Rock and Roll myths and urban legends – having blood drained from his body, him owning the bones of the Elephant Man – all not true!
Where Did The Urban Legends Start?
It’s mind-boggling just how far so many myths and urban legends about rock stars traveled by word of mouth before the internet, and Google were born
Rock music myths and rumors still roll around today. But back when the playground was our only source of REAL knowledge, tales from the rock world often would take weird twists. And we could only trust the person who told us, at their word.
You might already be thinking about that one urban legend from back in the day — maybe even one you continued to spread yourself. Did Keith Richards really drain his blood? Was the band name KISS really a satanic acronym?
Keith Richards Did What??
Here are more rock and roll myths, and urban legends that have been debunked – sorry!
Alice Cooper Bit The Head Off A Chicken
Many believed the legend that Alice Cooper bit off a chicken’s head and drank its blood during an early Alice Cooper concert. But unlike Ozzy Osbourne’s infamous bat-biting incident, in which Osbourne seemingly did accidentally bite into a dead bat onstage.It comes from a real story where a live chicken ended up onstage with Cooper in 1969, after a fan tossed it up during a gig. Thrown back into the crowd, the animal reportedly perished. Headlines emerged the following day saying, “Alice bites head off a chicken and drinks the blood,” according to a Far Out Magazine retrospective.
Hulton Archives via Getty Images
KISS' Band Name Is A Satanic Acronym
The rumor was that the band name KISS was an acronym for Knights in Satan’s Service. The legend stood the test of time, and the band still gets asked about it today. The myth spread during the Satanic Panic of the ’80s. But it continued to crop up into the ’90s and 2000s.
In an appearance on The Howard Stern Show this year (2023), Paul Stanley said. “We’re smart, but not that smart. To me, KISS was a word that transcended the English language. You could go almost anywhere in the world and say the word KISS and people would go, ‘Oh, I’ve heard of them.” That’s all.
George De Sota via Getty Images
Phil Collins Wrote His Tragic Song Because He Couldn't Help
No, Phil Collins’ classic “In the Air Tonight” isn’t about Phil watching someone not help someone in life-threatening danger. The urban legend about the song was just that, but it gave the song a sad backstory about a man that passed by someone drowning but didn’t stop to save them — and that Collins watched the whole thing. NO! Didn’t happen, and it isn’t what the song is about!
“When I was writing this, I was going through a divorce,” Collins told the BBC. “It’s the angry side, or the bitter side of a separation. So what makes it even more comical is when I hear these stories, which started many years ago, particularly in America, of someone come up to me and say, ‘Did you really see someone drowning?’ I said, ‘No, wrong!’
Evan Agostini via Getty Images
Michael Jackson Owned The Bones Of The Elephant Man
No, Michael Jackson didn’t own the bones of Joseph Merrick, the 19th-century Englishman known for having severe deformities who was called the Elephant Man. Because Jackson was reportedly fascinated with the Merrick, rumors started in the ’80s that Jackson had purchased his remains. It really wouldn’t have been possible because the bones weren’t available. A World War II air raid on the Royal London Hospital destroyed almost all of the remains. A few remnants were saved but have never been for sale.
Carlo Allegri via Getty Images
Jimi Hendrix Was Responsible For All The Parakeets In Great Britain
This was only recently debunked. For decades it was said that Jimi Hendrix was responsible for all the parakeets in Britain. The story was, Jimi Hendrix single-handedly introduced the ring-necked parakeet to Britain after he released a pair of them as a symbol of peace – while stoned – in London’s Carnaby Street in 1968.A study published recently in the Journal of Zoology, now confirms that the birds were sighted in Britain as far back as 1855 when one was spotted in Norfolk. Experts believe that the parakeet population may have risen after the birds escaped from damaged birdhouses during Britain’s Great Storm of 1987. May seem odd, but people believed Hendrix was the parakeet man. (Drugs are bad…)
Evening Standard via Getty Images
Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and Kurt Cobain's Death's May Have Had Something To Do With White Bic Lighters
In 2011, a poster on the marijuana website HighDeas.com suggested that, according to their autopsies, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and Kurt Cobain died with white BIC lighters in their pockets.
Snopes debunked the theory, noting that BIC didn’t begin selling disposable lighters until after Joplin, Hendrix and Morrison had died. Plus, Morrison died in a bathtub and didn’t have an autopsy. A couple of lighters were spotted at the scene of Cobain’s death, but they weren’t white or in his pocket.
Hulton Archives via Getty Images
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