The Big Al Easter Egg Post!

WeirdAlsBestFriend · Post by **WeirdAlsBestFriend** » Sat Feb 09, 2008 5:10 am

Ugh, I can't open the PH movie.

Post by **JEDM** » Sat Feb 09, 2008 5:22 am

Is Quicktime installed on your computer, WABF?

WeirdAlsBestFriend · Post by **WeirdAlsBestFriend** » Sat Feb 09, 2008 7:02 am

Ya, I got the home video stuff. but I still can't get the bonus mixes! Oh well.

TheLazenby · Post by **TheLazenby** » Sun Mar 02, 2008 10:41 am

Am I the only one that got the reference in "it's definitely not a Beatles song"?

OK, I'll explain... and that might make this whole situation make more sense.

Pink Floyd's "Dark Side Of The Moon" was, at some point, dubbed onto a tape that already had music on it. More specifically, the song 'Eclipse' was. However, when you overwrite a tape, the old audio does not always disappear; there are still traces of it audible. So, at the end of "Eclipse", when the guy stops talking and the heartbeat fades away, you can hear traces of the previous contents: an as-yet-unidentified orchestral version of the Beatles "Ticket To Ride". This was apparently first discovered on the early 90's remastered edition, and since then, Floyd has become aware of it. Some versions of the album released after its discovery (like the DVD-A, I believe) have the heartbeat remixed in order to remove the bleedthrough.

So in other words, this was probably not intentional in the least; "Bite Me" was just recorded onto tape that was being reused from another session for Scotti Bros. You might then ask, why is it backwards? Well, because Al's recording is on the opposite side of the tape. This is fairly common on cassette tapes - listen closely to the gaps between the songs on a tape, and you'll probably hear, in reverse, what's on the other side. (Sometimes, this effect is too strong, and you can hear the reversed audio quite clearly on that side. I do remember reading online that a TMBG fan returned their "John Henry" tape because of that.)

Post by **Gadget Girl** » Sun Mar 02, 2008 5:13 pm

TheLazenby,

Wow - this is very cool to know. (I love Pink Floyd. I had thought those sounds were purposely added.)

Thanks for sharing the info!

Post by **Big Spoon** » Sun Mar 02, 2008 7:48 pm

TheLazenby @ Mar 2 2008, 12:41 AM wrote: like the DVD-A, I believe

That's what she said.

TheLazenby · Post by **TheLazenby** » Sun Mar 02, 2008 9:28 pm

With some careful filtering and manipulation, you can actually mix out most of the slowed-down groan of "Bite Me", and make the hidden song stand out pretty clearly. I can post that it someone would like to hear it.

Incidentally, has anyone checked to see if this was in the Ear Booker logo version?

Coastergeekperson04 · Post by **Coastergeekperson04** » Mon Mar 03, 2008 5:03 pm

TheLazenby @ Mar 2 2008, 08:28 PM wrote: With some careful filtering and manipulation, you can actually mix out most of the slowed-down groan of "Bite Me", and make the hidden song stand out pretty clearly. I can post that it someone would like to hear it.

Incidentally, has anyone checked to see if this was in the Ear Booker logo version?

On Wikipedia, it said

As similar incidents have occurred in the past, it seems most likely that the 'easter egg' is nothing more than the result of the sound collage being dubbed onto a second-hand tape. Another notable incident of this sort can be heard at the end of Pink Floyd's [[Dark Side Of The Moon]], in which the song "Eclipse" appears to fade into a barely audible, string-based cover of the Beatles' "Ticket To Ride" - the result of Floyd's recording being placed over top of a previous recording on that tape.

And then I added (yes, I edit Wikipedia)

"Bite Me" could have been recorded at a faster speed than "[[Tears of the Earth (song)|Tears of the Earth]]", and possibly backwards, for an easier recording.

and here is proof.

And that's just before I was expecting an opportunity to meet Al and ask him. At least I can inform him though.

TheLazenby · Post by **TheLazenby** » Mon Mar 03, 2008 10:24 pm

Yeah, I know, I added the stuff about "Ticket To Ride" shortly before I posted it here.

Al's screaming is obviously forwards at at a normal speed, so "Bite Me" seems to have been made up of different sources. "Tears Of The Earth" appears to be on the recording of the backwards, high pitched sound that resembles fingers on a chalkboard. (Although, when slowed down to the proper speed for "Tears", that sound doesn't turn into anything recognizable...)

TheLazenby · Post by **TheLazenby** » Tue Mar 04, 2008 8:39 am

I revised your Wikipedia addition a bit.