Helter Skelter

When Pete Townshend of The Who describes their latest single, I Can See For Miles, as the «heaviest song ever recorded» Paul McCartney, in his typical competitive spirit, decides to outdo his colleagues with something even wilder and more fiery. Thus, inspired by the ambiguity between “disorderly haste or confusion” and the spiral slide of English amusement parks, Helter Skelter is born.

During the recordings, The Beatles try out numerous versions of this song. One version reaches 12 minutes, and another even stretches to 27 minutes. Many are significantly slower and hypnotic. The final version is the result of 18 versions recorded in a single day: September 9, 1968. In the end, Ringo Starr, exhausted, throws his drumsticks away, exclaiming, «I've got blisters on my fingers!» and this moment is captured in the definitive version included on the White Album.

Helter Skelter is an example of McCartney's great versatility. It anticipates what would later become hard rock and heavy metal. It is a particularly violent and decidedly “hard” song, unusual compared to the standards of the time and even for The Beatles themselves. Praised by many critics for its inventiveness and power as «one of the fiercest and most brutal rock songs ever made by anyone», while others criticize it as too «frightening and unsettling». Unfortunately, these unsettling statements take on a darker meaning in light of the macabre events involving Charles Manson and his cult committing horrific massacres influenced by Manson's delusional interpretations of the song. Among the many artists who have covered the song are U2, who open their album Rattle And Hum with Bono's words: «This is a song Charles Manson stole from the Beatles. We're stealing it back!»

In this video, we have tried to include scenes from each phase of recording our cover, without any playback.

• Brizio Romagnoli: vocals, bass (Fender VI).
• Massimo Gerini: backing vocals, rhythm guitar (Epiphone Casino), “Rudolph”.
• Paolo Santamarianova: backing vocals, lead guitars (Gibson Les Paul, Fender Telecaster).
• Mauro Cimarra: drums.
• Gabriele Chiappa: backing vocals.

Recorded and mixed by Massimo Gerini.
Video by Brizio Romagnoli.