They 3 Died in the Lyrics Trivia Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. There is a persisting rumour that one of the Beatles died in the 1960s and that evidence of his demise can be found in messages (forward and backward) contained in the lyrics of the groups' songs. Which Beatle is the subject of these rumours?

Answer: Paul McCartney

Here's an outline of the story for all you budding conspiracy theorists. The details relate to supposed clues, mostly contained in the lyrics of songs from the "Sergeant Pepper" album.

Allegedly, Paul left a Beatles recording session in November 1966 and drove off in his car. He stopped to pick up a Beatles fan called Rita ("Lovely Rita"), missed a red light ("A Day in the Life") and collided with a lamppost. He died on a Wednesday morning at 5am ("She's Leaving Home"). His body was so badly burned as to be unrecognizable, even through dental records. Beatles' management blocked publication of the story in the press ("Wednesday morning papers didn't come" from "Lady Madonna") and replaced McCartney with a Canadian lookalike called Billy Shears ("Sergeant Pepper").

Various songs are claimed to contain backward messages including "Revolution 9" (Turn me on, dead man) and "I'm So Tired" (Paul is a dead man, miss him, miss him, miss him).

Hmmmmm!

2. "Shannon is gone, I hope she's drifting out to sea. She always loved to swim away. Maybe she'll find an island with a shaded tree, Just like the one in our backyard." Henry Gross' 1976 hit "Shannon" was written about the death of a pet. What kind of animal was Shannon?

Answer: Dog

That's right. "Shannon" was not written about a girl but a dog, and not one of Henry Gross' dogs either. This Shannon was an Irish Setter that had been owned by Carl Wilson of the Beachboys, which may explain the Beachboys feel to the song's harmonies. The song reached Number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Number 32 in the UK. Gross had previously been with the group Sha Na Na.

3. In the lyrics of an Everly Brothers hit, who came out of the skies on Flight 1203?

Answer: Ebony Eyes

"And then came the announcement over the loudspeaker:
"Would those having relatives or friends on flight number 1203 please report to the chapel across the street at once."

Then I felt a burning break deep inside
And I knew the heavenly ebony skies
Had taken my life's most wonderful prize
My beautiful ebony eyes"

"Ebony Eyes" was a 1961 hit for the Everly Brothers. It reached Number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Number 1 in the UK. Ironically, it was paired with "Walk Right Back". The follow-up, "Temptation" also topped the UK chart and was their last chart topper in either country.

The song tells the story of a young serviceman who is waiting at the airport for his fianc�e. They are going to get married but then he hears the tragic news that her plane has crashed. It was written by John Loudermilk who also sang under the name of Johnny Dee.

4. Which "cheerful" song by Gilbert O'Sullivan begins with the singer contemplating suicide? He then goes on to relate that both his parents are dead and that his fianc�e has jilted him at the altar on their wedding day.

Answer: Alone Again (Naturally)

"In a little while from now, if I'm not feeling any less sour,
I promise myself to treat myself and visit a nearby tower.
And, climbing to the top, I will throw myself off .... "

Raymond Edward "Gilbert" O'Sullivan was born in Ireland but raised from the age of 7 in England. As well as having a keen interest in music, he was also an amateur boxer in his youth.

"Alone Again (Naturally)" topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1972 and reached Number 3 in the UK. It received three Grammy nominations. Thankfully, Gilbert was still around in 1973 to have a UK Number 1 with "Clair" (written about his manager's 3-year-old daughter), and again with "Get Down" in 1974. He received Ivor Novello awards in both of those years. "Get Down" continues the dog theme from "Shannon", being a plea to his pet to stop jumping on the furniture!

5. In the song "Billy Don't Be a Hero", what was Billy?

Answer: A soldier

"I heard his fianc�e got a letter
That told how Billy died that day.
The letter said that he was a hero,
She should be proud he died that way.
I heard she threw that letter away."

Billy died after responding to his Sergeant's request for a volunteer to "ride up and bring us back some extra men". The song was written by Peter Callender and Mitch Murray who also wrote "The Ballad Of Bonnie And Clyde".

The group Paper Lace, who had come to prominence through winning the UK TV talent show "Opportunity Knocks", had a 1974 UK Number 1 with the song. In America, the song also topped the charts but this time recorded by Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods. The Paper Lace version peaked at Number 96. Nevertheless their follow-up, "The Night Chicago Died", did reach Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

6. The song "Abraham, Martin and John", written in 1969, is about assassinated heroes. A fourth death is recorded in the lyrics but not reflected in the title. Whose death is this?

Answer: Robert Kennedy

"Has anyone here seen my friend Bobby? Can you tell me where he's gone?
You know, he freed a lot of people but the good, they die young, yeah.
I just looked around and he was gone."*

For the record (no pun intended), the title refers to Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King and John F. Kennedy. The song was written by Dick Holler who had previously written the Royal Guardsmen hit, "Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron". In the USA, it was originally recorded by Dion whose version made Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Other recordings of the song to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 include Smokey Robinson and the Miracles (Number 33), Moms Mabley (Number 35) and Tom Clay as part of a medley with "What the World Needs Now Is Love" (Number 8). Yet another version, not released in the US, came from Marvin Gaye and reached Number 9 in the UK.

*Please note that these are the lyrics from Marvin Gaye's British hit. The Dion lyrics are slightly different.

7. In 1977, South African political activist Steve Biko died in a police cell. Which former member of the group Genesis recorded a song in his memory?

Answer: Peter Gabriel

"September '77, Port Elizabeth weather fine
It was business as usual in police room 619.
Oh Biko, Biko, because Biko
Oh Biko, Biko, because Biko
Yihla Moja, Yihla Moja -The man is dead"

"Biko" was a minor hit in the UK reaching Number 38 in 1980. It was used by Richard Attenborough as part of the soundtrack for the 1987 Oscar nominated film, "Cry Freedom". Gabriel's biggest hit came six years later with "Sledgehammer", which topped the Billboard Hot 100 and reached Number 4 in the UK.

8. In 1967, Keith West released a single called "Excerpt from a Teenage Opera". The intention was that more excerpts would follow and a full album. The album duly arrived ... 30 years later! The first offering related the tale of which elderly shopkeeper whom everyone took for granted until his death?

Answer: Grocer Jack

"Grocer Jack, Grocer Jack, is it true what Mummy said,
you won't come back? Oh no, no."

"Teenage Opera" was the brainchild of French born producer Mark Wirtz. It was intended to be a series of musical sketches describing characters in an imaginary town. This first offering reached Number 2 in the UK and is credited to singer Keith West of 60's group, Tomorrow. Wirtz used the band, whose other members included Steve Howe (who would join Yes) and John "Twink" Alder (who would found the Pink Fairies), to play on the record.

The follow-up, "Sam", only reached Number 38 and record company EMI soon lost interest. It wasn't until 1996 that a full album was released which included songs such as "Auntie Mary's Dress Shop", "(He's Our Dear Old) Weatherman", "The Paranoiac Woodcutter" and "Cellophane Mary-Jane".

9. "Missing You" was written by Lionel Ritchie and recorded by Diana Ross. Which fellow Motown artist is the song about?

Answer: Marvin Gaye

"Since you've been away
I've been down and lonely.
Since you've been away
I've been thinking of you,
Trying to understand
The reason you left me.
What were you going through?"

"Missing You" was released in 1984 and reached Number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Marvin Gaye had been shot by his father in April of that year.

10. "He rode into the night, accelerated his motorbike I cried to him in fright, don't do it, don't do it, don't do it." The British answer to the Shangri-Las was a young girl called Twinkle. He wasn't the leader of the pack but what was the name of her deceased boyfriend (who, contrary to what you might think, has no links with this site)?

Answer: Terry

Twinkle (aka Lynn Ripley) wrote "Terry" whilst at school and recorded it at the age of 16. As a female singer in the Sixties, she was unusual in that she wrote her own material. In fact, she was so unusual that, by the age of only 17, she had become sufficiently frustrated to turn her back on the commercial music industry. Artists who would later pay tribute to her include Elton John, Cat Stevens and the Smiths, who recorded a cover of her follow up single, "Golden Lights".

"Terry" reached Number 4 in the UK in 1964 despite being banned by the BBC.

Source: Author glendathecat

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor kyleisalive before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

This is the third in a trilogy of quizzes on those who "die, have died or are about to die" in the lyrics of a song.

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