Inside the Laurel Canyon...

[Adaryn]

I still don't understand how these things work: for example, I like that song, I have no idea what it really talks about, it's actually about dope. And what comes next? Does that make me more susceptible to drugs? Find it more glamorous? Or is it just some joke that's played on me that makes Lou Reed (and whoever) laugh? Because I was apparently not the only one to be the butt of the joke: The BBC used that song to raise money for a Children in Need charity in 1997, and they raised more than 2 000 000 pounds with it!

Well I don't know for this particular song, it might be "just a song"… sometimes a cigar's just a cigar :D. But generally speaking, when you take Lou Reed, the themes of a lot of his songs are quite dark and negative, so that might influence people to think/feel negatively, in a subtle way. As for how these things work, programming via popular music might go beyond the lyrics, too:

A: There are frequencies in your/our [Laura's] voice that are inaudible to the physical ear but affect the spirit.

Q: (Joe) True. (Scott) I wonder if that's why there are certain bands where the people totally can't sing, but everyone thinks they're great - I mean, above and beyond marketing and all that kind of stuff?

A: Yes! And some of them activate "interesting" frequencies!

Q: (L) When you say "interesting", what does that mean?

A: Shall we say that it is planned and deliberate for nefarious purposes.

Q: (Joe) What music were you thinking about, Scottie? (Scottie) I was just thinking after our talk the other day about objectively and subjectively good music and everything. I was thinking about some of the popular music, like pretty much everything... Like my workout music, grunge music, electric guitar music, rap music - all these different types of popular music. And some of it is actually done by somebody who can't even sing at all and people just absolutely love it. So there are all these different genres where some bands become popular, whereas you can go to a bar and here's somebody singing a song and they're ten times better, but... (L) But they're not famous. (Scottie) So why do these people who have absolutely no talent become famous, beyond the fact that they were "discovered", or advertising, etc...

A: Laurel Canyon anyone?

Q: (laughter) (Keit) We were just talking about it today! (Joe) Yeah, they were all picked. (C**) So would Laura's voice be kind of what Gurdjieff called "objective music"?

A: Yes

Q: (Joe) I've got a great name for your album: Laura Canyon! (laughter) (L) I think I'll pass on that one. Unless you want to put an echo in so it sounds like I'm singing across the canyon. (PL) So, those bands in Laurel Canyon, those singers like the Mamas and the Papas, those bands that were obviously sponsored, because, through their music, they could put a kind of spell on some listeners, manipulate them, generate some negative emotions...?

A: "Spellbinders."

 

[cholas]

Thanks Luthien, I had forgotten this but it seems key in many ways.

And it sure makes both listening and singing/playing ourselves all the more questionable.

It could go 'either way' correct? Nefarious or beneficial? And what might be the deciding factor? The persons performing perhaps?

 

[SeekinTruth]

So many intriguing ideas and good points made here since I last read this thread.

Also this reminds me of what Laura wrote about in The Wave about people who have a very pronounced gift for unconventional healing etc. but are alcoholics or just messed up in many ways.

I think that real talent can almost be a burden for some people and, probably because of narcissistic wounding, they will sabotage themselves. I have a friend like that. She has perfect/absolute pitch. She used to play the violin, the harp, the piano, etc. like a pro but she is such a mess. She does not care for her talent one bit, she sabotaged her exam for the Conservatoire (Music academy?). She never actually practices, she just does not care. She prefers dating shady characters who rob banks or end up in mental institutes. I know people who would do anything for a tenth of what she can do. Such a waste...

Yeah, I know what you mean. And I do also now think this type of thing is probably at least partly tied to narcissistic wounding.

I have a question I've been meaning to ask for the longest time: how can these really disturbed characters (and sometimes full-on psychos) as those of the LC or in the Punk movement write such beautiful songs?

Though it is likely the case that the musicians/entertainers written about in this series represent the full spectrum of 'humanity'. I think it is also important to remember what the C's have said about many of those who we assume to be psychopaths are actually souled humans in great inner turmoil. IMO, many of those who have written and performed the popular 60's and 70's music, much of which could be considered 'beautiful' were of this leaning. When one is controlled to such an extent it seems like abuse of substances as well as others is the norm. Writing said songs might be a 'positive outlet' through which their 'better half' can express itself. In many, it might be the only occasion. I can't help but to compare the songs of then with songs/entertainers of today, such as lady Gaga whose music sounds/feels empty, yet sells.

Yeah, you're probably right. I think that there are many possibilities about that whole scene.

Anyone who is truly talented and creative will not last in this industry without strategically making it to a point to have enough independence and free space. But the distribution channels and media promotion are totally controlled. So you're always in a pickle if you want to create in these media.

I'm not sure that music production/sales is totally controlled. Sure, if one is a 'star', but their are many, many independent musicians/groups that make a comfortable living(not wealthy) who would not sign with a big-name label in order to preserve their independence. From what I've noticed, they tend to be much better live than their popular contemporaries as they depend on it for their bread. Far moreso than selling records.

Yes, I agree with you. My point, that may have not been clear, was that the audiences you can reach will be limited. Also with technological advances and the internet in the last couple of decades, an independent artist has much better chance of reaching a global audience with recorded music. But still it will be very limited compared to the mainstream "manufacturing machine."

I've joked to my brother that I'm bracing myself because so far other favorite bands such as Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath have not been implicated.

Many of the musicians 'implicated' in this series fit the above 'great inner turmoil' pattern. Not all of course, but I don't think you should label them based solely on Dave's word. Do some research yourself and remember that many of his implications are also opinions. I had to take many sacred cows out back after reading this series, but also many of McGowans claims are unsubstantiated. Like anart mentioned, it's the bigger picture being exposed that is key.

I agree. I was just trying to use humor to highlight the issue of sacred cows. By the way, I wanted to add Jethro Tull to my all time favorites that hasn't showed up yet at the LC. :P

By the way, another thing I've been meaning to look into or ask for a while: does anyone know if Ravi Ravi Shankar of Art of Living is the same Ravi Shankar? That could be another one of those connections.

Art of Living Shankar is not the same person as Ravi Shankar the musician.

One other thing to note is the time period Dave McGowan is writing about. At that time ('60's and '70's) the whole singer/ songwriter/ making records thing really exploded into a mass market. In the beginning of that, it was possible for the first ones through the door to achieve success. More a matter of being in the right place at the right time with the right connections than about superior talent or insight. In that regard, I think what Dave is postulating, which is that perhaps there was a hidden force guiding this, with an agenda- is quite plausible. Popular music is a vehicle for idea-insertion every bit as powerful as TV. Learning how this force has operated in the political sphere through books like Controversy of Zion and those of Fletcher Prouty makes me consider it even likely.

Thanks venusian for clearing up the Shankars. :D And very good points in the rest of your post.

 

[Mrs.Tigersoap]

A: There are frequencies in your/our [Laura's] voice that are inaudible to the physical ear but affect the spirit.

Q: (Joe) True. (Scott) I wonder if that's why there are certain bands where the people totally can't sing, but everyone thinks they're great - I mean, above and beyond marketing and all that kind of stuff?

A: Yes! And some of them activate "interesting" frequencies!

Q: (L) When you say "interesting", what does that mean?

A: Shall we say that it is planned and deliberate for nefarious purposes.

Thank you for this excerpt. I had missed it. That is both interesting and depressing!
Is just being aware of this already a protection? Or should I throw away all my CD collection?

On a side note about Laura's voice: a friend of mine was asking about meditation, so I seized the opportunity to tell him about the EE program. We gave him the download so that he could first hear what it was about. When I asked him if he had already listened to it or if he was interested at all, he replied that he could not stand Laura's voice!! I really had not seen this one coming. I thought he would maybe think it's too long, etc. but no, what put him off was her voice! And I don't even think it was an excuse... Could it be that his RFV does not allow him to 'get' it?

 

[thevenusian]

Here are a few observations from my own experience regarding this interesting issue of music, popular music, and its possible effect upon us all.

I've noticed I can walk into a room when someone is watching an emotional scene in a movie and be almost immediately moved to tears by it. After making note of this more than a few times, I realized it is the music which produces this effect in me. I don't know whether this is due to some sort of conditioned response which I have acquired from watching many movies, or whether it is a direct result of certain notes, chords and their progression, but regardless of the intellectual content happening in the story, the music stimulates the engagement which produces an emotional response.

Many years ago, when I had occasion to do a meditation 'retreat' for the first time which involved a month of several meditation periods each day, every single session for the first solid week was spent hearing in my mind practically every single song I had ever heard. It was like all these lyric/ melody combinations formed a layer of thought-loops which had to be replayed and then released before I could begin to get past them to a quieter mental place.

In the past couple years, since getting more serious and disciplined about self-observation, and particularly since I have been using the POTS as a self-reminder throughout the day, I have noticed that if I listen to a CD while driving, songs or song-fragments will then later pop up into the same mental space that I have been utilizing for self-remembering. I have to consciously push them aside and return that space to the effort of remembering. As a result, I find myself listening to song/ lyric music not much at all anymore, as it takes a lot of work just to attempt to self-remember and the addition of these loops makes for extra work and are a distraction.

In my observation experiment, it seems that the 'popular music', with melody and lyric combination, is the 'stickiest' for forming thought-loops that engage a more surface portion of my mental space. Instrumental, classical music, and certain music from other cultures not in my native language seem to create more emotional impressions which are not as persistent and don't loop in a way that distracts as much. The emotional response created can even sometimes serve as something valuable to observe. In any case, music has power to engage us on several levels- that much seems certain.

One other observation about this process that I have had occasion to make, since I have spent much time making recordings of music, is that if I have my full conscious attention on it, it doesn't get 'stuck' in my mind as strongly, even if I have heard it a hundred times. The bits that unconsciously pop up as mental-loops are almost always bits of music I listened to while doing something else. Music that was playing in a store while I was shopping, driving or doing something else at the same time. And again, 'songs'- music with lyrics, are the worst offenders.

Getting back to the topic of this thread in light of the above, from the large-picture 4D-STS point-of-view, I suspect that the 'nefarious purpose' of the big-business music industry is to keep a steady stream of powerfully engaging thought-loops feeding into the minds of the general public to stimulate and distract their minds and prevent them from using their thinking process to become more conscious. The same program as TV, just targeting a different mental function. In that sense, very much a form of mind-control. I doubt that many industry executives are conscious of this, though they are certainly aware of what keeps people buying records. So they perpetuate the stream because they make lots of money that way. Some people I know are so conditioned to filling their mental space with a constant stream of stimulation that they have to keep their music going all the time.

 

[brandon]

I've noticed I can walk into a room when someone is watching an emotional scene in a movie and be almost immediately moved to tears by it. After making note of this more than a few times, I realized it is the music which produces this effect in me. I don't know whether this is due to some sort of conditioned response which I have acquired from watching many movies, or whether it is a direct result of certain notes, chords and their progression, but regardless of the intellectual content happening in the story, the music stimulates the engagement which produces an emotional response.

That's interesting, and I've noticed the same thing. Watching some films with the sound muted, most of the emotional power is gone (at least in some sorts of films, especially modern mainstream ones..) .. they have little things they always seem to do as well, like slowing down the visuals and adding extra reverb to the audio when they're trying to emphasise that the moment is a strongly emotional one.

Example: the recent TV show Lost, which I admit I was into when it began :) but have recently only seen because everyone I know watches it religiously! That thing is massively full of audiovisual emotional cues, it gave me goosebumps and made me feel elated many times, for no good reason.

News shows on TV use music in this way too. It's like they use the music to tell you how you should feel about each story. Lots of it is obvious, but I think some can be quite subtle, sneaking its way in under the people speaking.

 

[NormaRegula]

FYI: Dennis Hopper just passed away...the day after Gary Coleman died. (What's that saying about deaths coming in 3s?)

The reason I mention it here is because Dave McGowan writes of Dennis Hopper in some of the earlier installments of the LC series. Below is a link to Hopper's Bio over on Yahoo. Lots of weird stuff in Hopper's life - and this coming from a mainstream online vehicle.

_http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1800017050/bio

 

[dantem]

I was wondering about what McGowan may have missed... hordes of musicians that once their band hit the Top10, they found themselves into a situation they had hard time to manage. I've got always in mind the Bon Jovi's case in the 80's, some members had to hire a psychiatrist to handle the business. So if it's such a struggle to enter the world of the Stars, one can better understand why being a psychopath could be handy in this kind of environment.

Take the Ira Einhorn's case, the guy thrived on control of dozens(?) of followers, and situations where thousands of fans are like drugged by your 'public image' means more food for any psycho band leader, more energy, while for others the same situation is detrimental at best.
Think also about the effect of such a leader could have over other members of the band, many enough to justify a series of multiple odd behaviors and don't tell anything about how things were going on inside a certain group.

Then, when you hit the Top10, there's always the figure of the manager/producer and that of the big labels that force you and your band to play in a certain way, following the rules of what could be called the uniformitarian way of pop music. This situation is pretty similar to that of the 'Modern Art' business, where big gallery owners decide if your work is fit for the masses or not, and very very often the end result is that you end up into museums glancing at rubbish stuck on the walls.

In McGowan's series there are many links, but it's the quality of the players that isn't subjected to enough scrutiny, if not for the evident horrors of many of course.

Thanks for the wiki link on the musician deaths this one alone is enough for a shock or two!

 

[Gawan]

FWIW I found today two videos based on Dave McGowans work of the Laurel Canyon series.
I think it is good made and gives the main gist of some articles and it is maybe good enough for someone you doesn't have the time to read all those articles. Nonetheless the writing style of Dave McGowan will then be missed. :)


_http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNqpjgpxraI

 

[Iconoclast]

thanks, Legolas, i'll check it out!

 

[blindpsychic]

_http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5iTYlO4Y31eh61k_azuSHKfAyQ07w?docId=N0124781294894321375A

Actor Peter Fonda has discovered a dead body in a car and Los Angeles police are investigating the death.

Sergeant Carlton Cook at the West Los Angeles Community Police Station said the Easy Rider actor called 911 on Wednesday after he spotted a car parked on the side of Sunset Boulevard.

Sgt Cook said Fonda, 70, is absolutely not a suspect but did not have any more details.

The call was first reported by TMZ, which said Fonda got out of his car and found the man slumped over in the front seat.

Fonda is best known for his role in the 1969 film Easy Rider as sex-and-drugs loving biker Captain America.

Other film credits include Race With the Devil, Dirty Mary Crazy Larry, and 3:10 to Yuma.

Nope nothing suspicious at all!

 

[Bar Kochba]

I wonder what happened to Dave. Is he on hiatus? Hasnt been anything new on his site since the middle of last year, I think.

 

[Vulcan59]

I wonder what happened to Dave. Is he on hiatus? Hasnt been anything new on his site since the middle of last year, I think.

Dave has continued his LC series. The latest installment posted on the 26th. Has some gruesome and shocking pictures, so be-warned.

 

[Bar Kochba]

Thanks Vulcan!

 

[Mark]

I wonder what happened to Dave. Is he on hiatus? Hasnt been anything new on his site since the middle of last year, I think.

Dave has continued his LC series. The latest installment posted on the 26th. Has some gruesome and shocking pictures, so be-warned.

That is far beyond shocking. I think we better just tell people straight up that there are images of what appears to be the body of a murder victim whose body is cut in half and severely mutilated.

My guess would be that the vast majority of humanity would not ever want to see something like that.