Manson, Charles

Sings

Label: ESP Country: USA

"Charles Manson visited New York City in the early 60s with his guitar and his songs in a vain search for recognition. In Beverly Hills, famous musicians gave him their studio to produce this album. He has vocal backup from the women of the "family". During a stay in a San Francisco prison, he met a fellow inmate, and gave him the album to release. While Manson was being tried and convicted of participation in the murder spree, the government attempted to discredit the hippie movement by citing him as an example, hoping to defuse the rising tide of anger among the population over the war in Viet Nam.

Because his songs were considered musically and historically significant, this record was released briefly by ESP in 1974, and is now being reissued. All royalties are paid to the son of one of the victims, who obtained a judgment against Manson."-ESP

"The world Manson entered was one that didn't exist when he was incarcerated; like many hardened criminals in 1967, Manson made a beeline for San Francisco, where the Summer of Love was in full blossom, offering the hype of LSD and free love and rock stardom to anybody with long hair. Manson relocated to Los Angeles and began following up on the music leads he had acquired. He networked himself relentlessly, making contacts at parties and clubs, trying to make things happen. His efforts were successful; he met Dennis Wilson, who gave him studio time in Brian Wilson's studio.Nothing came of the studio recordings; Manson was uncomfortable and irritable in the studio, and refused the sound engineers' requests to record his tracks solo, and overdub his "family" rather than bringing them all into the studio at once. One of the songs Manson would play was called "Cease to Exist"; Dennis Wilson dug it enough that he convinced the Beach Boys to record it.

Manson's songs were duly recorded, but at the end of the day, Melcher remained unimpressed; Manson's growing reputation as unpredictable and scary may well have turned him off as well. The tapes and films sat in the can unitl after the murders; both were released in 1970 while Manson was on trial; the album as "Lie" on ESP-Disk, and the film as Manson."-Lost In The Grooves, 2006