated G.

Posted by Steve Seel at 12:36 PM

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I just came here from Snopes, since I hadn't heard the one about Love Rollercoaster.

http://www.snopes.com/music/hidden/hidden.asp

http://www.snopes.com/music/songs/songs.asp

And it was Elton John who got his stomach pumped. (Okay, not really.)

Posted by Dan Nordquist at February 22, 2006 12:53 PM



KISS legends:
KISS stands for Kings In Satan's Service or Knights In Satan's Service

Gene Simmons had part of a cow tongue grafted onto his own.

Frank Zappa:
FZ was the son of Captain Kangaroo's "Mr. Green Jeans" - Lumpy Branneman, because he wrote a song, "Son of Mr. Green Genes"

FZ won a "gross out contest" after eating certain material on stage. (search for yourself)

Alice Cooper:
AC was believed to have been Jerry Mathers from "Leave it to Beaver"

Posted by Frick at February 22, 2006 1:05 PM



Oh yeah! There was another one about Alice Cooper, which I think might be a variation on the Frank Zappa "gross-out contest" one. Remember? Passing a pitcher around the audience, et cetera. Yuck, I'm feeling sick just remembering that one.

I'd forgotton all the Kiss ones. There's also the one about the dinner that somebody had attended, supposedly where all the members of the band said grace beforehand and were civil and even quasi-Christian, ostensibly dis-proving the other myth (!) about their Satanic tendencies. Funny.

Posted by Steve Seel at February 22, 2006 2:33 PM



There was also an urban legend about the Electric Light Orchestra's first album in 1970. Supposedly the album was released without a title in the UK. But United Artists, the American label, wanted the album to have a title for its release here.

So someone from United Artists called London to ask the band's manager what title the album should have. The caller couldn't get through, and wrote the words "No answer" on the notepad.

Through some clerical error, the album was released in the United States as "No Answer".

Seems too good to be true, but that's the story.

Posted by Michael Popham at February 23, 2006 10:43 AM



What about the Pink Floyd stuff? The Wall? Backwards message, etc... How do you do that with a cd nowadays?

Posted by Reboots DaMachina at February 24, 2006 9:48 PM