It'll probably show up unexpectedly as one of those resonance-forms in the next supercollider sound experiment at MIT & at the same time some nearby guitar player will hit a perfect note & we all get to ascend.
Livecraftwas a master of alienation if anything. He would have certainly used it if he had thought of it. Alas we have to make do with a squid/dragon monster and the sum of our fears.
BOC's early band history is so uniquely weird. They were in contact with so many colorful characters; there were so many strange marketing ploys that inspired equally strange stories about them; there's oddly discordant accounts about the specific personal relations from nearly everyone who was involved back then (or I just misremember and/or Meltzer is full of crap). The symbol looks cool and vaguely occult, and that is all it ever had to do. I know that other rock bands had symbols too, but to me, this is the only memorable one.
That's why I find them so interesting you have artists, musicians, and poets all ending up in this web of strange Horror/Sci-Fi collaboration. You're not wrong about everyone having conflicting stories. Meltzer's are definitely the most negative, but I think he had a falling out with Pearlman and Murray Krugman (in interviews he says Pearlman was a "creep" but it seems slightly sour grapes and he's just a grumpy guy in general). The weird thing is even Joe and Albert Bouchard's stories don't match. As far as I can tell, there's about three different stories on the origins of Imaginos and everyone interprets most of their songs differently. I mean, how many versions of Astronomy are there by now? Five or six? To make things even MORE interesting, Norm Prusslin, a friend of the band, commented on my videos once and said Pearlman's original Imaginos poems do still exist in a box... somewhere. I have no idea if Prusslin or one of Pearlman's relatives have them. I'd love to get my hands on them one day. I think Buck even still has a lot material from Meltzer that was never used either. It would be cool if someone got all the surviving original members of the band for a sit down interview/documentary since they're all on better terms now.
@@Pseudiom Sandy's original papers were found and plans are in place to sort through them and publish some of them in book form. Norman Prusslin is heading that project. Meltzer apparently groped Buck Dharma's mother at his wedding and he thinks that was a major factor in the band cutting ties with him. He's admitted this himself btw, just going by what he's said in an interview.
Jesus, did not know about that second part, but thanks for letting me know about the plans to publish Pearlman's papers. Is there anywhere official for that yet? I'd love to promote it.
@@Pseudiom Meltzer having some kind of axe to grind would explain the general tone of his stories. What I always found odd about them and had me suspecting that they are, if not entirely fake, at least very exaggerated is this: If you take them at face value, you really have to wonder how anyone got along well enough for the band to exist longer than a few months. For example, when asked about the neo-nazi thing, he dispelled it but claimed that Eric Bloom, the one jew in the actual band, nonetheless had a weird admiration for the third reich because they were ordered and efficient. And doesn't he also have this weird story that Pearlman had an unrequited crush on Patti Smith, who was Lanier's girlfriend at the time, and that she was disgusted by him and constantly talked trash about him with Allen because they supposedly were both anti-semitic? I mean, if he disliked Pearlman, that would shed some light on this; but pretty much everything this man has to say about the band history has this sly strangeness to it that makes it sound pretty fake to me. Re the Bouchards: There's also different explanations why Albert left the band that got a bit cleared up by him later, but I don't know if the other members ever "updated" as well; Buck's version of their personal fallout would be especially interesting (maybe that exists and I just don't know about it).
it sucked me in as a little boy growing up in alabama. my older cousin bought "Tyranny and Mutation" for me while our family was at a mall shopping back in 1976. i had NEVER heard a single song of theirs, not even "Don't Fear...". The record store had the symbol in the window. I wanted to get Kiss "Destroyer", but cuz knew that my parents had bought that for me for Christmas, and since I was 12 he thought I was old enough to handle something "heavier".
A friend of my brother was really into BOC and I saw them in concert in 1981 during the Fire of Unknown Origin Tour. I consider them more metal than many other bands today and anything from the 90's.
I have been displaying "The Logo Of Unknown Origin" since it's conception for the 1971 Blue Öyster Cult lp. Posters, flags, stickers, album art as well as the band's name have resulted in many questions being asked of me about who, what, when, where and why is BÖC. All I can say is "if you have to ask you wouldn't understand!" For I am a Veteran Of Psychic Wars*-)
@@Yarkoonian Yea thanks However an Old legend of my own mind created by ego. I am old enough to have bought many LP's/albums when they were first released. Sabbath, Floyd, Stones, Zep*-)
@@Yarkoonian BÖC and Buck Dharma are among the few who still perform. "Think For Yourself, Question Authority" It all began with that statement and a scientific chemical invention: [C20H25N3O] We followed the dreamer through the purple hazy clouds. He could control our sense of time. We thought we were lost but no matter how we tried. Everyone was in peace of mind He said in the cosmos is a single sonic sound That is vibrating constantly And if we could grip and hold on to the note We would see our minds were free, oh they're free RH 1976*-)
As a graphic design student in the 70s, I redesigned the BOC album "Agents of Fortune" packaging. It features The Symbol, of course, and some pics I shot from stage front/center at Winterland (SF) in 1976. One of my favorite projects. Graphic design played a large role in the marketing and promotion of many rock bands in the 70s.
As a self taught graphic hobbyist (I am published as Cover Design by Rhino Graphics on a copyrighted CD, got $100 for my only pro job) and am quite adept with MS PhotoDraw (old fart with old PCs); SO I took the cover of the debut album, blew up the symbol (Kronos?) to prominence, turned all the white to shades of red, and splashed it across the tailgate of my black pickup truck. I cut taillight covers with Kronos holes. Also took the "Dakota" tag off the fender and put ME-262 on, in red. The Red and the Black, it's their color scheme. It's amazing how many honks and thumbs up I get. BOC fan since September 1973.
When I worked construction my boss talked about when he was living in another state he would have cook outs and barbecues and his neighbors would drop by to join him. He said one of his neighbors was in the Blue Oyster Cult and he would bring his fellow band members with him. My boss said they were good people.
I have this symbol tattooed just below my ankle... after their live album 'On Your Feet or On Your Knees' came out. On a similar note my girlfriend at the time surprised me three days later with own of her own... on her right knee. My biggest regret is that now it always reminds me of the Blue Oyster Bar in the Police Academy movie.
I have it on my right shoulder in red with a black outline. I had it done in my garage by a guy who had a tattoo kit and we were both drunk. It came out pretty bad so I spent $100 at a shop and it looks pretty nice now. My friend has one with flames on it. I have seen them many times. Last was August 2022 in San Diego. The Symbol Remains... HOT RAILS TO HELL!!!!!
It's the alchemical symbol of Saturn. The cross means corruption or impure. The hook is really a crescent which symbolizes silver--a form of female purity (male purity is gold like sun and represented in alchemy as a circle). The cross being above the crescent means that Saturn's metal is externally corrupt but internally is pure like silver. That metal is lead.
Such an awesome band. I love them. I remember when I was a kid one of my babysitters told me they had secret band names and held satanic orgies at their concerts but you had to know the secret names to find out about them. That was back in M-TV days and it always stuck with me. There is definitely a dark, mysterious aura about these guys that normies could never understand.
lol secret band names... at first Sandy tried to get them all to take really ridiculous stage names like Prince Omega and Jesse Python. only Buck kept his
LoL, yeah they were controversial when I was a teen in the early eighties and that whole satanic panic bullshit 😅 I was such a rotten kid, used it all as a way to rebel. Probably owe my poor parents an apology
The drawbridge that crosses Catskill Creek in Catskill N.Y., had a huge concrete counterweight, probably 30 feet high by 25 feet wide? Anyway, someone painted a huge Blue Oyster Cult symbol on it and it stayed there for maybe 20 years or longer, until the bridge was replaced!
Eric Bloom used to perform with a guitar in the shape of this symbol, in the late 70’s and throughout the 80’s, and possibly also into the 90’s, I am not sure precisely when he retired that guitar, and he even now may continue to play it on occasions. I have seen them perform on a number of occasions, and they have always put on a great show, they are incredibly tight and super talented. Thank you for posting this video! Please have an excellent and awesome day! ✨☀️🎸
Depends on how you want to see it... 🙄 Check out the esoteric visual grimoire called pornhub, it's an anal hook after entry. 😂 All the alchemists had to do was remove a proton, would of helped if the later alchemists figured out science, than again the hand of glory ain't no may apple. It's all bullshit.
Kronos/Cronos is Saturn so... In fact on the album titled "The Symbol Remains" [shown at 6:12 in video] you can even see a stylized symbol of the planet Saturn...
I bought a beat-up Dodge Dart in 1985, it was my Whoopty-car. I knew that petulant machine inside and out; a constant battle to keep it running. After a break-in, I had occasion to look under the car and found the BOC symbol painted on the under-side of the differential housing! Whoever painted it took the time to scrub down to bare metal, lay down a coat of primer, dark blue brushed enamel, then hand-paint the symbol in white enamel! It must have taken them days for the enamel layers to dry. I knew it was done while the car was parked, as some primer over-spray was on the drive-shaft. Never found out who, but the car ran flawlessly for the next 4 years.
Forgot how cool BOC album covers were, we drew the Hook & Cross on everything in high school and made a snow statue of it in our front yard ahh the 70's
Great collection of information about the symbol and the band. The use of a "symbol" begs misunderstanding, and the word "cult' in the name, when tied in to the album art - in a time without internet - really fueled controversy and speculation. EVERYTHING about rock music was of questionable motive at that time. At least some would have you believe. And hey, it sold records, right?
I was a HUGE Reaper fan, as a teen............ the symbol always reminded me of the outline of a guitar with outstretched arms. The band's choices for lyrics always made for great controversy among those who disliked heavy metal. I have seen the band perform, live many times and never got the impression that the symbol was anything more than an easy way to recognise the band. Loved the research that went into this article......... kudos to the symbol of Saturn
I always thought it was real cool and had a concert shirt with it on the front when I was in my early teens . T-shirt(jersey) was white with dark blue sleeves and "collar" , and the Cult symbol was also dark blue and filled the front of the shirt - no writing , the back had "Blue Oyster Cult" and beneath , the tour dates . I wore it until it fell apart . The year was '79 or '80 , I was 14 or 15 .....a great show and memory ! The symbols meaning ? It meant it was time to kick out the jams !
Thought it might as well fit with the theme of the video. There was one episode in the first season (I think) of supernatural, where they had this mistery about a ghost appearing, and on the house there was many symbols on the house, including the blue oyster cult symbol, but they didn't realize that until later on the episode. The episode concludes in a way that they realized that the ghost was created by spreading rumors and that was the manifestation of the people thinking it was real. So in a way, maybe people thinking it's satanic it kinda makes it one lol. Great video! Really love your channel
You know that episode of Supernatural was actually what ordinally got me interested in Blue Oyster Cult. Honestly Supernatural as a whole has had a dramatic influence on my taste in music.
@@phantomviper211 Hah! I was the opposite. Hated Supernatural -- thought it was a cheap Charmed rip-off -- but gave it another chance when I found out they liked BOC.
I caught the BOC about 3-4 years ago at a great old theater and they were great! Kasim on bass was a bonus.I hope they return.I got into them years ago when I obtained a copy of "On your feet,or on your knees". One of the best live albums imo, though it's not well known unless one is a true Cultist.
On Your Feet or On Your Knees would by my fave as well, as old and grungy as it sounds it's a powerhouse and The Last Days of May never sounded better. I love how they never stop touring but it's ironic that most of their fanbase today is in Europe. I've seen them four times live, if you get a chance to see them in a small club it's totally worth it. They played this last year at the state fair in Alaska, I've seen them 3 times here and once in Florida.
@@Skiddoo42 I Iive in R.I. and hope they come back to this area soon.They packed the 2000 seat theater I saw them at last time.Agents of Fortune is an all time classic that I wore out in college in the 70s.ETI is so great.They should be in the HOF.
@@kevmac1230 Cultosaurus Erectus was my first and probably my favorite studio album next to Spectres but there is a ton of variety in their music it's just a matter of what my current mood is.
The meaning of chaos makes perfect sense. You think it's cryptic so it can mean anything in the chaos of possibilities. So while people are wondering and speculating over its meaning, the meaning is staring you in the face like a mirror. Chaos can mean everything or nothing. Sandy Pearlman was one clever man.
The symbol is for Saturn. Period. Stylized by Gawlik from original. Saturn rules death, vampires, science fiction, the Occult, all themes in their songs. The band for the thinking man.
I read an article on '60s graphic design. The said a lot of the psychedelic images were taken with from Greek and other mythologies or they also culled from Victorian era and from the Deco area heavily. BOC was part of this I'm sure. The album covers were amazing in those days and every teenager had a cardboard box in their bedrooms filled with records. I think the first King Crimson album was my favorite. I saw BOC live and it was a great show.
As an old rock hack from the 70s/80s, a BOC devotee from the beginning and an admirer of the super intelligent and gentlemanly Sandy Pearlman, I have to say this is the most cogent and erudite analysis of the BOC symbol I've ever seen. Bravo.
I believe it does have a specific meaning in the band's lore, though this came after Gawlik's original conception of it. It's the symbol of Les Invisibles and is on the flag of Plutonia.
Yeah, that was the was why I referenced Imaginos. It has a more complex meaning on the original Imaginos albums and Albert Bouchard's Imaginos albums. I already made a longer video on Imaginos though so I kind of left that to the side for now.
I vividly remember a TV show in the early '80s where some TV evangelist preached on the evils on rock music. He talked about backmasking and held up albums with "evil" covers. He pointed out "the symbol" on BOC albums and said it denounced the crucifixion of Christ - aka "Cross Of Questioning". When he was holding up album covers, he even held up Journey's "Look Into The Future". The crystal ball clearly meant Journey were into the occult...
I THINK I saw that same clip or one similar. One other album I saw the guy hold up was Pink Floyd Ummagumma. He said, "Then there is this" He was couldn't come up with anything.
Thanks for the deep dive of the symbol! Blue Oyster Cult is my favorite band. If you're very familiar with their music you know they love to have fun and tell cool stories. [I know how to make the lowercase ö symbol but I'm too lazy to look up the capitalized version!]
GODZILLA ! And ALL those y'all named , too ! Lol If I HAD to pick a fav , it would be 'Astronomy' from the live SEE album...man , that WHOLE ALBUM ! Love 'Veteran of the Psychic Wars' because...well , because I am one !I. "Don't Fear the Reaper" is a Masterpiece of words and music and , at once , sad yet beautifully uplifting . Glad there are still cool BOC fans as I can see from the comments section . Rock On !
Oh wow,. I'd always been a little unclear about how legit the origin was because it really didn't look that much like the alchemical symbol for Saturn unless it was severely modified (most modern versions I've seen, the tip of the hook is WAY further out from the main stem), but seeing how it was written in older manuscripts makes it make more sense. Guess it symbolizes a harvest of life, a harvest of death, eh ALSO as for "Behemoth's World" (i.e. the source for the cover of Cultosaurus Erectus): it will probably not surprise anyone reading this that the BOC Symbol was added to the painting, but that's not the only change from the original image. The image is mirrored horizontally and appears to have been somewhat colorized yellow. The painting has been used for some other stuff as well; I'm fairly confident that it was used for a cover for at least one sci-fi/fantasy book, and it was used for the cover of a video game called ORK published by Psygnosis in 1993 (in an un-mirrored for and with no yellow color applied over it, but with a game logo that obviously wasn't there). Another piece of the original Behemoth's World painting appears on the back cover of Cultosaurus Erectus. At least on the LP and things that copy the sleeve (I have three copies: an LP, a regular jewel case CD, and the mini LP sleeve from the Columbia Albums Collection box), the pictures all have descriptions with little easter eggs related to BOC lore. Also, yes, the symbol is hard as hell to see. On the CDs it's so tiny that it just looks like a tiny speck, but even on the LP you gotta hold it up to your face and squint, basically, where you'll see that it's tilted 45 degrees or so compared to its usual "upright" orientation. However, I'm not 100% sure of the date of RCD's original. The extremely few sources I've been able to find that list a date for the image say 1980, but I suspect it might be a little older than that. Anyone here a little more confident than me on this one?
pretty much looks like a cross-section of a dough hook from a standard Kitchen Aid K5A home use kitchen mixer. Their mom's probably had one to mix cookies when they were kids growing up, and they remembered it fondly...
Seems to me that the intentionally cryptic symbol served quite well to stir up controversy, which was likely its original intent. By the way it's (bridle) as opposed to (brindle) ?
Wonderful job, thanks for your work on the history of the planetary signs: it helped my writing out. My symbol is 4774 symmetrized together to mean "love under will," and think it is the Key of It All of Liber Legis III:47.
I found their music in 1976 when I was 13, been along the trip all the way, never seen them play as to my location, but I did do an album cover for them when I was at school in art class, and I still have it, and I well send it to them soon. It's very good people say, album title is "Millenniums Ago". I'll post it on their Facebook page, with a story, been meaning to do it for ages now, but not millenniums. Thank you for this. 😊
@@davec3901 Australia. They have been here once, to Sydney at least, years ago, I wasn't even aware. I'll try to get my act together and put it on their Facebook feed with a story.
@@martintaper7997 I see, yeah that's rough. Because they're all over the States, but the good news is there's so much phenomenal live stuff now that is accessible. In the old days it was very hard to get.
BÖC have given me so much to think about - their lyrics are unique, beautiful, confusing and somehow often inexplicably earnest. If that wasn't enough, their music is absolutely beyond compare. I have been entranced for about 50 years and it's still going strong. Cop that, Harry Styles.
I'm not sure why in the list of albums, "Curse of the Hidden Mirror" was skipped over. But the cross is obvious on that one. At a gig in Skokie, one of their Roadies had a big green hook and cross tattoo.
I think they have the eeriest collection of album covers I've ever seen, I wish the music was just as eerie. Don't Fear the Reaper gives me that feeling but I can't think of anything else.
In this contemptible, malevolent ñ, crooked shadow of a fever dream we call world, Earth, there are few good things, you, Pseudiom, are one of those happy few, Blue Oyster Cult another.
I was watching an episode of Ghost Adventures where someone had graffiti'd the symbol in a building they were investigating, and Zak was like "OMG GUYS THERE'S SATANIC SYMBOLS" 😂 Nah man, just a BÖC fan.🤘
ok.. stumbled in when this poped in my feed.. Talking about one of my fav bands, and that intro.. yeah, I think I'll subscribe. side note, I really dig that intro music, it's like a split point between Hugo Montenegro's The Good The Bad and The Ugly intro whistling, and Michael Jackson's Billie Jean
(22:55) "Cross of Nero"? What? The modern peace sign was designed by Gerald Holtom for the British Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in 1958. The vertical line in the center represents the flag semaphore signal for the letter D, and the downward lines on either side represent the semaphore signal for the letter N.
Interesting video! I've been a BOC fan since the mid 70's when even as a kid I realized KISS was more gimmick than substance. 4:25 : Wow c'mon man! The horse's "brindle"? It's a bridle and not a "bite" but a bit. Interesting note about Some Enchanted Evening; on the back cover you could send 50¢ and a self-addressed stamped envelope to a P.O. box in Long Island for song lyrics. As lyrics were never released for their first several albums, I was chomping at the bit...or bite as you say. Several weeks later, I received a small cardboard tube with my envelope taped to it. Inside was a scroll of paper with song lyrics that had been typed out on a typewriter or possibly an early computer. Although the lyrics weren't very accurate and didn't have all the songs, it's a fun piece of BOC history and nostalgia.
I had those lyrics also, printed on light green computer paper, and yep they were filled with inaccuracies and had songs missing--but it was all we had and better than nothing, especially considering the band's penchant for strange/bizarre lyrics. Have seen BOC live five times--first time was when they debuted the laser light show in the late 1970's. Been a huge fan since I first saw the "Secret Treaties" album...having never previously heard of BOC I bought it purely based on the album's cover art alone...when I was a senior in HS in 1974/75 in Izmir, Turkey. Secret Treaties was a huge influence on my musical taste back then as that album was a masterpiece!
@@sped17373 : Mine wasn't on green paper, it was peach/pink paper....they probably used the cheapest paper available. But even with it's inaccuracies, I loved it! I also had the pleasure of seeing BOC several times, the first being in 1983 with Rainbow (Joe Lynn Turner days) opening. Stadium show, with the big "animatronic" Godzilla...it was awesome! Then they lost their record deal, everything went to shit and they were playing smaller venues. But it didn't matter if they were playing for 20,000 or 200 people, they always put on a great show. Yes, they played a club in Palo Alto (?) the 90's that only about 200 people showed up and I got to meet Buck, Eric, and Allen. Secret Treaties was such a great album! I loved the artwork of so many albums but honestly the first two were lack-luster for me. When Spectres came out, it became my favorite.....until Fire! That changed everything, thanks to Martin Birch one of the best sound engineers to blow out my speakers/headphones! 🤓 Thanks for the comment and the memories!
This is great. The only other take on this topic was on The Farm. Steven Snider and Chris Knowles went over B.O.C.’s history. But they tend to sensationalize and offer to much conjecture to fit the narrative they want to present. Great job
How I found out about BÖC as a kid was in itself cryptic. An anonymous poster on 4chan (I think it must have been /b/, but I don't recall exactly) in...must have been about December 2017 or January 2018, claimed he was the original vocalist of a band formed in New York in the late 60s, and challenged people to guess which. I'd never heard of the band before but did some googling and guessed correctly, Soft White Underbelly. He responded by linking a recording of their old jams on RUclips. It was most likely just someone talking shite...but then again, what would one have to gain by pretending to be the original vocalist of Soft White Underbelly? The conversation might be kicking around a 4chan archive somewhere.
I'm imagining there are alot of BOC fans around, so I better tread lightly! I always liked BOC and I have seen them 3 times over the years. The first time I saw them was during the Black & Blue tour. There was a very strange combination of Sabbath and BOC fans surrounding me, and that's where I got my first taste of proselytizing from a R & R band fanatic. This lesson that I inadvertently walked into, was almost as rabid as a Zeppelin fan attempting to explain the symbols from their fourth album. Anyway, this kid was a Whirling Dervish of crazy rhetoric, and Dungeons & Dragons type mysticism! I just thought it was kinda cool to have a symbol that represented the band, and let people associate their own meaning to it. But the Sabbath side of the crowd was not having any of it! I found myself in the middle of a holy war that I just was not prepared to handle since I was flying high on mescaline. I never got a straight answer (that I can recall) and once the show started I forgot what we were talking about anyway. This is kind of along the same lines as the discussion I had with that rabid BOC fan so many years ago, minus the mescaline. This is the most in-depth explanation I have heard, all about a band that you just don't hear much about anymore. Very well done, and without all the insinuations of monstrous nonsense.
their early songs were beautifully melodic and also eerie ,i can hardly recommend them to others until now ,lyrics was full of praising death or weird metaphor about daily life which chilled me to the bone , but as to the guitar part it was so amazingly charming like temptation of sirens ,music is still outstanding even now but my innermost part refuses them
These comments, if you read them all, really tell a great story of fandom. Wow. While some of the comments speak of first-hand encounters with band members or immediate inner circle, I find the remarks from everyday, 70's and early 80's teens who lived in middle America to be completely fascinating. It's as if "Johnny" from Marshall Plan is commenting, on himself. All these years later, is this proof of the genius of BOC?
You using specifically the word "dismembered" wen referring to the Saturn symbol is especially interesting since that's what Jupiter and his siblings do to him in the grecorroman myth. (I used the interpretatio romana names for consistency but Saturn is the name for Kronos and Jupiter for Zeus)
This was a well-educated band. The fact that they used a symbol of Saturn, light beams emanating north south and east and west from the planet. This is an ancient symbol of Saturn and of our original Sun as it is written in the Sumerian texts. The time of our creation, the purple dawn of creation
I remember when I was young and in church, it was the height of the Satanic music scare. This was one of the symbols my youth group described as Satanic. The one that really cracks me up now is they included the Egyptian Ankh with it. They taught us that the Ankh was a symbol representing a Christain cross with a circle representing emptiness where Christ's head is. The BOC symbol was the questioning of Christ. The problem with the Ankh as an "antichrist" symbol is it was used in Egypt at least 4000 years before Christ. Do your research Christians before you make up your BS!
I've met the guys from BOC and they are far from satanic. Partied with the drummer had a great time. Great band which I've see 50 60 times all top notch .
I have learned that the "Hooked Cross" is what they call "The Sorceror's Cross" according to legend. Thus my wearing it as a Pendant...as it is sort of a focus for ones thoughts. It is said it was also the focus of Sorcerors to draw in the "weave" and manipulate it...using the hook to contain the strands until one wove them into a pattern to produce an effect. Now...I am no sorceror...sadly...but they do fascinate me...and I think I could have been one if we retained the knowlege.
I got into BOC, as A young teenager…. And the symbol was intriguing and mystifying. I had no knowledge of it and the mystery of it drives curiosity… The music I enjoyed but was apprehensive on the “Cult” subject matter. Honestly didn’t want to expose myself to anything evil, but at the same time was deeply alluring.. Isn’t that the greatest types of temptations in life we all face?
I find funny discussing about Blue Oyster Cult is, what are they, psych rock, prog rock, heavy metal, or just old dad rock? And I think none, they just made good music, but most importantly they knew how to sell themselves and they just had some curious humour almost modern in their irony, maybe the symbol doesn't have a meaning because it doesn't need it, as it is its own mystery what draws people to the band
(21:29) One thing I noticed while watching "Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills“ was that some people use the terms "cult" and "occult" interchangeably. They seem to associate the terms with Satanism.
Look up the symbol for the dwarf planet Ceres. That's it, it's the exact same symbol, apparently Gaick picked it out of a book of astronomy symbols. At least according to interviews with band members I have seen.
It means 'knowing'. And it's a map to the next level. Pointing to The Center where spirit and matter meet on the flat Earth. The upside down question mark is meant to be the question flipped into its opposite: knowing. Who's ready to evolve?
The symbol's persistent but unexplained appearance in highly charged symbolic or surrealist contexts gives me a Lovecraftian vibe.
It'll probably show up unexpectedly as one of those resonance-forms in the next supercollider sound experiment at MIT & at the same time some nearby guitar player will hit a perfect note & we all get to ascend.
Pearlman was a fan
Lovecraft does not have the monopoly on this manner of things. the history of symbolism goes as deep as the amount humanity has invested into them.
have you seen the yellow sign?
Livecraftwas a master of alienation if anything. He would have certainly used it if he had thought of it. Alas we have to make do with a squid/dragon monster and the sum of our fears.
BOC's early band history is so uniquely weird. They were in contact with so many colorful characters; there were so many strange marketing ploys that inspired equally strange stories about them; there's oddly discordant accounts about the specific personal relations from nearly everyone who was involved back then (or I just misremember and/or Meltzer is full of crap).
The symbol looks cool and vaguely occult, and that is all it ever had to do. I know that other rock bands had symbols too, but to me, this is the only memorable one.
That's why I find them so interesting you have artists, musicians, and poets all ending up in this web of strange Horror/Sci-Fi collaboration. You're not wrong about everyone having conflicting stories. Meltzer's are definitely the most negative, but I think he had a falling out with Pearlman and Murray Krugman (in interviews he says Pearlman was a "creep" but it seems slightly sour grapes and he's just a grumpy guy in general). The weird thing is even Joe and Albert Bouchard's stories don't match. As far as I can tell, there's about three different stories on the origins of Imaginos and everyone interprets most of their songs differently. I mean, how many versions of Astronomy are there by now? Five or six?
To make things even MORE interesting, Norm Prusslin, a friend of the band, commented on my videos once and said Pearlman's original Imaginos poems do still exist in a box... somewhere. I have no idea if Prusslin or one of Pearlman's relatives have them. I'd love to get my hands on them one day. I think Buck even still has a lot material from Meltzer that was never used either. It would be cool if someone got all the surviving original members of the band for a sit down interview/documentary since they're all on better terms now.
@@Pseudiom Sandy's original papers were found and plans are in place to sort through them and publish some of them in book form. Norman Prusslin is heading that project.
Meltzer apparently groped Buck Dharma's mother at his wedding and he thinks that was a major factor in the band cutting ties with him. He's admitted this himself btw, just going by what he's said in an interview.
Jesus, did not know about that second part, but thanks for letting me know about the plans to publish Pearlman's papers. Is there anywhere official for that yet? I'd love to promote it.
@@Pseudiom Meltzer having some kind of axe to grind would explain the general tone of his stories. What I always found odd about them and had me suspecting that they are, if not entirely fake, at least very exaggerated is this: If you take them at face value, you really have to wonder how anyone got along well enough for the band to exist longer than a few months. For example, when asked about the neo-nazi thing, he dispelled it but claimed that Eric Bloom, the one jew in the actual band, nonetheless had a weird admiration for the third reich because they were ordered and efficient. And doesn't he also have this weird story that Pearlman had an unrequited crush on Patti Smith, who was Lanier's girlfriend at the time, and that she was disgusted by him and constantly talked trash about him with Allen because they supposedly were both anti-semitic? I mean, if he disliked Pearlman, that would shed some light on this; but pretty much everything this man has to say about the band history has this sly strangeness to it that makes it sound pretty fake to me.
Re the Bouchards: There's also different explanations why Albert left the band that got a bit cleared up by him later, but I don't know if the other members ever "updated" as well; Buck's version of their personal fallout would be especially interesting (maybe that exists and I just don't know about it).
It's a catalyst for conversation, which I am a big fan of.
it sucked me in as a little boy growing up in alabama. my older cousin bought "Tyranny and Mutation" for me while our family was at a mall shopping back in 1976. i had NEVER heard a single song of theirs, not even "Don't Fear...". The record store had the symbol in the window. I wanted to get Kiss "Destroyer", but cuz knew that my parents had bought that for me for Christmas, and since I was 12 he thought I was old enough to handle something "heavier".
A friend of my brother was really into BOC and I saw them in concert in 1981 during the Fire of Unknown Origin Tour. I consider them more metal than many other bands today and anything from the 90's.
I have been displaying "The Logo Of Unknown Origin" since it's conception for the 1971 Blue Öyster Cult lp. Posters, flags, stickers, album art as well as the band's name have resulted in many questions being asked of me about who, what, when, where and why is BÖC. All I can say is "if you have to ask you wouldn't understand!" For I am a Veteran Of Psychic Wars*-)
Not only a veteran of the PW, but you are a good egg to boot.
Fun post dude, all the best!
if you actually say that, you're a legend.
@@Yarkoonian Yea thanks However an Old legend of my own mind created by ego. I am old enough to have bought many LP's/albums when they were first released. Sabbath, Floyd, Stones, Zep*-)
@@1suoiraciv954 a tram driver waved me down when I was wearing my boc shirt. Sadly boc had a concert where I live now, just missed it
@@Yarkoonian BÖC and Buck Dharma are among the few who still perform. "Think For Yourself, Question Authority" It all began with that statement and a scientific chemical invention: [C20H25N3O] We followed the dreamer through the purple hazy clouds. He could control our sense of time. We thought we were lost but no matter how we tried. Everyone was in peace of mind He said in the cosmos is a single sonic sound That is vibrating constantly And if we could grip and hold on to the note We would see our minds were free, oh they're free RH 1976*-)
As a graphic design student in the 70s, I redesigned the BOC album "Agents of Fortune" packaging. It features The Symbol, of course, and some pics I shot from stage front/center at Winterland (SF) in 1976. One of my favorite projects. Graphic design played a large role in the marketing and promotion of many rock bands in the 70s.
you sir, are a Hero
As a self taught graphic hobbyist (I am published as Cover Design by Rhino Graphics on a copyrighted CD, got $100 for my only pro job) and am quite adept with MS PhotoDraw (old fart with old PCs); SO I took the cover of the debut album, blew up the symbol (Kronos?) to prominence, turned all the white to shades of red, and splashed it across the tailgate of my black pickup truck. I cut taillight covers with Kronos holes. Also took the "Dakota" tag off the fender and put ME-262 on, in red. The Red and the Black, it's their color scheme. It's amazing how many honks and thumbs up I get. BOC fan since September 1973.
When I worked construction my boss talked about when he was living in another state he would have cook outs and barbecues and his neighbors would drop by to join him. He said one of his neighbors was in the Blue Oyster Cult and he would bring his fellow band members with him. My boss said they were good people.
I knew one member through our long family histories as neighbors in a small town. Family guy, and intellectual. Fun stuff.
Not surprised if Bill Gawlik is actually Desdenova from this Timeline considering how mysterious and cryptic he is 😂
Have always loved the BÖC logo and lore!
Logo seemed ancient, mysterious; evoking interpretation
I have this symbol tattooed just below my ankle... after their live album 'On Your Feet or On Your Knees' came out. On a similar note my girlfriend at the time surprised me three days later with own of her own... on her right knee.
My biggest regret is that now it always reminds me of the Blue Oyster Bar in the Police Academy movie.
I have it on my right shoulder in red with a black outline. I had it done in my garage by a guy who had a tattoo kit and we were both drunk. It came out pretty bad so I spent $100 at a shop and it looks pretty nice now. My friend has one with flames on it.
I have seen them many times. Last was August 2022 in San Diego.
The Symbol Remains...
HOT RAILS TO HELL!!!!!
Lol Mine's on my left thumbweb - it's still my favorite tattoo
It's the alchemical symbol of Saturn. The cross means corruption or impure. The hook is really a crescent which symbolizes silver--a form of female purity (male purity is gold like sun and represented in alchemy as a circle). The cross being above the crescent means that Saturn's metal is externally corrupt but internally is pure like silver. That metal is lead.
I thought the cross represented the material world while the crescent was the soul being challenged to up against it.
Such an awesome band. I love them. I remember when I was a kid one of my babysitters told me they had secret band names and held satanic orgies at their concerts but you had to know the secret names to find out about them. That was back in M-TV days and it always stuck with me. There is definitely a dark, mysterious aura about these guys that normies could never understand.
lol secret band names... at first Sandy tried to get them all to take really ridiculous stage names like Prince Omega and Jesse Python. only Buck kept his
Soft White Underbelly
You have to know the secret name to go to the secret show were you will get all the cowbell you could ever dream about.
@@billywiththebulgingbaloonb5105 Soft White Underbelly 🫢
LoL, yeah they were controversial when I was a teen in the early eighties and that whole satanic panic bullshit 😅 I was such a rotten kid, used it all as a way to rebel. Probably owe my poor parents an apology
The drawbridge that crosses Catskill Creek in Catskill N.Y., had a huge concrete counterweight, probably 30 feet high by 25 feet wide? Anyway, someone painted a huge Blue Oyster Cult symbol on it and it stayed there for maybe 20 years or longer, until the bridge was replaced!
Eric Bloom used to perform with a guitar in the shape of this symbol, in the late 70’s and throughout the 80’s, and possibly also into the 90’s, I am not sure precisely when he retired that guitar, and he even now may continue to play it on occasions.
I have seen them perform on a number of occasions, and they have always put on a great show, they are incredibly tight and super talented.
Thank you for posting this video!
Please have an excellent and awesome day!
✨☀️🎸
as an artist, a music scholar, and an occultist, as well as history acolyte, i found this video to be indispensably useful and educational.
Depends on how you want to see it... 🙄 Check out the esoteric visual grimoire called pornhub, it's an anal hook after entry.
😂 All the alchemists had to do was remove a proton, would of helped if the later alchemists figured out science, than again the hand of glory ain't no may apple.
It's all bullshit.
Kronos/Cronos is Saturn so... In fact on the album titled "The Symbol Remains" [shown at 6:12 in video] you can even see a stylized symbol of the planet Saturn...
I bought a beat-up Dodge Dart in 1985, it was my Whoopty-car.
I knew that petulant machine inside and out; a constant battle to keep it running.
After a break-in, I had occasion to look under the car and found the BOC symbol painted on the under-side of the differential housing!
Whoever painted it took the time to scrub down to bare metal, lay down a coat of primer, dark blue brushed enamel, then hand-paint the symbol in white enamel!
It must have taken them days for the enamel layers to dry.
I knew it was done while the car was parked, as some primer over-spray was on the drive-shaft.
Never found out who, but the car ran flawlessly for the next 4 years.
It’s just their logo. Everything doesn’t need a deeper meaning.
Forgot how cool BOC album covers were, we drew the Hook & Cross on everything in high school and made a snow statue of it in our front yard ahh the 70's
Great collection of information about the symbol and the band. The use of a "symbol" begs misunderstanding, and the word "cult' in the name, when tied in to the album art - in a time without internet - really fueled controversy and speculation. EVERYTHING about rock music was of questionable motive at that time. At least some would have you believe. And hey, it sold records, right?
You forgot Curse of the hidden mirror,where the man is looking in the mirror,it's on the outside of the man's mirror.
I was a HUGE Reaper fan, as a teen............ the symbol always reminded me of the outline of a guitar with outstretched arms. The band's choices for lyrics always made for great controversy among those who disliked heavy metal. I have seen the band perform, live many times and never got the impression that the symbol was anything more than an easy way to recognise the band. Loved the research that went into this article......... kudos to the symbol of Saturn
The algorithm just presented your content to me recently. Instant fan. I dig what you're doing, man. Very well put together, and thoughtful. 🤘🏼
I always thought it was real cool and had a concert shirt with it on the front when I was in my early teens .
T-shirt(jersey) was white with dark blue sleeves and "collar" , and the Cult symbol was also dark blue and filled the front of the shirt - no writing , the back had "Blue Oyster Cult" and beneath , the tour dates . I wore it until it fell apart . The year was '79 or '80 , I was 14 or 15 .....a great show and memory !
The symbols meaning ? It meant it was time to kick out the jams !
In Italy, the horned hand is used as a ward against evil.
Just like Ronnie explained about his grandmother’s interpretation.
Thought it might as well fit with the theme of the video.
There was one episode in the first season (I think) of supernatural, where they had this mistery about a ghost appearing, and on the house there was many symbols on the house, including the blue oyster cult symbol, but they didn't realize that until later on the episode.
The episode concludes in a way that they realized that the ghost was created by spreading rumors and that was the manifestation of the people thinking it was real.
So in a way, maybe people thinking it's satanic it kinda makes it one lol.
Great video! Really love your channel
You know that episode of Supernatural was actually what ordinally got me interested in Blue Oyster Cult. Honestly Supernatural as a whole has had a dramatic influence on my taste in music.
@@phantomviper211 Hah! I was the opposite. Hated Supernatural -- thought it was a cheap Charmed rip-off -- but gave it another chance when I found out they liked BOC.
the entire episode was a tribute to BOC started with Fire of unknown origin in the beginning
I caught the BOC about 3-4 years ago at a great old theater and they were great! Kasim on bass was a bonus.I hope they return.I got into them years ago when I obtained a copy of "On your feet,or on your knees". One of the best live albums imo, though it's not well known unless one is a true Cultist.
On Your Feet or On Your Knees would by my fave as well, as old and grungy as it sounds it's a powerhouse and The Last Days of May never sounded better. I love how they never stop touring but it's ironic that most of their fanbase today is in Europe. I've seen them four times live, if you get a chance to see them in a small club it's totally worth it. They played this last year at the state fair in Alaska, I've seen them 3 times here and once in Florida.
@@Skiddoo42 I Iive in R.I. and hope they come back to this area soon.They packed the 2000 seat theater I saw them at last time.Agents of Fortune is an all time classic that I wore out in college in the 70s.ETI is so great.They should be in the HOF.
@@kevmac1230 Cultosaurus Erectus was my first and probably my favorite studio album next to Spectres but there is a ton of variety in their music it's just a matter of what my current mood is.
@@Skiddoo42South American cultist here! Cheers from Brazil
Actually OYFOOYK did go Gold And yes a fantastic live album
Another BÖC video! Is it christmas already?
It is January, but BOC is a good New Year band.
The meaning of chaos makes perfect sense. You think it's cryptic so it can mean anything in the chaos of possibilities. So while people are wondering and speculating over its meaning, the meaning is staring you in the face like a mirror. Chaos can mean everything or nothing. Sandy Pearlman was one clever man.
B.O.C. The Thinking Man's METAL. And yes they are on Tour Forever, just saw them back in November. 50 years and still going Strong!!!!
The symbol is for Saturn. Period. Stylized by Gawlik from original. Saturn rules death, vampires, science fiction, the Occult, all themes in their songs. The band for the thinking man.
I read an article on '60s graphic design. The said a lot of the psychedelic images were taken with from Greek and other mythologies or they also culled from Victorian era and from the Deco area heavily. BOC was part of this I'm sure. The album covers were amazing in those days and every teenager had a cardboard box in their bedrooms filled with records. I think the first King Crimson album was my favorite. I saw BOC live and it was a great show.
As an old rock hack from the 70s/80s, a BOC devotee from the beginning and an admirer of the super intelligent and gentlemanly Sandy Pearlman, I have to say this is the most cogent and erudite analysis of the BOC symbol I've ever seen. Bravo.
I believe it does have a specific meaning in the band's lore, though this came after Gawlik's original conception of it. It's the symbol of Les Invisibles and is on the flag of Plutonia.
Yeah, that was the was why I referenced Imaginos. It has a more complex meaning on the original Imaginos albums and Albert Bouchard's Imaginos albums. I already made a longer video on Imaginos though so I kind of left that to the side for now.
I vividly remember a TV show in the early '80s where some TV evangelist preached on the evils on rock music. He talked about backmasking and held up albums with "evil" covers. He pointed out "the symbol" on BOC albums and said it denounced the crucifixion of Christ - aka "Cross Of Questioning". When he was holding up album covers, he even held up Journey's "Look Into The Future". The crystal ball clearly meant Journey were into the occult...
That was a cool record. I wonder where they would have gone musically without the Steve Perry factor.
I THINK I saw that same clip or one similar. One other album I saw the guy hold up was Pink Floyd Ummagumma. He said, "Then there is this" He was couldn't come up with anything.
What a crock!
The horse on Some Enchanted Evening is wearing a double bit on it's bridle. Which by the way is pronounced the same as bit, the past tense of bite.
Thanks for the deep dive of the symbol! Blue Oyster Cult is my favorite band. If you're very familiar with their music you know they love to have fun and tell cool stories.
[I know how to make the lowercase ö symbol but I'm too lazy to look up the capitalized version!]
I spoke at length to the man who built
Eric’s symbol shaped guitar. He told me it caused a lot of problems when it showed up.
Dont fear the reaper!
Veteran of the Psychic Wars 👍
Astronomy!
GODZILLA ! And ALL those y'all named , too ! Lol
If I HAD to pick a fav , it would be 'Astronomy' from the live SEE album...man , that WHOLE ALBUM ! Love 'Veteran of the Psychic Wars' because...well , because I am one !I. "Don't Fear the Reaper" is a Masterpiece of words and music and , at once , sad yet beautifully uplifting . Glad there are still cool BOC fans as I can see from the comments section .
Rock On !
Shut up! Like they dont have better songs.
Old army mate had that song playing at the crematorium as his coffin ⚰ got lowered down into the incinerator.
That was very well done I appreciate it.
I got an autograph from Eric Bloom ones but, I was a star struck kid.
Happy to see my 3rd favorite RUclipsr back in action.
I'd rather be someone's influence than someone's obsession, so thank you!
Hard Rocking dudes from Oyster Bay, New York (Long Island)
I loved the days of the mirrored guitars and Eric Bloom's mirrored BOC symbol...they used to reflect this super bright white light onto the crowd!
Oh wow,. I'd always been a little unclear about how legit the origin was because it really didn't look that much like the alchemical symbol for Saturn unless it was severely modified (most modern versions I've seen, the tip of the hook is WAY further out from the main stem), but seeing how it was written in older manuscripts makes it make more sense. Guess it symbolizes a harvest of life, a harvest of death, eh
ALSO as for "Behemoth's World" (i.e. the source for the cover of Cultosaurus Erectus): it will probably not surprise anyone reading this that the BOC Symbol was added to the painting, but that's not the only change from the original image. The image is mirrored horizontally and appears to have been somewhat colorized yellow. The painting has been used for some other stuff as well; I'm fairly confident that it was used for a cover for at least one sci-fi/fantasy book, and it was used for the cover of a video game called ORK published by Psygnosis in 1993 (in an un-mirrored for and with no yellow color applied over it, but with a game logo that obviously wasn't there). Another piece of the original Behemoth's World painting appears on the back cover of Cultosaurus Erectus. At least on the LP and things that copy the sleeve (I have three copies: an LP, a regular jewel case CD, and the mini LP sleeve from the Columbia Albums Collection box), the pictures all have descriptions with little easter eggs related to BOC lore. Also, yes, the symbol is hard as hell to see. On the CDs it's so tiny that it just looks like a tiny speck, but even on the LP you gotta hold it up to your face and squint, basically, where you'll see that it's tilted 45 degrees or so compared to its usual "upright" orientation.
However, I'm not 100% sure of the date of RCD's original. The extremely few sources I've been able to find that list a date for the image say 1980, but I suspect it might be a little older than that. Anyone here a little more confident than me on this one?
I always thought it to be a stylized symbol of Saturn/Lead.
pretty much looks like a cross-section of a dough hook from a standard Kitchen Aid K5A home use kitchen mixer. Their mom's probably had one to mix cookies when they were kids growing up, and they remembered it fondly...
Seems to me that the intentionally cryptic symbol served quite well to stir up controversy, which was likely its original intent. By the way it's (bridle) as opposed to (brindle) ?
Wonderful job, thanks for your work on the history of the planetary signs: it helped my writing out. My symbol is 4774 symmetrized together to mean "love under will," and think it is the Key of It All of Liber Legis III:47.
I can't believe I missed this in my sub box. Pseudiom has gotten to the point where he can make reference to his own videos.
One of my favorite bands in the world since i was a kid
I found their music in 1976 when I was 13, been along the trip all the way, never seen them play as to my location, but I did do an album cover for them when I was at school in art class, and I still have it, and I well send it to them soon. It's very good people say, album title is "Millenniums Ago". I'll post it on their Facebook page, with a story, been meaning to do it for ages now, but not millenniums. Thank you for this. 😊
Would like to see the cover. Just curious what location are you in that they do not go to?
@@davec3901 Australia. They have been here once, to Sydney at least, years ago, I wasn't even aware. I'll try to get my act together and put it on their Facebook feed with a story.
@@martintaper7997 I see, yeah that's rough. Because they're all over the States, but the good news is there's so much phenomenal live stuff now that is accessible. In the old days it was very hard to get.
Pseudiom giving us quality content again!!
The symbol is on the flag of the Rickshaw on Curse of the Hidden Mirror. BOC RULES
BOC is the Steely Dan of Heavy Metal. Love them both
BÖC have given me so much to think about - their lyrics are unique, beautiful, confusing and somehow often inexplicably earnest. If that wasn't enough, their music is absolutely beyond compare. I have been entranced for about 50 years and it's still going strong. Cop that, Harry Styles.
I'm not sure why in the list of albums, "Curse of the Hidden Mirror" was skipped over. But the cross is obvious on that one. At a gig in Skokie, one of their Roadies had a big green hook and cross tattoo.
Anyone knows where to download "city of glendale police department occult criminal investigation" presented at 21:36 please?
Nevermind, i'm stupid, it's in the sources
You didn't mention the 2001 release "The Curse of the Hidden Mirror".
"Don't report this..AGENTS OF FORTUNE! ♫
"Ascension", and that's all they said
I think they have the eeriest collection of album covers I've ever seen, I wish the music was just as eerie. Don't Fear the Reaper gives me that feeling but I can't think of anything else.
In this contemptible, malevolent ñ, crooked shadow of a fever dream we call world, Earth, there are few good things, you, Pseudiom, are one of those happy few, Blue Oyster Cult another.
Malevolent ñ sounds like a good BOC song that was never written.
Ñósticos.
"few good things"?.There are a multitude of good things on this planet.
There also, just happen to be a multitude of very bad things, to even it out.
I remember in high school, just drawing the symbol instantly polarized fellow students opinion of me.
I was watching an episode of Ghost Adventures where someone had graffiti'd the symbol in a building they were investigating, and Zak was like "OMG GUYS THERE'S SATANIC SYMBOLS" 😂 Nah man, just a BÖC fan.🤘
ok.. stumbled in when this poped in my feed.. Talking about one of my fav bands, and that intro.. yeah, I think I'll subscribe. side note, I really dig that intro music, it's like a split point between Hugo Montenegro's The Good The Bad and The Ugly intro whistling, and Michael Jackson's Billie Jean
A very interesting, well put together video.
(22:55) "Cross of Nero"? What?
The modern peace sign was designed by Gerald Holtom for the British Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in 1958. The vertical line in the center represents the flag semaphore signal for the letter D, and the downward lines on either side represent the semaphore signal for the letter N.
Interesting video! I've been a BOC fan since the mid 70's when even as a kid I realized KISS was more gimmick than substance.
4:25 : Wow c'mon man! The horse's "brindle"? It's a bridle and not a "bite" but a bit.
Interesting note about Some Enchanted Evening; on the back cover you could send 50¢ and a self-addressed stamped envelope to a P.O. box in Long Island for song lyrics. As lyrics were never released for their first several albums, I was chomping at the bit...or bite as you say. Several weeks later, I received a small cardboard tube with my envelope taped to it. Inside was a scroll of paper with song lyrics that had been typed out on a typewriter or possibly an early computer. Although the lyrics weren't very accurate and didn't have all the songs, it's a fun piece of BOC history and nostalgia.
I had those lyrics also, printed on light green computer paper, and yep they were filled with inaccuracies and had songs missing--but it was all we had and better than nothing, especially considering the band's penchant for strange/bizarre lyrics. Have seen BOC live five times--first time was when they debuted the laser light show in the late 1970's. Been a huge fan since I first saw the "Secret Treaties" album...having never previously heard of BOC I bought it purely based on the album's cover art alone...when I was a senior in HS in 1974/75 in Izmir, Turkey. Secret Treaties was a huge influence on my musical taste back then as that album was a masterpiece!
@@sped17373 : Mine wasn't on green paper, it was peach/pink paper....they probably used the cheapest paper available. But even with it's inaccuracies, I loved it!
I also had the pleasure of seeing BOC several times, the first being in 1983 with Rainbow (Joe Lynn Turner days) opening. Stadium show, with the big "animatronic" Godzilla...it was awesome! Then they lost their record deal, everything went to shit and they were playing smaller venues. But it didn't matter if they were playing for 20,000 or 200 people, they always put on a great show. Yes, they played a club in Palo Alto (?) the 90's that only about 200 people showed up and I got to meet Buck, Eric, and Allen.
Secret Treaties was such a great album! I loved the artwork of so many albums but honestly the first two were lack-luster for me. When Spectres came out, it became my favorite.....until Fire! That changed everything, thanks to Martin Birch one of the best sound engineers to blow out my speakers/headphones! 🤓
Thanks for the comment and the memories!
Used to be on a bridge in western Massachusetts, but hasn't been maintained in recent years
Very happy to have discovered your channel , subbed
This is great. The only other take on this topic was on The Farm. Steven Snider and Chris Knowles went over B.O.C.’s history. But they tend to sensationalize and offer to much conjecture to fit the narrative they want to present. Great job
How I found out about BÖC as a kid was in itself cryptic. An anonymous poster on 4chan (I think it must have been /b/, but I don't recall exactly) in...must have been about December 2017 or January 2018, claimed he was the original vocalist of a band formed in New York in the late 60s, and challenged people to guess which. I'd never heard of the band before but did some googling and guessed correctly, Soft White Underbelly. He responded by linking a recording of their old jams on RUclips. It was most likely just someone talking shite...but then again, what would one have to gain by pretending to be the original vocalist of Soft White Underbelly? The conversation might be kicking around a 4chan archive somewhere.
You mean Les Braunstein?
@@choptop81 Seems like it, or someone claiming to be him on an anonymous imageboard as some kind of ARG
@@CraftingStudios1337 A Les Braunstein ARG? That's funny to think about
Blue Oyster Cult
Were always mysterious
And Very Cool
I'm imagining there are alot of BOC fans around, so I better tread lightly! I always liked BOC and I have seen them 3 times over the years. The first time I saw them was during the Black & Blue tour. There was a very strange combination of Sabbath and BOC fans surrounding me, and that's where I got my first taste of proselytizing from a R & R band fanatic. This lesson that I inadvertently walked into, was almost as rabid as a Zeppelin fan attempting to explain the symbols from their fourth album. Anyway, this kid was a Whirling Dervish of crazy rhetoric, and Dungeons & Dragons type mysticism! I just thought it was kinda cool to have a symbol that represented the band, and let people associate their own meaning to it. But the Sabbath side of the crowd was not having any of it! I found myself in the middle of a holy war that I just was not prepared to handle since I was flying high on mescaline. I never got a straight answer (that I can recall) and once the show started I forgot what we were talking about anyway. This is kind of along the same lines as the discussion I had with that rabid BOC fan so many years ago, minus the mescaline. This is the most in-depth explanation I have heard, all about a band that you just don't hear much about anymore. Very well done, and without all the insinuations of monstrous nonsense.
their early songs were beautifully melodic and also eerie ,i can hardly recommend them to others until now ,lyrics was full of praising death or weird metaphor about daily life which chilled me to the bone , but as to the guitar part it was so amazingly charming like temptation of sirens ,music is still outstanding even now but my innermost part refuses them
These comments, if you read them all, really tell a great story of fandom. Wow. While some of the comments speak of first-hand encounters with band members or immediate inner circle, I find the remarks from everyday, 70's and early 80's teens who lived in middle America to be completely fascinating. It's as if "Johnny" from Marshall Plan is commenting, on himself.
All these years later, is this proof of the genius of BOC?
Saw them at Astro world in '84. First time I ever smelled weed. They melted faces with Godzilla.
You using specifically the word "dismembered" wen referring to the Saturn symbol is especially interesting since that's what Jupiter and his siblings do to him in the grecorroman myth. (I used the interpretatio romana names for consistency but Saturn is the name for Kronos and Jupiter for Zeus)
BOC still rocking and putting out great ROCK music❤️
For some reason I always thought it signified the Alchemist. As in the turning of lead to gold...that sort of thing.
What a great band. I still don’t under why BOC is not in the RRHOF. Tragedy!
This was a well-educated band. The fact that they used a symbol of Saturn, light beams emanating north south and east and west from the planet. This is an ancient symbol of Saturn and of our original Sun as it is written in the Sumerian texts. The time of our creation, the purple dawn of creation
Such a spooky magical band they are!
Bella L
I remember when I was young and in church, it was the height of the Satanic music scare. This was one of the symbols my youth group described as Satanic. The one that really cracks me up now is they included the Egyptian Ankh with it. They taught us that the Ankh was a symbol representing a Christain cross with a circle representing emptiness where Christ's head is. The BOC symbol was the questioning of Christ. The problem with the Ankh as an "antichrist" symbol is it was used in Egypt at least 4000 years before Christ. Do your research Christians before you make up your BS!
And Christians can’t even be bothered to know the ins and outs of their own book!
The symbol will remain
Quality content!
What happened to Curse of the Hidden Mirror? It wasn't mentioned? Eric Bloom has a symbol guitar very cool! Surprised it wasn't shown or mentioned
I've met the guys from BOC and they are far from satanic. Partied with the drummer had a great time. Great band which I've see 50 60 times all top notch .
I recall my father telling me the common German name for the swastika translated as " hooked cross".
The hook in the cross was made to hold the cowbell.
I have learned that the "Hooked Cross" is what they call "The Sorceror's Cross" according to legend. Thus my wearing it as a Pendant...as it is sort of a focus for ones thoughts. It is said it was also the focus of Sorcerors to draw in the "weave" and manipulate it...using the hook to contain the strands until one wove them into a pattern to produce an effect.
Now...I am no sorceror...sadly...but they do fascinate me...and I think I could have been one if we retained the knowlege.
I got into BOC, as A young teenager…. And the symbol was intriguing and mystifying. I had no knowledge of it and the mystery of it drives curiosity… The music I enjoyed but was apprehensive on the “Cult” subject matter. Honestly didn’t want to expose myself to anything evil, but at the same time was deeply alluring.. Isn’t that the greatest types of temptations in life we all face?
I find funny discussing about Blue Oyster Cult is, what are they, psych rock, prog rock, heavy metal, or just old dad rock? And I think none, they just made good music, but most importantly they knew how to sell themselves and they just had some curious humour almost modern in their irony, maybe the symbol doesn't have a meaning because it doesn't need it, as it is its own mystery what draws people to the band
I really want to know which state that Glendale is in? Is it Glendale, CA or Glendale, AZ? Or one of the other Glendales?
(21:29) One thing I noticed while watching "Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills“ was that some people use the terms "cult" and "occult" interchangeably. They seem to associate the terms with Satanism.
Look up the symbol for the dwarf planet Ceres. That's it, it's the exact same symbol, apparently Gaick picked it out of a book of astronomy symbols. At least according to interviews with band members I have seen.
Yes ,Correct Symbol was inverted .. thank you for sharing. Peace
at 5:14 the symbol is also on the bottom left corner of the album cover
@5:30 is it just me or are the clouds in the sky their symbol as well!?
The symbol means "We are self-absorbed A-holes from Long Island".
It means 'knowing'. And it's a map to the next level. Pointing to The Center where spirit and matter meet on the flat Earth. The upside down question mark is meant to be the question flipped into its opposite: knowing. Who's ready to evolve?
Blue Oyster Cult....On tour forever!!
Night makes right
The symbol remains
Into the darkness
Must flow the pains