Hands on the shoulder and a voice in a karaoke bar
A caller who gives his name as [name withheld], in San Francisco, tells Art Bell about a night around age 20. He was sulking in a karaoke bar over an unplanned pregnancy when he felt hands on his shoulders and heard a voice he took to be his dead father. He says the experience encouraged him to grow up, and he adds that he now sees his father in his daughter's eyes, without deciding what that means.
This clip comes from the source recording. AI chose where it starts and ends, so it may start or end a little early or late. The word-for-word transcript is not published. You can hear the source recording on the Internet Archive (file “Ghost to Ghost 1995.mp3”, starting at 2:13:27). Is this you, or someone you know? Ask for a correction or removal.
The story as told
The caller gives his name as [name withheld] and says he is calling from San Francisco on KSFO. He starts by comparing his story to a scene in the film 2010 in which a ghost on a ship announces that something wonderful is about to happen. He says that when he was about 20 he had just become a father by accident and was sitting in a karaoke bar sulking, not drinking. His girlfriend, about six months pregnant, walked in, and he was not supposed to be out that night. He says he had earlier sworn on his father's grave to quit smoking, which he calls a spiritual mistake, and he notes he was smoking again while speaking to Art from in front of his computer. He says that in the bar he got a strange feeling that someone was standing behind him, like being watched, and that he could almost make out a figure. Then, he says, he felt hands on his shoulders, and he knew it was his dad, who he says told him [quote withheld] He says he heard a small voice over the music. He remembers the song was “White Rabbit,” and the voice said [quote withheld] He says he felt a light behind him and that his father then left. He ties this to Art's earlier talk about how God would make himself known, saying people would just know. Finally, he says that since that day, whenever he looks at his daughter he sees his father in her eyes. He does not know whether this is reincarnation or something else, but he says the eyes hold somebody he has known for years. Art thanks him for the call.
Reported events, in order
- 0:29
The caller says he was about 20, had just become a father by accident, and was sitting in a karaoke bar sulking, not drinking.
- 0:41
His girlfriend, about six months pregnant, walks in. He says he was not supposed to be out that night.
- 1:13
He says that years earlier he had sworn on his father's grave to quit smoking, and that he is smoking again now.
- 1:27
He gets a strange feeling that somebody is standing behind him, like being watched, and says he could almost make out a figure.
- 2:02
He feels hands on his shoulders.
- 2:09
He says he knew it was his dad, and felt him saying [quote withheld]
- 2:21
He hears a small voice through the music. He recalls the song playing was “White Rabbit.”
- 2:30
The voice says [quote withheld]
- 2:35
He feels a light behind him, and then says his father left.
- 2:42
He connects the experience to Art's earlier talk about how God would make himself known, saying people would just know.
- 3:09
He says that since that day he sees his father in his daughter's eyes, and does not know whether it is reincarnation or something else.
Claims
Each claim is labeled as something the person telling the story noticed (observation), what they made of it (interpretation), something others told them (hearsay), or something the host said (host statement).
- observation· 1:27
The caller felt that somebody was standing behind him and that he was being watched.
- observation· 2:02
The caller felt hands placed on his shoulders.
- interpretation· 2:09
The caller concluded that the presence was his dead father.
- interpretation· 2:14
The caller says he heard a voice he takes to be his father telling him to grow up.
- observation· 2:30
The caller heard a small voice over the music saying it was okay.
- observation· 2:35
The caller says he felt a light behind him and then the presence left.
- interpretation· 1:18
The caller says his father is dead, as shown by his mention of swearing on his father's grave.
- interpretation· 3:09
The caller says he now sees his father in his daughter's eyes and raises reincarnation as a possible explanation without deciding.
Scores, with reasons
An AI model gave these scores using a fixed set of scoring rules (scoring-v1). They are editorial judgments and rough guides, not the odds that anything paranormal happened. How scoring works.
This is a firsthand story with several concrete details (age about 20, a karaoke bar, a named song, a pregnant girlfriend walking in), and the caller separates what he felt from what he concluded. It lacks a date or any witness, and a crowded bar offers an easy ordinary explanation for hands on the shoulders.
Evidence for and against
- Firsthand word: [quote withheld]
- Specific details given: [quote withheld] and [quote withheld]
- The caller separates what he perceived from what he concluded and states his uncertainty: [quote withheld]
- No date, no name for the bar, and no location beyond the city.
- No second witness is said to have seen anything.
- In a public bar, a touch from a person behind him is easy to believe.
- One line is flagged as low in confidence in the automatic transcript.
- The labels showing who is speaking shift between the caller, the host, and a host label marked uncertain in places.
- 2:02
- 0:29
- 3:09
What the model inferred (not said on air): Component judgment: closeness to the source high (firsthand, 20 to 25); specificity moderate (about 12); internal consistency good (about 16); alternative explanations fit reasonably well for a crowded bar (about 8); calibration good, with uncertainty acknowledged (about 11).
Nothing beyond the caller's own word is offered. There is no photograph, recording, document, or second witness on air, and the named details (a song title, a city) are not evidence of the event itself.
Evidence for and against
- The caller's firsthand word only.
- No physical evidence is claimed to exist.
- No second witness speaks on air.
- No record, date, or venue that could be checked is named.
- It is not stated whether anyone else in the bar could back him up.
- 2:02
- 2:09
What the model inferred (not said on air): Under the scoring guide this is the usual case of word alone, in the 0 to 10 range.
The story is framed as comforting rather than threatening: the presence is a father offering reassurance, and the story ends warmly with the caller seeing him in his daughter's eyes. The unexplained hands on the shoulders and the figure he [quote withheld] make it only mildly eerie.
Evidence for and against
- Unseen hands placed on the shoulders in a bar: [quote withheld]
- A figure he could almost make out while feeling watched: [quote withheld]
- The message is reassuring: [quote withheld]
- The story ends on a warm note about his daughter.
- No threat, harm, or escalation is reported.
- The caller says he is getting chills as he speaks, but that is how he feels now, not part of the story.
- 2:14
- 1:37
What the model inferred (not said on air): Creepiness is judged from the reported events and how they are framed, not from the caller's voice.
The core is a familiar, comforting visit from a dead parent who touches the caller and speaks a short, reassuring line. What sets it apart is the setting (a karaoke bar), the named song playing at the time, and the closing image of seeing the father in the daughter's eyes.
Evidence for and against
- An unusual setting for a visit from the dead: a karaoke bar.
- A specific detail of the surroundings: [quote withheld]
- A distinctive closing observation about his daughter's eyes.
- Hands on the shoulders plus a reassuring voice from a dead parent is a common ghost-story pattern.
- The “presence behind me” opening is a stock element.
- How new the story is compared with the rest of the archive cannot be judged from a single short call.
- 2:27
- 3:30
What the model inferred (not said on air): A familiar frame with a few distinctive details, so scored near the middle of the range.
Scoring confidence 0.70 · analysis confidence 0.75 · checked against outside sources: no · evidence available: The caller's own firsthand word in a live call; No physical evidence, documentation, or recording offered; No second witness speaking on air. The originality score blends the model's score (48) with how rare the story's details are across the archive. This method is still provisional.
Ordinary explanations to consider
These are possibilities only. None is a finding about what happened.
- Someone in the crowded bar could have put hands on the caller's shoulders from behind, with the feeling of being watched coming from a real person standing behind him. · The caller was sitting in a public karaoke bar. He describes [quote withheld] before feeling hands on his shoulders.
- The voice heard [quote withheld] may have been wrongly credited to something unseen when it came from the bar's sound system or other patrons, since he places it during loud music. · He says [quote withheld] and names the song playing as “White Rabbit.”
- Expectation and worry about becoming a father, at the moment his pregnant girlfriend arrived, could produce a strong sense of a presence offering reassurance. · He describes sitting in the bar sulking and says his girlfriend, about six months pregnant, walked in.
What stands out
The encounter he reports is comforting rather than frightening, and it happened in a noisy public karaoke bar rather than a home. The caller names the song that was playing (“White Rabbit”) at the time. He also frames it as an answer to Art's earlier discussion on air about how God would make himself known.
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