“Six years ago when I was writing I used a pen name. This pen name described my personality and what I grew up admiring - Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson. Both were icons for different reasons. They both reached opposite extremes. This is something I have always felt in my own character - opposite extremes, dichotomy, diametrically opposed archetypes….” - Marilyn Manson The Black Flame, Volume 6 no.1 & 2, pg 4, (Early 1996)



Marilyn Manson‘s cover of “Helter Skelter” with Rob Zombie is a representation of and nod to the origins, fundamental ideas, and cultural landscape that created the name, ideology, and concept of “Marilyn Manson” itself.



An infamous part of The Beatles’ self titled double album, (also known as The White Album), “Helter Skelter” was originally released on November 22, 1968. The track was written by Paul McCartney to be the loudest, rawest, and overall dirtiest song The Beatles had released. Partially a response to those who accused McCartney of only writing ballads, the track instantly polarized critics who either lauded it with the utmost praise, or criticized the “savage shrieking” and “undercurrents of violence” in the song. (Rolling Stone)

First edition of the Beatles “Helter Skelter” promotional single on vinyl.

While “Helter Skelter” was controversial musically, the song’s infamy and prevailing notoriety is due primarily to its interpretation by American cult leader and singer/songwriter, Charles Manson.

Charles Manson at the LaBianca Tate trial in 1970.

Charles Manson was an American cult leader, singer/songwriter, and fringe musician. A lifelong convict, Manson formed and led what was later dubbed as the “Manson Family” in the summer of 1967. Considered by many to be a cult, the “Family” consisted of nearly 100 followers of Manson, (mainly young white women from middle class backgrounds), that revered his teachings and carried out his orders, including the infamous 1969 LaBianca Tate murders.

Charles Manson with members of the Manson Family. Photo from Dianne Lake’s book Member of the Family.

Charles Manson was a devout Beatles fan. When The White Album was released on November 22, 1968, Manson obsessively listened to the record over and over again as he interpreted what he thought were subliminal messages in the lyrics of the songs on the album. Manson believed that the White Album was a coded prophecy of an apocalyptic race war that he deemed “Helter Skelter”, a title that he derived from the Beatles song by the same name.

“When the White Album came out, Charlie listened to it over and over and over and over again. He was quite certain that the Beatles had tapped in to his spirit, the truth—that everything was gonna come down and the black man was going to rise. It wasn’t that Charlie listened to the White Album and started following what he thought the Beatles were saying. It was the other way around. He thought that the Beatles were talking about what he had been expounding for years. Every single song on the White Album, he felt that they were singing about us. The song ‘Helter Skelter'—he was interpreting that to mean the blacks were gonna go up and the whites were gonna go down.” - Catherine Share, Manson, (2009)

Manson’s “Helter Skelter” scenario referred to a race war between the African Americans and Caucasians where, “racist and non-racist whites would be maneuvered into virtually exterminating each other over the treatment of blacks.” (Bugliosi) Manson first used the term “Helter Skelter” at Barker Ranch during a gathering of the Family on New Year’s Eve in 1968, and by February of 1969, his full “Helter Skelter” scenario of events had been realized.

Members of the Manson Family at Barker Ranch in 1969.

As detailed in prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi’s novel Helter Skelter, Manson and “the Family” were to create an album of songs that, (in Manson’s mind), like the White Album contained subtle messages about the impending race war. However, rather than merely serving as a prophecy for the conflict, the album would trigger it by instructing “the young love”, (America’s white youth), to join the Family, and in doing this, would draw the young, white female hippies out of San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury district. As a result of this, Manson believed that black men would be sexually deprived of the white women that the political changes of the 1960’s had made available to them, and in response to being without this outlet for their frustrations, would lash out in violent crimes against whites. Militant blacks would then exploit the resulting murderous rampage by frightened whites to provoke an internecine war of near-extermination between racist and non-racist whites over blacks’ treatment. After the war, the militant blacks would arise to finish off the few whites they would know to have survived. The members of the Family were to wait this out in a secret city underneath Death Valley that they would reach through a hole in the ground, (the bottomless pit). Upon the war’s final conclusion, Manson and the Family would emerge from the underground city and would rule the blacks, who, as the vision went, would be incapable of running America. (Bugliosi)



An interior door at The Family’s home at Spahn Ranch. Note that “Helter Skelter” is written followed by “is coming down fast”, which are the lyrics from the Beatles song of the same name. Photo credit to Manson Blog.

Manson’s “Helter Skelter” scenario eventually led to the murder of Manson family acquaintance Gary Hinman on July 27, 1969, and to the infamous LaBianca Tate murders on August 9-10, 1969. In October of 1969, Charles Manson and “Family” members Susan Atkins, Leslie Van Houten, and Patricia Krenwinkel were taken into police custody. The four were tried for the LaBianca Tate murders from June of 1970 - January of 1971, in what has gone down as one of the most bizarre and chaotic trials in the history of California. “Family” member Tex Watson was taken into custody in 1971 for the crimes, and was tried separately later that year. All five of the defendants were convicted of first degree murder, and were initially sentenced to death, and later to life in prison with the overturn of the death penalty in California in 1972.



Los Angeles Times headline from January 26, 1971, the day after Charles Manson, Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Leslie Van Houten were convicted for the LaBianca Tate murders.

During his testimony at the LaBianca Tate trial, Charles Manson elaborated on the meaning of Helter Skelter, stating;

“[Helter Skelter] means confusion, literally. It doesn’t mean any war with anyone. It doesn’t mean that some people are going to kill other people… Helter Skelter is confusion… Confusion is coming down around you fast. If you can’t see the confusion coming down around you fast, you can call it what you wish. Is it a conspiracy that the music is telling the youth to rise up against the establishment because the establishment is rapidly destroying things? Is that a conspiracy? The music speaks to you every day, but you are too deaf, dumb, and blind to even listen to the music… It is not my conspiracy. It is not my music. I hear what it relates. It says “Rise,” It says “Kill.” Why blame it on me? I didn’t write the music…” - Charles Manson, November 20, 1970. Testimony transcript courtesy of Famous Trials.

Charles Manson with his attorney Irving Kanarek at the LaBianca Tate trial. Photo credit to Manson Direct.

As of July 2018, only three of the five members of the Manson Family that were convicted of the LaBianca Tate murders are still alive. Patricia Krenwinkel, Tex Watson, and Leslie Van Houten continue to serve their life sentences in prison. Susan Atkins passed away in September 24, 2009 from brain cancer, and Charles Manson passed away on November 19, 2017 from colon cancer.



As seen through the song’s cover art and live performances, the iconography of Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie’s cover of “Helter Skelter” makes a number of references to Charles Manson and his “Helter Skelter” scenario.

The cover art of the “Helter Skelter” single contains a number of clear references to the LaBianca Tate murders. To start, the font style of the words “Helter Skelter” and angling of the word “Helter” on the single’s cover art is a direct reference to the LaBianca crime scene. Manson Family member Patricia Krenwinkel wrote “Healter Skelter” in Leno LaBianca’s blood at the crime scene at Charles Manson’s request. The writing was part of Manson’s plan to frame the Black Panthers for the killings to incite the “Helter Skelter" race war.

Misspelled “Healter skelter” written on the fridge at the LaBianca crime scene in Leno LaBianca’s blood. Photo credit to Cielo Drive.

The red and black splatter on the cover is also a reference to both the Tate and LaBianca crime scenes. All of the victims of the LaBianca and Tate murders were brutally stabbed to death. Between the seven victims there were a total of 169 stab wounds. As a result, both of the crime scenes, (pictured below) were incredibly gruesome and had blood splattered everywhere.



Photo from outside the front door of the Tate crime scene. Note the similarity in splatter pattern between the photo and the cover art of Marilyn Manson’s “Helter Skelter.” Photo credit to Cielo Drive.

Photo from outside the front door of the Tate crime scene. Photo credit to Cielo Drive.

Photo from the autopsy of Rosemary LaBianca. Note the similarity between the stab wounds in black and white and the black splatter on the cover art of “Helter Skelter.” Photo credit to Cielo Drive.

Black and white photo from outside the front door of the Tate crime scene. Photo credit to Cielo Drive.

The inverted pentagram on the cover art of “Helter Skelter” is also a reference to the Manson Family.

Close up of the pentagram on the “Helter Skelter” cover art.

The inverted pentagram has long been associated with the devil and satanism. The specific pentagram used in the cover art of “Helter Skelter” is the Sigil of Baphomet, the official insiginia of the Church of Satan.

The Sigil of Baphomet.

The sigil of Baphomet on cover of the first edition of The Satanic Bible.

The Sigil of Baphomet was first used by Anton Szandor LaVey in 1966 when he founded the Church of Satan. LaVeyan Satanism utilizes the symbol as “material pentagram that is representative of carnality and earthy principles.” (Church of Satan) The Church of Satan connects to Manson’s cover of “Helter Skelter” in a number of ways.” First, as it is commonly known, Marilyn Manson was friends with the late Anton LaVey, and was given the honorary title of Reverend in the Church of Satan by LaVey in 1994.

Marilyn Manson and Anton LaVey in 1994.

Additionally, the Church of Satan also connects directly with the Manson Family through Family member Susan Atkins. Susan Atkins was part of the Church of Satan in San Francisco from late 1966 to mid 1967. Atkins played the role of “Vampire” as a go go dancer in Anton LaVey’s “Satanic Revue” in 1966, and partook in a number of satanic masses and rituals during her time in the Church of Satan.

Susan Atkins during one of the Church of Satan’s rituals. Note the Sigil of Baphomet in the left hand corner.

Susan Atkins performing in Anton LaVey’s “Satanic Revue” in 1966. Atkins is on stage in the coffin under the Sigil of Baphomet.

Susan Atkins’ participation in the Church of Satan ended when she met Charles Manson in the summer of 1967. Despite claims of satanic involvement, Charles Manson was never a part of the Church of Satan, and actually identified as a Scientologist for a period of time. Regardless, the inclusion of the Sigil of Baphomet on the cover art for Marilyn Manson’s cover of “Helter Skelter” is a clear nod to the Manson Family due to Susan Atkins’ involvement in the Church of Satan, and her prominent role in the LaBianca Tate murders.



Susan Atkins during one of the Church of Satan’s rituals. Atkins is laying on the altar under the Sigil of Baphomet.



References to the Manson Family and the LaBianca Tate murders are also seen in the live performances of “Helter Skelter” on the Twins of Evil: The Second Coming Tour. The most explicit of these references are seen in the videos and photos utilized as the backdrop in the live performances of the song. Various videos of Charles Manson as well as photos and videos of Manson Family members Susan Atkins, Leslie Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel, Tex Watson, Robert Beausoleil, Linda Kasabian, Steven Grogan, Bruce Davis, and Mary Brunner play in the background throughout the song. Each of these members of the Manson Family partook in either the murder of Gary Hinman, the Tate murders, the LaBianca murders, or the murder of Spahn ranch hand Donald Shea. Additonally, Sharon Tate, Abigail Folger, Steven Parent, and other victims of the Manson Family murders, as well as the house at 10050 Cielo Drive where the Tate murders occurred, are shown on screen during the live performances of the song.

“Helter Skelter” performed live at the Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, on July 17, 2018.

Marilyn Manson’s dancing in the live performances of “Helter Skelter” is also a reference to Charles Manson. Charles Manson had a tendency to act erratically during interviews. This behavior sometimes manifested as Manson getting up and wildly dancing in the middle of interviews. Manson’s random and chaotic movements came seemingly out of nowhere and had no visible cause. As a result, these occurrences were usually used as evidence to try and prove to the public that Manson was mentally unhinged. As seen below, Marilyn Manson’s dance moves during the live performances of “Helter Skelter” mirror Charles Manson’s dancing on these occasions.



Marilyn Manson dancing during “Helter Skelter” on the Twins of Evil The Second Coming Tour at the Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, on July 17, 2018. Note that the below clip of Charles Manson dancing during his infamous WSVN Miami interview is playing on the screens in the background of the performance. Full performance video here.

Clip from Charles Manson’s infamous WSVN Miami Interview.

Clip of Charles Manson dancing during his interview with Nicolas Schreck in 1989.

The references to Charles Manson in Marilyn Manson’s work stem far beyond his “Helter Skelter” cover with Rob Zombie. In addition to the creation of the name “Marilyn Manson” from the names Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson, Marilyn Manson has referenced Charles Manson in his iconography, music, merchandise, and more since the days of Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids.

A young Marilyn Manson wearing a t-shirt of Charles Manson’s infamous 1969 LIFE Magazine cover. Photo credit to Spookykids.net.

Charles Manson has been part of the iconography of Marilyn Manson since the band’s start. As seen in the show posters and fan newsletters below, illustrations and images of Charles Manson were utilized heavily in the early promotional materials for Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids.





Flyer from Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids’ second show ever on May 3, 1990 at the Reunion Room in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Note Charles Manson’s head on the female body in the center of the poster. Photo credit to Spookykids.net.

“Manson Money” that was handed out at early Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids shows circa 1991. Note the image of Charles Manson’s eyes from his infamous 1969 LIFE Magazine cover on the middle dollar bill. Photo credit to Spookykids.net.

Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids’ newsletter from June 1991. Note Charles Manson’s eyes from his 1969 LIFE Magazine cover at the top left hand corner. Photo credit to Spookykids.net.

Poster from Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids’ show at The Squeeze in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on December 4, 1991. Note Charles Manson on the right of the Grinch from Dr. Seuss. Photo credit to Spookykids.net.

Poster from Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids’ show at The Squeeze in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on February 5, 1992. Note Charles Manson on Fred from Scooby Doo’s body. Photo credit to Spookykids.net.

The very first Marilyn Manson logo was, (the now infamous), “Eyes” design. The original logo, (pictured below), displays "MARILYN MANSON” in the signature font utilized throughout the early years of Marilyn Manson, with an image of Marilyn Manson’s sultry gaze above the word “MARILYN” and Charlie Manson’s fervid stare below the word “MANSON.”

Flyer featuring Marilyn Manson’s first logo. Photo credit to Spookykids.net.

Imagery of Charles Manson was also utilized in early merchandise for Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids, and when the band became “Marilyn Manson” in 1993.

Early Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids t-shirt featuring an image of Charles Manson’s 1969 LIFE Magazine cover with Marilyn Monroe in his eyes. This imagery is also seen throughout the early show posters of the band and represents the central dichotomy of the name and idea of “Marilyn Manson.” Photo credit to TSHIRTSLAYER.

Early Marilyn Manson t-shirt featuring the “Eyes” logo. Also note the further reference to Charles Manson on the shirt’s sleeve with “Kill the Pigs”, a nod to the LaBianca crime scene.

Marilyn Manson also made a number of musical references to Charles Manson during the Spooky Kids era. The song “Dune Buggy” off of Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids’ 1990 cassette tape Grist O’Line, and the band’s 1991 cassette tape Lunchbox, is a reference to Charles Manson and his desert hideaway in Death Valley.

Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids performing “Dune Buggy” live in Florida in 1991.

Part of Charles Manson’s plan for “Helter Skelter” consisted of the Family building a fleet of agile dune buggies, (the dune buggy attack battalion), to outrun the cops and the race war as they traveled from Los Angeles to “the bottomless pit” near Barker Ranch in Death Valley. The Manson Family set up their own dune buggy assembly plant on Spahn Ranch to create the fleet. “Family” members stole Porsches and Volkswagens, brought them to the plant, stripped the cars of their parts, then made dune buggies out of the skeletons of the cars. The dune buggies were built to handle the desert terrain that is found in Death Valley, and were light weight enough for two to three people to easily move, thus making them Charles Manson’s ideal mode of transportation for evading the law. Machine gun mounts were also placed on top of the dune buggies, per Charles Manson’s orders, for the Family to utilize if needed. Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids’ song “Dune Buggy” is a reference to the Manson Family’s fleet of dune buggies, as evidenced by the song’s title, and its’ intro which goes; “They’d mount machine guns on top of the dune buggies. And the girls would drive the dune buggy while the guys shot the machine guns. We’d swoop down on the town and kill everyone that wasn’t beautiful.” - “Dune Buggy”, Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids.

Members of the Manson Family in one of their dune buggies. Photo credit to Cielo Drive.

Marilyn Manson and the Spooky Kids also released an original spoken word track entitled “Helter Skelter” on the 1992 Spooky Kids Announcement cassette tape. The track features Marilyn Manson reciting various quotes and references to Charles Manson, including, “Helter skelter”, “I am not a cult, we are not a cult, we were a music group, we have nothing to do with murder, we were called the family jams…”, “I am the god of fuck”, (which would later be utilized on Portrait of an American Family as the hook of “Cake and Sodomy”, and, “For days we traveled the desert, the nights we traveled the desert, when we come upon the bottomless pit we will hide and after Armageddon we will return…”



Marilyn Manson and The Spooky Kids’ original track “Helter Skelter.”

In addition to their original spoken word track, Marilyn Manson also performed a cover of The Beatles’ “Helter Skelter” in 1992. According to the late Scott Putesky, (Daisy Berkowitz), the live performance took place before or after the Jammy Awards at the Hard Rock Cafe in Orlando, FL in 1992. While Manson’s solo cover never received an official release, his cover of the song with Rob Zombie makes for an interesting full circle moment that reflects the theme Manson has discussed of going back to his musical roots and inspirations with Heaven Upside Down.

Marilyn Manson performing The Beatles “Helter Skelter” live in Orlando, Florida in 1992.

Marilyn Manson also performed a cover of “Come Together” off The Beatles’ 1969 album Abbey Road in the early 1990’s. Abbey Road was seen as the “epilogue” to Charles Manson’s focus on the White Album. When Abbey Road was released, the Manson Family was at Barker Ranch searching for the “bottomless pit” that they would use to descend into the city under Death Valley while the “Helter Skelter” race war raged above them on Earth. The Family instantly purchased the album and listened to it on repeat to hear any further subliminal messages that the Beatles might have for them.

Marilyn Manson performing “Come Together” live in the early 90′s.

It is worth noting that “Come Together” is sampled in the introduction of the song “My Monkey” off of Marilyn Manson’s debut album Portrait of an American Family. Typical to the level of intricacy and depth that is found within Marilyn Manson’s work, the allusions to “Helter Skelter” span across Manson’s entire career, and are infinitely connected to one another. Manson’s cover of “Helter Skelter” is a further illustration both of the numerous references to Charles Manson found throughout Marilyn Manson’s career, and to the numerous connections between Heaven Upside Down and the rest of Manson’s work.

The references to Charles Manson, Helter Skelter, and The Beatles in Marilyn Manson’s work from Portrait of an American Family to the current Heaven Upside Down era will be discussed in further depth in part 2 of our “Helter Skelter” analysis.

Thank you for reading part 1 of our two part analysis of Marilyn Manson’s “Helter Skelter” cover. Be on the look out for part 2 of our analysis coming later this week!

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Parts 1, 2, & 3 of Our 3 Part Analysis on Manson’s June 2018 Kerrang! Cover:

Manson’s June 2018 Kerrang! Cover Analysis Part 1:

Manson’s June 2018 Kerrang! Cover Analysis Part 2:



Manson’s June 2018 Kerrang! Cover Analysis Part 3:

