Parapsychology & Hauntings / Rock 'n' Roll Secrets

About the show

In the first half, Dr. Barry Taff, a world-renowned parapsychologist, revealed a series of unusual occurrences that he's personally experienced. Taff traced his paranormal experiences back to his childhood, when he said he was able to sense things about his classmates by touching items belonging to them, or by seeing through their clothing or into their bodies. As an adult, he worked at UCLA's parapsychology lab, where he drew the attention of the university and the media for his work—publicity which, he related, was not always positive or beneficial.

Taff went into detail about a particularly high-profile location he's investigated over the years: the house where actor Sharon Tate and others were murdered by disciples of Charles Manson. Upon first exploring the residence, Taff reported, he detected extremely high levels of geomagnetic energy, along with phenomena like glasses flying through the air. In addition, many of the people investigating the house—including himself—became seriously ill as a result, he continued (view related image).

Other cases Taff cited as being especially disturbing included a home where the dining room began to quake upon his arrival, causing a heavy marble table to "bounce up and down like it weighed a few ounces." On a visit to a friend's house in the desert, he went on, he encountered disembodied voices, electric devices turning on and off by themselves, and objects moving on their own. An attempt by his friend to escape these troubles by moving into another home proved to be futile: Taff claimed that at the new place, he awoke in the middle of the night to a strange woman next to him in bed on one occasion; on another, he was awakened by the pain of humanoids pulling something from inside his arm.

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"Rock & Roll Detective" Jim Berkenstadt joined the show in the latter half to talk about his career researching, consulting, and writing about music history. Often, he explained, his clients need obscure bits of information—concert footage, recorded conversations, legal documents, or even eyewitness accounts—to include in various media on rock musicians, which he tracks down for them. Along the way, information that answers questions or unlocks mysteries about famous rockers is uncovered as well, said Berkenstadt.

Some examples of his discoveries include the role of Sun Records employee Marion Keisker in discovering Elvis Presley. Although Sam Phillips, Sun's owner, is generally credited with introducing Presley to the world, Berkenstadt argued that documentary evidence suggests that Keisker first recognized the young singer's talent and saw to it that Phillips was made aware of him. Berkenstadt was also able to track the story of Beach Boys' use of Charles Manson's lyrics in their song "Never Learn Not to Love," brought to the group by drummer Dennis Wilson. The various theories surrounding the shooting of Bob Marley are also among the mysteries Berkenstadt examined, leading him to dive into the reports of witnesses and even the US Central Intelligence Agency.