Helter Skelter is a song written by Paul McCartney that is recorded by The Beatles and recorded on their album, The White Album. The Beatles recorded it over 18 times by The Beatles in 1968 beginning with a 27 minute version and eventually cutting the song down to just over 4 minutes. Charles Manson believed that Helter Skelter was part of the Beatles coded prophecy of an apocalyptic war over the treatment of black peoples. Charles Manson interpereted that the song was implying that the balck people were going to go up and the white people were going to go down. Manson became obsessed with the Beatles believing that Helter Skelter and believed that the White Album was directed to himself and the Family, a group of his enthusiasts. Manson first shot a black drug dealer, Bernard "Lotsapoppa" Crowe, on July, 1, 1969. He and the Family ended up assasinating 9 people and his trial began June 15, 1970 . The death penalty was Mansons original sentence but was later reduced to life in prison.
