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I am doing a project paper on backmasking and submliminal messages in music, can any one offer insights where back masking originated? i heard that the beatles have started it off with one of their songs stating "die paul" or somthing to that effect, i just came to this site by accident before but never posted. I tred to decipher some tracks like the Led Zepplin "stairway to heaven" stanza. I dunno but it sounds like a phonetic coincedence to me but people are basically telling me that it was on their by purpose...i don't know if this is in the right forum but if you guys can help me out, thanx! :h:

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Doug Milton Fri, 04/11/2003 - 13:36

To the best of my memory (others please jump in) there was a story that Paul McCartney died in an auto accident in 1964 and was replaced by the “Paul McCartney look alike winner”. There are supposedly clues on many Beatles albums starting with Sgt. Pepper. The album’s front cover has an array of people all of whom were dead at the time of release. This along with multiple references like a day in the life “someone spoke and I went into a dream, ahhh” about the other band members learning of Paul’s death and revolution #9 where John says “I buried Paul” backwards, to Abby Road where Paul is the only member of the band bare foot on the cover. It’s easy to find these “clues” on vinyl where spinning backwards is easy and fun for the whole family…

Ethan Winer Sat, 04/12/2003 - 03:53

Kumbo,

I can tell you for certain the the whole notion of subliminal messages is a crock. This is not to say that some music tracks don't have stuff embedded in them - I'm sure someone has done this. But the idea that anyone will hear those messages, or be influenced by them, is pure fiction. If you'd like to read more about this, here's a link to the excellent Urban Legends site:

http://www.snopes.com/

Click Music on the main page, then Hidden Messages. Also search for "sibliminal" for some other interesting and relevant info.

--Ethan

falkon2 Sun, 04/13/2003 - 04:57

Probably started as a cute gag like how films put random hidden cameos at hard-to-spot locations.

Of course, some paranoid anti-government (we have more than our fair share of these in this and the last decade) freak must have seen the perfect opportunity to start some trouble.

And, like how 13375p33k dominates the internet just because its perceived to be "cool" and "rebellious", the practice must have spread, silly as it was. Like break-dancing.