{"product_id":"the-musical-lives-of-charles-nicholas-tochka-9781501384561","title":"The Musical Lives of Charles Manson: The Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Invention of the Sixties -or, No Sense Makes Sense","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eNicholas Tochka analyzes the role of rock music in the life of Charles Manson, the Family, and the August 1969 Tate-LaBianca killings, which also gives larger insight into Sixties counterculture.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFailed singer-songwriter. Devious cult leader. A rock Pied Piper. The product of a sick society. Just another dime-a-dozen singing hippy mystic. Did the guitar-playing guru personify the violence that the rock counterculture inflicted on America? Or did his music diagnose the dehumanizing effects of that society's broken institutions? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFor over five decades, commentators have debated the meaning of Charles Manson and the Tate-LaBianca killings. Rock music links their narratives: from the aciddrenched singalongs at the Spahn Movie Ranch, to a bizarre theology centered on Beatles songs, to his commune's alleged links with Hollywood's elite, to an album, \u003ci\u003eLIE: The Love and Terror Cult\u003c\/i\u003e (1970). In this first comprehensive examination of the Manson Family's music, Nicholas Tochka writes with, against, and alongside the many authors-true-crime hacks, gonzo journalists, conspiracy theorists, and rock critics alike-who have told and retold the story of \"the Manson murders.\" Playing the truth games that these postwar Americans helped invent, \u003ci\u003eThe Musical Lives of Charles Manson\u003c\/i\u003e presents a new take on the story of the commune-and on rock's role in fracturing the possibility of writing trustworthy histories after the Sixties. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"They are afraid of it, because it tells the truth,\" Manson once claimed, describing his music. Just what truths did the Manson Family's music-making tell?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Nicholas Tochka\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1501384562\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781501384561\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Bloomsbury Academic\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/08\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 288\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.22lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.69d","brand":"Nicholas Tochka","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":48065656422655,"sku":"9781501384561","price":80.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_dd45d12d-2629-49e1-83bf-0481ef9b57f9.jpg?v=1768676411","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-musical-lives-of-charles-nicholas-tochka-9781501384561","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}