Grammys: Helter Skelter, McCartney, Manson, Melcher, More?

On February 8, 2006, during the Grammys, the second song that Paul McCartney decided to sing was "Helter Skelter."

Talk about twilight language.

"Tell me tell me tell me the answer." - Helter Skelter

The Beatles song has been tied to Charles Manson for a long time. As Wikipedia notes: "In December 1968, Charles Manson heard this song, and others from the White Album, and interpreted them as a warning of an approaching race war. He saw the Beatles as the Four Angels of the Apocalypse mentioned in the New Testament book of Revelation and believed their songs were telling him and his followers to prepare themselves ('Look out, cos here she comes!'). Manson referred to this future war as 'Helter Skelter.' The words 'Healter Skelter' [sic] were also written in blood at the scene of one of the murders committed by the Manson Family."

Singing Helter Skelter on February 8th is an intriguing choice, er, coincidence.

February 8, 1942, is the birthday of Terry Melcher.

Terry Melcher (singer/songwriter/producer, b. New York, NY, USA, d. Nov. 19, 2004, Beverly Hills, CA, USA, of cancer). Terry was the son of famed actress/singer Doris Day (her only child) and her first husband, trombonist Al Jorden. (Doris was only 18 when she gave birth to Terry.) 10 years later, he was adopted by Doris Day's third husband, her agent and producer Martin Melcher, and took his surname. Besides composing songs, and producing festivals, Melcher is remembered today as the man most responsible for shaping the 1960s sounds of California-style folk and 'surf' music. In the early 1960's, Melcher started his career as a solo performer. He soon paired with Bruce Johnston (a future 'Beach Boy') as 'Bruce & Terry, and they had several hits. The duo then formed the 'Rip Chords' and had success with their 1964 hit "Hey, Little Cobra." Melcher also performed on the seminal 'Beach Boys' album "Pet Sounds". In the mid-60's, Melcher secured an internship in Columbia's producer-trainee program in New York. As a Columbia Records producer, he returned to California, and was set to work on "Don't Make My Baby Blue" which put Frankie Laine back into the US Top Fifty for the first time since 1957. Terry also worked with such folk and rock pioneers as Gram Parsons, 'The Mamas and the Papas', and Ry Cooder. He also helped to transform the little-known folk-rock band, 'The Byrds', into stars.when he produced their versions of "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Turn, Turn, Turn" (to Everything There is a Season), "The Bells of Rhymney", and later recordings like "Ballad of Easy Rider".

In 1969, Terry Melcher became a peripheral figure in the notorious Charles Manson murder case, when it was determined that Terry had once rented the same house in which actress Sharon Tate and her friends were killed by Manson's followers. There was speculation at the time that Melcher, who knew Manson, was the real intended target because he had turned down Manson's request for a recording contract. However, police established that Melcher had moved and that Manson knew his whereabouts.

From 1968 to 1972, Terry was the executive producer of his mother's television series, "The Doris Day Show", and later co-produced her mid-1980's program, "Doris Day's Best Friends". Also in the 1980s, he co-composed the hit "Kokomo", a song that 1) was featured in the Tom Cruise film "Cocktail", 2) helped stoke a 1980's revival for the Beach Boys, and 3) received a Golden Globe nomination in 1988 for best original song. Terry was always close to his mother, and before his demise had been running various businesses for her and supervising her charitable activities, including the Doris Day Animal Foundation.

Melcher source.

February 8 is the death day of Frank Retz.

In 1998, on February 8, Frank Retz died in car accident in Los Angeles County. A World War II German Army captain who emigrated to America after the war and found success as a businessman became a victim early Sunday of the recent series of powerful storms that slammed the Southland. Frank Retz, 84, was killed when the car he was in fell to the bottom of a 60-foot ravine near his secluded home, off Santa Susana Pass Road. Did he lose control in the rainstorm or did the weight of the car in which he and his friends were riding caused the bridge to collapse? Police were unsure how the accident really happened.

The car, which belonged to Andy and Helen Gattuso, plunged to the bottom of the ravine about 1:30 a.m., authorities said. The Gattusos, both in their 60s, managed to crawl out of the overturned vehicle and climb up the edge of the embankment.

Retz was remembered as a colorful character by his neighbors, who said he boasted of being the stuntman atop the horse in the TV series, "Zorro," and of once physically assaulting Charles Manson, whom he caught trespassing on his property. (Retz source 1).

Frank Retz testified in 1977, that he purchased a portion of the Spahn Ranch in 1967 or 1968 and thereafter negotiated with Spahn for the purchase of the remainder of the ranch. In June 1969, Retz arranged to purchase the Kelly Ranch adjoining the Spahn Ranch and on June 30, 1969, Retz entered the farmhouse and saw Manson and about 20 people lying on the floor. Retz ordered Manson off of his property. Retz called the sheriff. Retz saw Manson on the Kelly property frequently after June 30, 1969, and ordered him off the property. After June 30, 1969, Retz had several conversations with Spahn, many of which were overheard by "Squeaky" Fromme (a Manson family member) about getting Manson and his family off of the Spahn Ranch. Retz told Manson to leave the ranch because Spahn asked Retz to clean up the ranch of the Manson family and he gave Retz a power of attorney. See more at Retz source 2.