Inside the Laurel Canyon...

[cholas]

Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

These series of articles are truly enlightening imho and have apparently loosely(or not) connected ties to The Assassination of Robert Kennedy articles. One thing that seems very apparent is that something sinister was happening in the burbs and canyons of LA at this time.

I still have a bit of reading to finish up, after which I have to somehow organize my voluminous notes in some coherent fashion, but then I’ll be ready to pen what could conceivably turn into a book-length series of posts.

I look forward to your posts/articles, mudrabbit and oughta be able to introduce some results of my research as well.

Thanks SotT for posting these articles. Very interesting indeed!

 

[anart]

Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Hi Cholas, just to clarify, mudrabbit was quoting Dave McGowan - so it is his notes of which she speaks. Very interested in the results of your research though, so keep us informed!

 

[cholas]

Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Thanks Anart, I see my error. Indeed Mudrabbit was quoting from Mr McGowan.

Gathering thoughts myself and hope to add to what Dave has already written, in a slightly different context of course.

 

[PatrickSMcNally]

Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Wouldn't most young Americans from this period have fathers that served in the military? Didn't many(most) able-bodied men join during WWII? I didn't find that overly suspicious. And just because one's father is in the military doesn't necessarily mean they are "intelligence" or involved in some top-secret nefarious project. Also from what I observed, having gone to high-school in a military-base town, is that it was quite normal for kids to remember each other from some other base/country years before. And Virginia/Washington Area was a popular one. Again I don't find it suspicious that John Philips' first wife(military father) knew Jim Morrison(ditto) in elementary school.

I'd have to add to that the fact, in the prosperous economy of the early 1960s, it was more probable that people coming from a military/intelligence upbringing would notice something wrong at an earlier stage and so be among the first pioneers to start coming out. The average Joe Blow is generally influenced by what Bill Clinton summarized as "it's the economy, stupid!" If the economy is good and promising jobs seem to be all aplenty, the typical Joe Shmuck does not usually rush to raise hell about "no more war in our name anymore!" That sentiment spread as the war in Vietnam escalated, and became more pervasive as the signs of economic decline became visible, but from the perspective of the early sixties it's not surprising that a high percentage of early activists came from a family background where they would have had a chance to see more in advance. Obviously, being from a military family does provide some type of advance perspective.

 

[PatrickSMcNally]

Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Reading Part I, I was a little sceptical that all these rock stars could be intelligence agents in the "undercover" sense. But I think where he is going with this is that they were "worked on" with Greenbaum techniques, which makes sense because the evil types volunteer their children for this kind of thing.

McGowan hasn't been very clear about this so far.

The most obvious example of someone who was created as a poster-boy opposition in that era is Martin Luther King. Theodore Pappas, PLAGIARISM AND THE CULTURE WAR, details the way that King was allowed to steal the text of his doctoral dissertation off of someone else and then was protected by higher-ups. King's career was deliberately built for him by people who had a use for him. When I learned how Martin Luther King plagiarized his dissertation and was allowed to pass with it I was disgusted and thought that any educated person who has worked for a degree should view King's behavior as an insult. But I can't take away from him the fact that he eventually was murdered because he had irked some important people. I think that King actually did step beyond his assigned role during the last 3 years of his life when he began introducing demands of economic change into his speeches and moving beyond the earlier pattern of focusing on legal desegregation only. When that happened King was assassinated and there's no reason to believe that that part of his career was staged, although many of the earlier parts had been. Probably something like this also occurred with the flower power movement of the same era.

But McGowan has a way of talking with coy circumlocutions which read like they're intended to suggest the idea of Jim Morrison and John Lennon being parties to the plots of their own deaths, without actually committing McGowan to this allegation.

One thing which has to be kept in mind when assessing the various movements of the sixties is the extent to which the major unions had been effectively bought off at that time. In the early 20th century the unions were more militant because there was a harsher crunch on labor in that era.

By the 1950s US imperialism had achieved global supremacy and that showed its influence in the way that many unionized workers in the US were able to achieve contracts and working conditions which no one in the early 1900s would have thought possible for the majority of the labor force under capitalism. Because of this most major unions fulsomely supported the Cold War and whatever else.

That had a big influence on the attitudes of the college campus Left of that time. Many people who were very honest anti-war activists would simply become turned off upon seeing union workers who seemed very eager to support bombing Vietnam. There were definitely a lot of mistakes made by the New Left of that era in dealing with this, but I doubt that much of this had anything very much to do with CoIntelPro. The kinds of mistakes I mean are the sort that would happen when college protesters saw that a bunch of unionized laborers didn't seem to care about anything except their paycheck, and there was no clear strategy in the short-term for reaching out. Student protesters who felt that kind of frustration could often evince a certain contempt for the workers in ways which just furthered the breach even more. But not all of that was CoIntelPro, probably most of it was not.

In any event, those are definitely features of an older era. Since Ronald Reagan took office the clear trend has been towards either outright union-busting or else having the union bureaucracy act as an extra layer of police overseers to demand wage reductions and cuts in benefits from the labor force. The type of conflicts which occurred in the sixties between the New Left and the trade unions aren't likely to occur today, whatever else may go wrong.

 

[cholas]

Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Just a few thoughts about these articles... It should be said that I do enjoy reading them and for the most part my own research has shown most of the information to be verifyable. Some definitely not though.

But McGowan has a way of talking with coy circumlocutions which read like they're intended to suggest the idea of Jim Morrison and John Lennon being parties to the plots of their own deaths, without actually committing McGowan to this allegation

Well said Patrick, roughly the same conclusion I've come to- so far.

In a geographically and socially isolated community known as Laurel Canyon...

This statement is most definitely exagerated as most of the "rockstars" mentioned lived within walking distance of Sunset Strip. Hardly geographically isolated. Laurel Canyon, after all, has been inside LA city limits since 1923. And the fact that there were "communes" and parties happening constantly with Hollywood and Rock and Roll's "finest"? Likely not socially either.

Before succeeding in his musical career, however, John[Phillips] did seem to find himself, quite innocently of course, in some rather unusual places. One such place was Havana, Cuba, where Phillips arrived at the very height of the Cuban Revolution. For the record, Phillips has claimed that he went to Havana as nothing more than a concerned private citizen, with the intention of – you’re going to love this one – “fighting for Castro.”

The closest I could find to this information was the fact that the Mamas and Papas originally got together in the U S Virgin Islands, taking a break from the NYC winter and playing at a local tourist establishment. I would like to see some footnotes/references to this claim.

Raised partly in Texas, young Stephen spent large swaths of his childhood in El Salvador, Costa Rica, the Panama Canal Zone, and various other parts of Central America – alongside his father, who was, we can be fairly certain, helping to spread ‘democracy’ to the unwashed masses in that endearingly American way.

A very poor choice of words imo. "Alongside his father" makes it sound as though Stephen is involved in the same work as his father, which, again I found no evidence that it had anything to do with spreading "democracy". I'm not "fairly certain" at this point. Of course it is possible, but just as plausible that Stills rebelled against his family and wanted nothing to do with their work.

Browne’s father was assigned to post-war ‘reconstruction’ work in Germany, which very likely means that he was in the employ of the OSS, precursor to the CIA.

Again, love to see references. I haven't found anything and I think it's a bit of a far-reaching conclusion.

What Mr McGowan is doing in many cases seems to be drawing from little or vague information and creating conclusions that support his theory. It would not have been hard to add footnotes so we could check his sources would it? And it seems like his theory of direct musician involvement revolves around many coming from military families or being "blue blood". A bit suspicious perhaps but more is needed. Many army-brats that I went to school with were very artistically and musically inclined and were VERY rebelious towards their parents.

Much of what his LC series describes IS very suspicious and anyone oughta be able to come to the conclusion that something sinister was/is going on there. However, suggesting that the musicians themselves are Greenbalmed or otherwise concious participants in a grand plot to(what is their goal, hypothetically?) create chaos or such has little supporting evidence.

What seems to have played out is rather a trend towards a general awakening to the otrocities that were occuring globally. Music played a huge role in raising the conciousness and through many "accidents", murders, overdoses, and violence, the "movement was all but shut down. Possibly by the early 70's. We are likely seeing the same thing unfold within the "911 truth movement". Infiltration. Cointelpro for sure.

Edit: Fwiw, Neil Young's middle name is Percival.

 

[cholas]

Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Another post has been added(July 24th) to this ongoing series of articles to be found here: _http://www.davesweb.cnchost.com/nwsltr100.html

I do hope that a future book is the result of McGowan's research as it is hard to keep track of all the dots. Take notes perhaps?

Some references to his sources are made in this newest installment and swearing aside(or not), a quick but good read.

 

[Gawan]

Re: Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

New post available:
Part IX (August 11)

_http://www.davesweb.cnchost.com/nwsltr101.html

 

[treesparrow]

Re: Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Just a heads up - latest installment posted (13th Nov).

 

[thevenusian]

Re: Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

This series of articles about the Laurel Canyon scene provoked a cascade of revelations for me. I think the author finds too many boogey men in the bushes (ie: I don't support every one of the branches of his inquiry as bearing fruit- listen to Jackson Browne sing 'Casino Nation' and then lets talk about him being cointelpro), but nevertheless, the point is well taken that there are at least some, if not many bad apples out there. I find the implication that there may well have been intelligent planning and strategy to the introduction of certain cultural ideas and forms of influencing the music made available through the new music industry in the 60's definitely makes more than a few red lights blink. The British invasion had already gripped the imagination of a generation of potential artists and songsmiths and there was a definite trend toward creative expression beginning to explode at that time.

In the early 70's I worked at a recording studio that recorded live shows for the emergent FM-stereo radio market in a big US city. I got a brief up-close look at some of the big groups and rock stars from that era. By and large, the entire scene fairly reeked of all types of STS excess. Petty tyrants on drugs of every description. Lots of very important people all trying to be even more important. It was certainly not the case with all, but the proportion seemed quite high to me. Most people have romantic notions about rock music icons I think because their music lodged into us in some emotionaly positive way and so we personalize them according to our own feelings. These are the ones given voice to articulate our experiences and feelings- or at least give what we latch onto as the best approximation, so this would seem to be an area of immense interest to anyone wishing to manipulate and control the masses. Perhaps narcissisticly-disordered types make the best soldiers for this sort of thing, since that seemed to me to be the type most prevalent.

And then there is the hierarchy of the corporate music business itself, which is constructed of elites and their minions who determine what 'music' gets released into the collective mind. The myth is spun that anyone with enough talent could rise to the top, but in fact it is a very controlled system. If what we suspect to be true around here IS true, then we should not be too surprised to see a major effort to control this flow to advantage from it.

I would bet that almost every single person here on this forum has had the experience of bits and pieces of 'anthems' and 'themes' and various other musical thought-bites popping up unexpectedly in our thoughts constantly, and that ultimately is what we are talking about as the object of all this control. This is every bit as pervasive and powerful as television- without the hypnotic flashing lights, but maybe even more powerful because of the triggering of emotional response/ feelings by the music and associating thoughts with them. It would also be readily apparent to the readers of this forum what a powerful manipulation tool popular music would be, so again why the interest is here in this.

Our popular notions about music, at least in the US and probably many other places are now all wound up together with aspects of the commercial/control system which fed this content into us. I realize I am not developing this idea very far here, but my point is that this music, as a commercially distributed product has been largely utilized to benefit commerce and the system of control. This is in stark contrast to how music is utilized still in some more archaic parts of the world. For instance, a great Shona mbira player (in Zimbabwe) would become great because he plays so skillfully that his music gets the village shaman into trance fastest. His music has a cultural purpose which serves needs other than simply making alot of money or having the #1 song by some measurement of commercial success. Our western models are absent that on the macro level.

I think the author of this series is onto something. It seems to me a worthy avenue of exploration- not just 'what music do you like', but what messages have lodged themselves into our programs through our unwitting acceptance of what sounded good to us through music? I would be very interested in any further illumination anyone here is aware of, and thanks again to SOTT for making this kind of exchange possible.

[moderator: Post has been edited to make the reading smoother]

 

[Beau]

Re: Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Well, after reading his last piece, it seems he relies a lot on what he describes as "rock myth", or "legend" when writing about the LC bands, specifically regarding Jim Morrison and The Doors. He does not provide citations or sources of these myths, so I am a little skeptical about what he writes about regarding the mysteriously appearing bands like The Doors. Did Morrison have all the songs written before he joined the band? I know that he didn't even create their biggest hit, Light My Fire. It was originally created by Robby Krieger, and Morrison added lyrics after hearing Robby play it. But Robby wrote the lyrics to the first verse. Also, Ray Manzarek is one the best keyboardist of any genre (at least IMO), are we to believe that he was programmed that way? Yes, him and Jim were film school graduates with no apparent musical bent, but Ray, at least, had taken piano lessons in his younger so he was not exactly unschooled, along with Krieger who was a talented songwriter, despite Dave's claims that Morrison wrote everything. Plus, he had already been schooled in the electric guitar before joining the group. In short, I am finding some holes in this particular addition to the LC series.

 

[cholas]

Re: Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

I was a more than a little dismayed after reading McGowan's newest. So many blatant untruths as already observed by Pinkerton and thevenusian. Having read a few biographies on The Doors, I knew this piece was not accurate and although wiki is definitely questionable, these quotes match what was read elsewhere. 'Riders on the Storm' by John Densmore, for example(though it has been a few years).

How exactly Jim Morrison reinvented himself in such a radical manner remains something of a mystery, since before his sudden incarnation as singer/songwriter, James Douglas Morrison had never shown the slightest interest in music. None whatsoever.

Pretty sure of himself...

Morrison told Manzarek he had been writing songs (Morrison said "I was taking notes at a fantastic rock-n-roll concert going on in my head") and, with Manzarek's encouragement, sang "Moonlight Drive". Impressed by Morrison's lyrics, Manzarek suggested they form a band.

And how could he miss this?

All four members of the group, for example, lacked previous band experience.

Anyway, the point is that none of the four members of the Doors had band credentials.

The Doors could cite no such band lineage. They were just four guys who happened to come together to play the songs written by the singer who had never sung but who had a sudden calling and a magical gift for songwriting. And as you would expect with four guys who had never actually played in a band before, they pretty much sucked.

Actually it appears that only Jim had no previous experience.

Keyboardist Ray Manzarek was in a band called Rick & the Ravens with his brother Rick Manzarek, while Robby Krieger and John Densmore were playing with The Psychedelic Rangers, and knew Manzarek from yoga and meditation classes.

How then did he write the songs? He would have had to have composed them, I’m guessing, in his head.

Writing about something that is not very well understood?

Many of The Doors' original songs were group compositions, with Morrison or Krieger contributing the lyrics and an initial melody, and the others providing harmonic and rhythmic suggestions, or even entire sections of songs, such as Manzarek's organ introduction to "Light My Fire".

I’m certainly no musician myself.....

This is very apparent.
Not very well-researched at all.

 

[Hildegarda]

Re: Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

He does not provide citations or sources of these myths, so I am a little skeptical about what he writes about regarding the mysteriously appearing bands like The Doors.

I too thought it strange that there were no quotes.

 

[blindpsychic]

Re: Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Newest 2 are up on Sott. does anyone have more research to go with the doors stuff?

 

[webglider]

Re: Inside the LC(Laurel Canyon):.........

Another musician connected to the Laurel Canyon scene is dead. He was found in his apartment by his roommate, no cause of death reported. He had been in bad health, they say.


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/07/arts/music/07martin.html?_r=1&sq=Dewey%20Martin,%2068,%20of%20Buffalo%20Springfield&st=cse&scp=1&pagewanted=print

February 7, 2009
Dewey Martin, 68, of Buffalo Springfield, Dies
By BLOOMBERG NEWSDewey Martin, the drummer for Buffalo Springfield, the short-lived but influential 1960s California rock band that spawned the careers of Neil Young and Stephen Stills, was found dead on Feb. 1 in his apartment in Van Nuys, Calif. He was 68.
A roommate found his body , a friend, Lisa Lenes, told The Los Angeles Times. The cause has not been determined, the newspaper said; Ms. Lenes said he had had health problems in recent years.

Buffalo Springfield, which also included Richie Furay and Bruce Palmer, who died in 2004, was a “pivotal rock group with an organic, home-grown musical approach that reverberated beyond the ’60s,” the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame says on its Web site, rockhall.com. Mr. Martin was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, along with the rest of the band, in 1997.

Along with the Byrds, the group helped establish the folk-rock and country-rock movements that gave birth to Poco, the Eagles and Jackson Browne.

While Mr. Martin never achieved the fame that Mr. Young and Mr. Stills later attained, he played on all of Buffalo Springfield’s songs, including “Rock & Roll Woman,” “On the Way Home,” “Mr. Soul” and “For What It’s Worth.”

“For What It’s Worth,” written by Mr. Stills — with its chorus, “Stop, children, what’s that sound? Everybody look what’s going down” — chronicled the social unrest of the late 1960s. It reached No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1967.

The band broke up in 1968 after two years and three albums. Mr. Martin later tried to capitalize on his connection to his more famous bandmates when he toured with groups called Buffalo Springfield Revisited and Buffalo Springfield Again in the 1980s and ’90s.

Dewey Martin was born Walter Milton Dewayne Midkiff on Sept. 30, 1940, in Chesterville, Canada, near Ottawa, according to the Web site of the rock historian Nick Warburton, nickwarburton.com. He moved to the United States, first to Nashville, then to Southern California, where the Byrds had helped create the growing folk-rock sound.