Charles Manson’s Often-Terrifying Music Connections

Charles Manson was an aspiring rocker, long before he became known as the mastermind of one of history’s most grisly and shocking crime sprees. In fact, as the following list shows, he had a striking number of connections in the music business.

Manson and four members of his so-called Family – Charles “Tex” Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, Leslie van Houten and Susan Atkins – were ultimately convicted of murder and given since-commuted sentences of death for their roles in the killing of seven people beginning on Aug. 9, 1969. Atkins and Manson memorably died in prison while the entire group went through a never-ending merry-go-round of parole denials.

Only later did it become clear that Manson had drawn the Beatles into his strange and murderous worldview. He claimed, in explosive court testimony after his arrest, that their songs had inspired him to act – ensuring that the Beatles would remain a part of his troubled narrative forever.

They weren’t the only ones. By then, Charles Manson already had notable intersections with the Beach Boys and Neil Young. He’d even released his own album. Later, acts like Ozzy Osbourne looked to Manson for sinister inspiration, while Guns N’ Roses infamously covered one of his songs.

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The Beach Boys recorded a rewrite of Manson’s “Cease to Exist” by drummer Dennis Wilson that was called “Never Learn Not to Love.” It became one of the more bizarre moments in a discography filled with them, and it almost got Wilson killed. Young, meanwhile, admits that he found Manson’s off-kilter songwriting style intriguing enough that he tried to help with a recording contract. Keep reading to find out more of Charles Manson’s often-terrifying music connections.