Director Quentin Tarantino’s latest “let’s wish away the bad parts of history” film is tangentially related to the Manson Family murders in 1969 Los Angeles. Some critics have complained that the soundtrack is poorly fitted to the material, consisting of pop tunes instead of the psychedelic sounds emerging at the time. Surprisingly, considering Tarantino’s do-anything-for-a-shock ethos, it ignores Manson’s own music.
Most people know that Manson, who learned to play guitar in prison, was trying to break into the music scene and had been befriended by Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys. But most have never heard the songs he recorded for a demo tape. You might be surprised at his singing voice, or to learn that his tunes sound more like Laurel Canyon than death metal.
