Turn Me On, Dead Man: The Beatles and the "Paul Is Dead" Hoax

by Andru J. Reeve

In the fall of 1969, the story seemed to come out of nowhere. Was Beatle Paul McCartney dead? This was no ordinary death rumor. It was believed that McCartney had died years earlier and been replaced by a look alike. What's more, the surviving Beatles were thought to have planted "clues" to his death on their record albums. "Paul-Is-Dead" mania swept the United States as people attempted to solve the riddle of Paul's alleged demise. How did all of this happen? Beatles scholar and journalist Andru J Reeve has gotten to the bottom of this intrigue. After years of research, Reeve has assembled TURN ME ON, DEAD MAN to tell the strangest tale ever in the history of rock 'n' roll.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, History, Conspiracy Theories

340 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very thorough history and details of the "Paul is Dead" myth starting from a phone call to a Detroit rock station by a caller named "Tom" to some other college students who went over all the later Beatles albums and songs digging for clues proving that Paul had died in a car crash in 1966 prompting a replacement named William Campbell.
Reeve relates the 2 month span of time in late 1968 from the beginnings of the hoax through the time it gets more or less debunked with Paul granting a Life magazine interview on his farm in Scotland.
The back of the book presents and debunks 70 clues as to why Paul is dead along with a few essays and such.

[Lori · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF.
II thought this book was going to be very interesting. The fact that millions and millions of (mostly) teenagers at the time believed Paul McCartney had died and been replaced by an imposter was irresistible to me.

Either it was a very weird series of coincidences or it was an ingenious, wholly improbable and even weirder publicity stunt which utterly crushed many of his biggest fans. And my big sister was one! I will always remember her sobbing over Paul’s “death” for weeks. She was like a sprinkler going off.

So I was genuinely excited to learn more about this very strange chapter in music history. But I found the book boring. It’s the writing, which borders on an info dump. All it did was make me wish she was still around so I could ask her about it — and that I had kept the Beatles dolls she handed down to me, because I think they must be worth a lot.

A lot of this material is on YouTube in more palatable form. You can also find conspiracists on YouTube; there are still people that believe Paul McCartney actually died and was replaced by William Shears.

[Cwn_annwn_13 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an entertaining recount of the "Paul is Dead" rumor that spread like wildfire in the late 60's and still persists to a certain degree to this very day.

The biggest fault this book has is, while it does contain lots of great info and recollections on the subject, the author does not even for one second entertain the idea that The Beatles intentionally perpetrated the rumor. He more or less just looks at it as an urban legend started by over imaginative acid taking pot smoking hippies that snowballed once a few self serving radio disc jockeys and journalism students got a hold of it. He totally discounts and laughs off, not only the idea that "Paul is Dead", but also that the Beatles were in on the whole thing. Reeve even lists most of the hints and clues that appeared on Beatles records and goes out of his way to discount them, more often than not in a very illogical and unconvincing way. The funny thing is one of the biggest hints that people fed off of is easy to discount and the writer (or anybody else) does not even attempt to debunk it. The one I am referring to is that people were saying the Walrus was considered a death omen in Viking times in Scandinavia. I have to tell you all I have studied Viking history and read Norse and Icelandic sagas obsessively studying Norse Pagan beliefs for years. I am an Odinist. I have even lived in Scandinavia for the past few years and I am married to a Danish woman. The belief that the Walrus was or is a death omen has never once surfaced in any of my studies of the past or in my day to day life here.

As conspiratorial minded as I am I think that its very, very unlikely McCartney died and was replaced by a doppleganger but I do believe that the band was in on the whole thing. There were just too many hints and clues that they put into their lyrics, music and the art of their albums for it to be an accident.

[Abner Wizzle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite what know-nothing reviewer "John" says, this is a 5-star book without parallel. Andru J. Reeve masterfully weaves a strong narrative around this real-life event. Perhaps one of the strangest -- and least-known -- bits of rock and roll history, the "Paul Is Dead" event is fun to read about, and very thought-provoking. Reeve examines larger issues such as the true meaning of religion (fear of death) and the side-effects of celebrity. Very well-written and a fast read -- I finished this 300 page book in 4 days. Wish it were longer! Highly, highly recommended.

[Jam Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Andru Reeve has delivered a winner with this one. Great topic, and a well-written account of a fascinating piece of Beatle history.




Book:
"Andru Reeve" "Turn Me On, Dead Man"

[Abner Wizzle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 2004 soft-cover is better than this 1994 hardcover, but it's still awesome.

[Tim · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think this is my first 1-star rating.
I read somewhere about one of the Paul is dead books that it was pretty entertaining, but I must have been mistaken in thinking this was the one. The story is thin, and the telling is completely unengaging. I actually read about 100 pages before I started to skim, after which it took me about 15 minutes to finish with the "book".
There was a rumour that Paul had died. Its origin is recounted, and then, with no sense of development or shape, everybody who ever said anything about it gets a chapter or two in which what they said is ploddingly reported on.
Curiously, the author has quite a good vocabulary, and understands the words he uses. Unfortunately he doesn't know how to keep a story interesting. I say this as an averagely huge Beatles fan with a fairly ample weakness for both Beatle lore and curiosities. Sorry Andru, but my tip is: don't bother with this.

[Googoogjoob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid work, and remarkably thorough. Reeve managed to track down and talk to basically all the (living) principals in the "Paul Is Dead" milieu (though not the Beatles themselves- who weren't really all that involved in this basically American phenomenon anyway). He manages to trace the rumor back to its origin, and reconstruct the course of its propagation and development. He treats matters journalistically, sticking to the chronology, relying on testimony, and giving his informants space to air their takes. He occasionally recreates/dramatizes key moments of the story for effect, which is fine- he's not actively making anything up in these little interludes. He's clearly in command of his material, and the bibliography is very thorough. Appendices include a compendium of supposed "clues" and a brief overview of other Beatles-related hoaxes and rumors; two learned essays by academics fill out the book with analyses of the rumor/hoax from sociological and psychological angles.

This is basically the final word on the subject, and should be of at least passing interest to any Beatles fan, or to anyone interested in American youth culture of the late 60s.

[Garrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Andru J. Reeve was very dedicated in putting all of the important details into this book. I was very impressed with the information put and there was stuff in this book that Googling about this conspiracy theory won't tell you. Every aspect about the "Paul is dead" theory is mentioned and just thinking about it puts chills down my spine. I also liked that the book mentioned more than blandly stating the facts, it talks about some peoples lives associated with this "myth" that makes this an enjoyable read
The only part about this book I don't enjoy is that some facts are repeated often and it got a little annoying after a while but it is still only a minor problem, this book is still great.
Overall I would definitely recommend this book to a friend or anyone that loves a good conspiracy theory.

[Nedda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Turn Me On, Dead Man: The Beatles and the "Paul Is Dead" Hoax - Book Review ..

A great book about the Paul is Dead "urban legend" that was extremely popular in the 60's (and still exists today to some extent) ..

A very fast read that goes through the hoax step by step from the moment it started (a phone call to DJ Russ Gibb from a listener named Tom ) to how it developed and grew to a terrifying degree, to where it is today (including every clue imaginable about Rock and Roll's finest hoax!)

Whatever you think of the rumor/hoax/fact/urban legend/myth, Mr. Reeve presented it to us in this thoroughly researched book as a very entertaining and fun story..very impressive!

[Cyrus Cranston · Rating 3 out of 5]

An entertaining book about the legendary "Paul Is Dead" hoax from the late 1960s. The author gives us a detailed look at many of the "clues" and then goes on to disprove how the real Paul McCartney could never have been replaced by a double. But what he fails to explore is the truth behind why the Beatles decided to perpetrate this hoax on their fans at the height of their popularity. In fact, he too easily accepts their contradictory public denials as indisputable fact. The truth will come out someday.

[Josh Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Turn Me On, Dead Man is a fascinating look into how urban legends and conspiracy theories get started.

TMO,DM starts out with a review of a Beatles album in a college newspaper, takes a detour to Detroit radio station WKNR, winds its way around the world, and ends up with a great story, but with only the few truths of how and why people believe in outlandish things.

[Jimmie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating story that includes urban legends, the power of the media and subliminal messages. Despite indisputable proof, Americans still believed that Paul was dead. How charming that it seems that trait still lives in Americans today.

[Russell Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author gives a good overview of the "evidence" in the Paul is Dead hoax or phenomenon (depending on what side you're on). On the other hand he seems to have trouble developing an opinion on the subject. It's an uneven read.

[The Scare Lab · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely brilliant read that chronicles the timeline of the Paul is Dead hoax and how it blew up. It was fascinating to read. I found it so hard to believe that so many people believed it back then, however it's even more amazing that people still believe it now.

[Dan Holt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating chronicle of how the "Paul is Dead" rumor developed, spread, and dissipated. Fun to see a classified ad connected to the story listing an address only a few blocks from my house!

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not dabbled with this urban myth for a while. Bunkum, but it still fascinates me.

[Terry]

Andru Reeve writes the definitive history of the "Paul McCartney is Dead" urban legend. Meticulously researched and told in the style of a thriller, this is the quintessential resource for Beatle fans of every generation.